The Egypt Experience

Introduction _________________________________________________________ 6Phase One: Exploring Egypt ___________________________________________ 9Transition to Phase Two ______________________________________________ 12Phase Two: Engaging Egypt __________________________________________ 13Transition to Phase Three ____________________________________________ 16Phase Three: Egyptian Exhibition: _____________________________________ 19

Learning to StoryboardSample Rubric for Multimedia PresentationSample Rubric for GuidebookProject LettersCertificate

This project was created for Immersive Education by TechKNOW Associates Corporation:26 Lori Street, Monroe Township, NJ 08831, U.S.A. (800) 656 – 0432

For additional information, visit our website: www.techKNOWassociates.com/kar2ouche

© 2002 Immersive Education. All rights reserved.

Permission is hereby granted to educators to make copies of portions or all the content of this project,provided that the purposes of the copying are educational and entirely noncommercial.

The Institute for Ancient Egypt is planning to take its world-famous exhibit of ancient Egyptian artifacts on tour in the UnitedStates. Rather than visiting museums, the Institute is planning togo to schools across the United States. They have selected yourschool as their first stop and have requested that your class helpdevelop a plan to be used as a model to present their exhibit inan exciting and educational way.

The above is part of the scenario you can use to introduce The Egypt Experienceto your students1. This project provides students with the opportunity to masterhistorical content, to learn how to conduct research, and to build upon theirlanguage and critical thinking skills as they assist the “Institute” in planning,organizing, advertising, and presenting its exhibit. Students become “authorities” onancient Egyptian history and culture as they engage in the activities throughout theproject.

The Egypt Experience project calls for cooperative groups of students to conductin-depth, meaningful investigations into ancient Egyptian culture. This projectaddresses performance standards in English language arts, social studies, appliedlearning, mathematics, and art. It is divided into three distinct but interrelatedlearning units including a culminating presentation:

v Phase One: Exploring Egypt: Students will engage in a series of activitiesthat assesses and augments their background knowledge of ancient Egypt.They will determine which ancient artifacts should be placed on display tobest represent the history and culture of ancient Egypt. Students will create aguidebook for the exhibition.

v Phase Two: Engaging Egypt: Each student will focus on one of the manyunderlying stories of ancient Egypt. They will create educational productsdesigned to teach visitors about the wonders and mysteries of this fascinatingculture.

v Phase Three: Egyptian Exhibition: The culminating event will be acelebration of student achievement. Students will present what they havelearned and display their related projects to invited guests. They will create ananimated overview to begin the day’s activities.

This project strives to engage students by appealing to their natural creativity andcuriosity. It uses technology to give students access to a variety of resources as theydevelop an in-depth understanding of the history and culture of ancient Egypt.

• Kar2ouche Composer: Primary Curriculum Egyptians• Word Processing Software (such as Microsoft Word or AppleWorks)

1 The full scenario can be found in the Handouts section of this project.

• Adjusts the use of spoken, written, and visual language (e.g.,conventions, style, vocabulary) to communicate effectively with avariety of audiences and for different purposes.

• Employs a wide range of strategies as they write and usedifferent writing process elements appropriately to communicatewith different audiences for a variety of purposes.

• Applies knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g., spellingand punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create,critique, and discuss print and non-print texts.

• Uses a variety of technological and information resources (e.g., libraries,databases, computer networks, video) to gather and synthesize information andto create and communicate knowledge.

• Participates as knowledgeable, reflective, creative, and critical members of avariety of literacy communities.

• Collects information using a variety of research strategies.• Gathers and organizes information on a specific idea or topic.• Organizes and presents information in multiple ways, such as

timelines, maps, graphs, newspapers, interviews, diaries, oralpresentations, etc.

• Researches with others to come up with group decisions and ideas.• Develops a product or solution to an identified problem.

• Makes up and uses a variety of strategies and approachesto solve real-world problems.

• Collects, organizes, and displays data with tables, charts,and graphs that are appropriate for the data.

• Discriminates relevant from irrelevant information.• Expresses solutions clearly and logically, using appropriate

mathematical terms, language, and notations.

• Develops his or her own ideas and images through thecreation of art works based on themes, symbols, and events.

• Develops skills with electronic media as a means of expressingvisual ideas.

• Engages in the processes that constitute creation andperformance of theatrical productions.

A project of this scope and magnitude takes planning. Here are some things toconsider before you begin this project:

The project plan, with all of its phases, activities, and extensions, may be too muchfor any one class to do entirely. Read through the whole plan and select whichpieces are most appropriate for your class. Make sure you have all the materials youneed before beginning any part of the project. Also, feel free to change and adaptany aspect of the project to suit the interests and needs of your students.

If this is your first time doing a project like this, consider starting with only one ortwo activities. If you haven’t used cooperative grouping before, you will want to easeinto it slowly. You can learn more about cooperative learning on the Internet1.

The estimated time frame for this project is 8-10 weeks. Each section includes asuggested time frame, which you may have to adjust to meet the needs of your classand related circumstances. However, there are many variables that you shouldconsider (such as the number of computers you have and how much time your classwill devote to the project) before determining the actual time it will take your class tocomplete the project.

Once you begin this project, it is important to set up a time frame and stick with it.Plan to invite administrators, parents, and other classes to your culminatingactivity. Inviting an audience and giving students a real deadline will help keepthem focused throughout this project.

Yes! This project encourages student creativity: no two finished projects will be thesame. Including several classes will enrich the culminating activity. By working withother teachers, this can be a school-wide project. Each class/grade can participateat its own level.

For the culminating activity, each class can give a short presentation of their bestworks. To keep the event to a reasonable length, limit each class to a specificamount of time for presentation. Set up a gallery of projects to make sure allstudents’ work is seen and appreciated by visitors.

1 Visit http://www.cde.ca.gov/iasa/cooplrng2.html for more about teaching with cooperative grouping.

This project is designed to work in a wide variety of school settings. You can do thisproject whether you have one computer in the classroom, several computers in theclassroom, access to a computer lab or media center, or laptop computers. Many ofthe activities present options for working without a computer. Use the followingquestions to help decide how to organize this project:

• How many computers do you have? The more access your students have tocomputers, the more involved their final products can be. If access to computersis limited, you may need to schedule when students will use the computer.Having students work in pairs or small cooperative groups will provide them withmore opportunities to use the computer. Students should be prepared beforegoing to the computer. They can use storyboards and/or graphic organizers tohelp plan out work before going to the computer.

• Are the computers in your classroom or in a lab? If the computers are in theclassroom, students can use them on an “as needed” basis. This makescomputer use a natural part of the process. If your computers are in a lab thatyou visit at certain times, make the most of this time. Be sure that studentsknow what they need to do before going to the lab.

• How much time (in your school day and how many weeks) do you have for thisproject? The more you integrate this project into your daily curriculum, the moretime you can devote to the project. You can adapt the project to meet specificcurriculum needs. Have the class help develop a calendar to keep the project ona specified time frame, and be consistent in keeping to that calendar. Finally,don’t over plan. If this is your first time doing project-based learning, considerdoing only part of this project. You will be much more successful if you startsmall. You can always add more aspects of the project at a later date.

• How comfortable are the students using computers? It can be very helpful ifstudents have experience using computers and using Kar2ouch software beforestarting this project. You can find additional teacher resources and lesson planideas in the Kar2ouche Education Support Packs.

You will need to install Kar2ouche: Egyptians on yourcomputers. This program is required for each phase of theproject. Students will learn to use the program as theywork through the subsequent phases. If you needadditional support, see the online tutorial at:http://www.kar2ouche.com/support/tutorial.htm

In addition, here is a checklist you can use beforeintroducing this project to your students:

q Any software students will need should bepre-installed into each computer. Inaddition to Kar2ouche: Egyptians, studentsshould have access to a word processingprogram.

q You will need to hear and record sound forthis project. Make sure your speakers andmicrophone are installed and working.

q Bookmark any Internet links students willbe using. Make sure any necessary plug-ins (such as QuickTime, Real Player, etc.)are loaded and working.

q Prepare for what to do if the technologydoesn’t work. (If the printer breaks, or yourconnection to the Internet goes down, youshould have ready activities assubstitutes.)

If you want the project to go smoothly, you will want to spend time planning theproject with your students. Whenever possible, let students make choices about theproject. This will give them a stronger sense of ownership and motivation. Be sure toreview the rubrics and any other assessments you will be using ahead of time, sostudents know what is expected of them.

Absolutely, yes! Project based learning has many advantages. It appeals to a varietyof learning styles, motivates students and builds necessary skills in real-worldcontext.

Welcome your students to a new and exciting learning experience. Your studentswill discover the rich and fascinating history and culture of ancient Egypt.

The Egypt Experience creates an authentic learning experience by simulating a“real-world” scenario. Part of motivating your students to become involved in theproject centers on how you introduce and present it. You want to engage students inthe project’s concept as well as provide them with a solid foundation of skills theywill need as the project develops. You also want students to take ownership of theproject by including them in the decision-making process. Using official-lookingdocuments and letters and adhering to deadlines can make the simulation seemmore real, engaging students in the entire learning process. (Make sure yourstudents understand this is only a simulation.)

Teaching Tip: You will find all the documents (advertisements, letters,etc.) at the end of the Appendix. If you are changing or adapting thisproject, you may need to change or adapt some of the documents to suityour needs. You will need to plan out any changes carefully ahead of time.For your convenience, there are “blanks” in the documents so you can setyour own deadlines. There is also extra stationery so you can create yourown letters.

Begin by finding out how much your students already know aboutancient Egypt. Divide the class into cooperative groups. Tell yourstudents that these groups will remain the same throughoutthe project. Ask each group to answer the followingquestions as best they can:

♦ What is a Pharaoh?♦ What is a pyramid?♦ Where is Egypt?♦ What was life like in ancient Egypt?♦ What are the names of the main Egyptian deities

(gods and goddesses)?♦ What is an artifact?

Tell students that they can use pictures, text, or both to express their answers.Have students share their responses with the whole class and record theirresponses on a large piece of experience paper. Use this opportunity to clarify anyinformation that is that is unclear, incomplete, or incorrect.

Post the class responses on a bulletin board. This chart should be revisited andupdated throughout the research phase as it can provide students with a way toorganize and identify what they have learned.

The following activities are designed to introduce some key concepts about ancientEgypt and to provide them with a historical concept. Based on the response to theassessment activity above, you should decide which of these activities are necessaryand/or appropriate. It is not necessary to do all three activities, unless you feel yourstudents would benefit.

Your students should have an understanding of the geography of Ancient Egypt andthe importance of the Nile River, the longest river in the world. Because of theflooding of the Nile River, the area around the Nile Delta and Nile Valley was andstill is some of the most fertile soil in the world. This allowed agriculture to thrive,enabling ancient Egyptian society not only to survive but also to flourish in theharsh desert environment.

Begin by having students explore the historical maps athttp://www.pbs.org/wnet/pharaohs/maps.html.1

This site shows three successively larger views of areas in Egypt: The Giza Plateau,the area of Lower Egypt, and a complete map of modern day Egypt. Eachcooperative group should create its own map of one of these three areas. You mayalso ask one group to create a map of the Middle East, which demonstrates Egypt’slocation and surrounding countries. Encourage students to make large maps thatcan be displayed in the classroom and used as a resource throughout the project.

You can help your students put their study of ancient Egypt into perspective bycreating a time line. Each cooperative group can create its own time line or, to savetime, divide the work among the groups and create one class time line. Althoughthis project is primarily focusing on the time period known as The New Kingdom(1570 BCE to 1070 BCE), a time line incorporating the years 3000 BCE to 300 BCEwill provide a more comprehensiveoverview. This timeline should includethe following periods: Early Dynastic,Old Kingdom, First Intermediate, MiddleKingdom, Second Intermediate, NewKingdom, Ramessid Period, ThirdIntermediate, and Late Period. It shouldinclude at least one or two key facts fromeach of these time periods.

1 Additional map resources can be found at:

http://www.historylink101.com/ancient_egypt/ancient_egypt_maps.htm

Students can find information for their time lines at the following web sites:

• http://www.pbs.org/wnet/pharaohs/timeline.html• http://www.carnegiemuseums.org/cmnh/exhibits/egypt/timeline.html• http://www.kv5.com/html/timeline.html

Next, ask students to put these time periods in perspective by answering thefollowing questions:

1. Approximately how many years was each of the time periods?2. How many years has it been since the beginning of the first Dynasty?3. Which was the longest time period?4. Which was the shortest time period?

Encourage students to come up with their own questions as well.

For more information about making and using timelines, visithttp://www.socialstudiesforkids.com/articles/howtomakeatimeline1.htm

Since this project requires students to plan a museum tour, you may need toprovide some key concepts about museums, how they are used, and what kind ofinformation they contain. Ideally your class can plan a field trip to a local museumthat contains Egyptian or related artifacts. Ask students to take notes about thetypes of information and how it is presented in the museum.

If your school is unable to take an actual museum tour, you can tour a virtualmuseum showcasing the “Splendors of Ancient Egypt,” courtesy of the FloridaInternational Museum. Have students tour the galleries and explore the artifacts at:http://www2.sptimes.com/Egypt/Egypt.6.html.

Technology Tip: Students may want to download pictures of artifacts touse later in the project. On a Windows-based computer you can downloada graphic by right-clicking and selecting “Save Picture As…” On aMacintosh computer you can download a graphic by holding the mousebutton down and selecting “Download image to Disk.”

Students should save all of their graphic images in one folder to help themfind them later. Remind students to keep track of where they get theirimages and information so that they can cite their sources as necessary.

After your class takes its real or virtual museum tour, ask your students to usetheir impressions and notes to write a review of the museum. The review shouldinclude features of the museum, information about the museum, and a rating of themuseum.

You will now provide students with an opportunity to add to their existingknowledge of ancient Egypt. At the same time, you will introduce them to theKar2ouche software and using the Internet to research, both of which will beintegral components to completing the project.

Distribute the Project Introduction Letter to your students. This letter introducesstudents to the simulation, telling them that for the next few weeks they will behelping the Institute of Ancient Egypt plan its tour of the United States. Their firstassignment is to create a graphic organizer on one of the following topics:

• Egyptian Writing • Gods and Goddesses • Mummification• Pharaohs • Pyramids • Temples

You should divide the class into their cooperative groups. If you have more than 6groups, you can either assign two groups the same topic, or come up with anadditional topic. Each group will create a graphic organizerabout their topic. Tell students that their graphic organizer mustcontain a brief description of the topic, 6 interesting facts aboutthe topic, and a graphic or image representing the topic.Remind students that this is only preliminary research, andthey will learn more about these topics as the project continues.

Students should begin their research in the Text Audio area in Kar2ouche:Egyptians. They can supplement this information by conducting research on theInternet. You can provide the following web sites to help students get started.

• http://www.ancientegypt.co.uk• http://www.kent.k12.wa.us/curriculum/soc_studies/Egypt/egypt.html

Technology Tip: Students can create their graphic organizer as a singleframe in Kar2ouche: Egyptians. They should plan out their graphicorganizer on paper before going to the computer. Students can usebackground images, characters, and props to display their topic. They canwrite the description of the topic in the caption area. To include the 6interesting facts, students can use thought bubbles and speech bubbles.

After the groups have completed their graphic organizer, have each group presentits research to the class. Remind students that they should not simply read theinformation from their graphic organizer, but rather summarize the importantpoints of their research as they display their product.

For more information about creating and using graphic organizers as an educationaltool, visit: http://techknowassociates.com/teachers/UsingGraphicOrganizers.pdf

In this activity, students will conduct more in-depth research. Distribute the DailyLife Activity Letter to your students. In this letter students are asked to researchtopics related to the daily lives of ancient Egyptians. Each group should choose atopic for research. Students may choose one of the following topics or come up withtheir own:

• Family Life• Cosmetics and Hairstyles• Entertainment and Leisure• Food and Cooking• Housing and Furniture

• Marriage• Clothing and Jewelry• Government• Education and Learning

Some groups may want to choose more than one topic. This is acceptable; however,make sure that each group has at least one unique topic. Students can use thefollowing web sites to begin their research. Encourage students to use print andlibrary resources as well.

• http://www2.sptimes.com/Egypt/EgyptCredit.4.2.html• http://www.touregypt.net/village/index.htm• http://www.reshafim.org.il/ad/egypt/timelines/topics/index.html• http://www.uk.sis.gov.eg/pharo/html/front.htm• http://emuseum.mnsu.edu/prehistory/egypt/dailylife/dailylife.html

Each group should create their multimedia presentation as a two- to three-framepresentation in Kar2ouche: Egyptians. The first frame should provide informationabout the topic. The next frame or two can demonstrate how Egyptian life is similarand/or different from life today. Encourage students to use the record feature toadd sound to their presentation.

Technology Tip: After all your students have created their individualpresentations, you can combine them into a single class presentation. Todo this, create a new storyboard. Then, drag the “Load” icon onto the “NewFrame” icon. Choose one of the individual presentations and it will loadinto the new storyboard. Repeat this for each of the individualpresentations. Make sure you save often.

Now that your students have a general idea of the lifeand culture of ancient Egyptians, it is time to begintheir main assignment. Distribute the GuidebookActivity Letter. This letter explains that students areto choose ten artifacts or displays for the upcomingtour of U.S. schools. Each cooperative group shouldchoose which 10 items it wants to include in theguidebook. Each group will be responsible forcreating a guidebook featuring the items theychoose.2

Students will use the Kar2ouche: Egyptians software to both choose the items andcreate the guidebook. According to the letter, students may choose either artifactsor “displays.” In terms of this project, students can create a frame depicting life inancient Egypt using backgrounds, characters, and props to represent a museumdisplay.

Technology Tip: Students may want to include items from their researchthat are not depicted in the Kar2ouche: Egyptians palettes. Students canload their own digital image as a background using the “Quick Palette.”Click the orange folder icon and choose the image you want to use.

Students will need to write a blurb that describes and explains each item includedin the guidebook. You may provide the following to help guide students in theirwriting:

Artifacts Displays• Of what is the artifact made?• Who used this artifact and how was it

used?• How does the artifact represent ancient

Egyptian society?• How old is the artifact?• Explain why the artifact is included in the

exhibit?

• What does the displayportray?

• Explain each of thecharacters, images, andprops in the display andwhat they represent.

In addition to one page for each artifact or display, students should create a coverpage and a sources-cited page for their guidebook. Make sure all studentsunderstand what is expected of them. You can provide students with the rubric thatwill be used to assess their finished work. A sample rubric is provided in theAppendix. You may need to customize this rubric to meet the needs of yourstudents.Once the guidebooks are completed and printed, each group should present itsguidebook to the class. Students should explain how they determined which itemsto include in the guidebook.

2 You may save time by having each cooperative group create one or two pages to contribute to a

class guidebook.

(OPTIONAL READING ACTIVITY)

The research completed in the preceding sections provided students with generalknowledge of ancient Egyptian culture and history. In this activity, students willhave the opportunity to place that knowledge in context by researching one of themost famous pharaohs, King Tutankhamun.

Begin by having students read the stories “The Life of King Tutankhamun” and “TheDeath of Tutankhamun,” both of which are included on the Kar2ouche: Egyptianssoftware. These stories may be read aloud in groups or individually. Encouragestudents to take notes on the reading and draw comparisons to the events in thestory. You can use the following questions to help guide student reading:

♦ How did the Egyptian people regard Pharaohs?♦ Why was the Nile River important to the Egyptian people?♦ How powerful were the Pharaohs?♦ Where and how were the Pharaohs buried?♦ How was King Tutankhamun similar to other Pharaohs?

How was he different?

Ask students to compare and contrast the information in thestory with what they learned from their earlier research. Have each group create agraphic organizer demonstrating their response to one of the guide questions.

Teacher Tip: A good way of assuring that your students benefit from thisreading activity is to organize it so that it includes:

• A pre-reading activity that prepares your students for the text. • Reading comprehension strategies for use during reading. • A post-reading activity that assesses what students have learned.

For more ideas on how to better organize and enrich reading activities, visit:• http://www.rigby.com/teachers/articles/ideas.asp• http://www.fln.vcu.edu/ld/read.html.

Students can demonstrate their understanding of the reading by creating a short“news report” about one or more sections using Kar2ouche: Egyptians. 1 Each groupshould choose from one of the following subheadings:

The Life of Tutankhamun The Death of Tutankahmun• The Temple• The Palace• On The Nile• With His People

• The Embalming House• Inside The Tomb• Temple and Sanctuary on the Nile• The Tomb

Prior to creating their own news report, have students watch a few current newsreports. Discuss the format of a news report with the class, stressing what type ofinformation is included. This will help students create their own brief news report.

1 There is a “TV Presenter” and “TV Screen” included in the images palette.

Now that your students have a solid background on Egyptian culture and history, itis time to immerse them in the stories and mythologies of ancient Egypt. In thisphase students will explore the myths and legends of famous Egyptian rulers, gods,and goddesses.

This activity will provide students with an overview of the stories, myths, legends,and histories related to ancient Egypt. Distribute the Postcard Activity Letter to yourstudents. Each cooperative group should choose to focus on either the Pharaohs orthe deities of ancient Egypt. Each group will create 5 postcards. Each postcard willhighlight a different king, god, or goddess. Be sure that each group chooses differentindividuals, so that there is no duplication among the groups.

Students can find a list of gods and goddesses in the Kar2ouche: Egyptianssoftware. Additional information about deities can be found on the Internet:

• http://www.emayzine.com/lectures/egyptian.htm• http://emuseum.mnsu.edu/prehistory/egypt/religion/godslist.html• http://touregypt.net/godsofegypt/

Students can find additional information about Pharaohs at the following web sites:

• http://www.touregypt.net/kings.htm• http://www.kingtutone.com/pharaohs• http://www.anthro.mankato.msus.edu/prehistory/egypt/history/people.html

Students should use Kar2ouche: Egyptians to create their postcards. Each postcardshould be a separate frame. When printing out the postcards, students shouldchoose to print 4 frames per page in “Landscape” to print to the correct size. Youmay want to print postcards on card stock and/or laminate them to give them anauthentic look.

The following books can be used as either whole class reading or independentreadings:

♦ His Majesty, Queen Hatshepsut by Dorothy Sharp Carter, et. al.♦ The Winged Cat: A Tale of Ancient Egypt by Deborah Nourse Lattimore♦ Pharaoh’s Daughter: A Novel of Ancient Egypt by Julius Lester♦ Senefer: A Young Genius in Old Egypt by Beatrice Lumpkin♦ Mara, Daughter of the Nile or The Golden Goblet by Eloise McGraw♦ The Reluctant God by Pamela Service♦ Cleopatra by Diane Stanley♦ The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatley Snyder

You can also use related books for your read-aloud time. Look for books suchas Gods & Pharaohs From Egyptian Mythology by Geraldine Harris or TalesMummies Tell by Patricia Lauber.

Next, each cooperative group will focus on a specific story, myth, or legend fromancient Egypt. They will retell the story in their own words. Distribute the Story-Kiosk Letter to your students. As you read the letter as a class, make sure yourstudents understand the concept of a kiosk and how it is used.

Each group will create its own presentation of a differentstory. Students may choose from the following story titles, orcome up with their own story, based on the research theyhave done:

o Ay: The Vizier Who Became Kingo Cleopatra: The Last Of The Egyptian Queenso Egyptian Creation Mythso Hatshepsut: The Queen Who Would Be Kingo The Story Of Isis And Osiriso Nefertiti, Queen of Renown Beautyo Ra and The Sun Boato Ramses II: The Great Warrior Kingo The Sphinx and The Princeo Tutankhamun: Boy King

Students will create their multimedia presentation in Kar2ouche: Egyptians. Themost important part of creating a presentation is planning. Prior to going to thecomputer, students should create a storyboard1 that indicates what graphics, text,and audio will be included on each frame of the presentation. The best storypresentations will include both narration and dialogue. Encourage students to usetone and inflection to make their audio interesting and add to the overall quality ofthe presentation.

Technology Tip: There are three types of audio tracks that can be addedto Kar2ouche: Egyptians:

• Pre-recorded audio: Add individual audio clips by dragging the speakericons from the “Text Audio” onto the thumbnail of the frame.

• Imported sound files: Import sound files by clicking the “folder” icon inthe Audio Control Panel and finding the desired audio file on yourcomputer.

• Record your own audio: Record your own audio by clicking on the “redmicrophone” in the Audio Control Panel. Click a second time to stoprecording. Remember: make sure your microphone and speakers areinstalled and working.

Decide ahead of time how long each presentation should be. For example, you mightwant each group to create a presentation of 6 to 8 slides. Provide students with therubric that will be used to assess their finished work. A sample rubric is provided inthe Appendix. You may need to customize this rubric to meet the needs of yourstudents.

1 For additional information and resources about using storyboards to plan multimedia presentations,

look at Learning to Storyboard in the Appendix.

(OPTIONAL MATH ACTIVITY)

In this activity, students will develop problem solving strategiesand critical thinking skills as they develop an itinerary for theexhibition tour. Begin by distributing the Budget Letter to yourstudents. This letter asks students to create an itinerary for thetour while staying within a fixed budget. (Note: You can raise orlower the difficulty of this activity by adjusting the budget orcriteria in the letter.)

Spend time discussing each of the points in the letter. You maywant to spend some time discussing budgets with your class.Ask students what a budget is and why and when we need touse a budget. Make sure all students understand what they arebeing asked to do. Remind them that maps supporting thetravel routes and times must accompany the itinerary.

For this activity, each cooperative group should develop its ownitinerary. Students may choose any cities they like, as long asthey meet the criteria in the letter. As students calculatedistances between cities, remind them that trucks will have tofollow roads, rather than driving a straight line. Students mayfind it helpful to use travel websites such ashttp://maps.yahoo.com/ or http://www.mapquest.com tocalculate distance between cities. To find out which cities havepopulations over 500 thousand, visithttp://www.census.gov/statab/ccdb/cit1020r.txt

Technology Tip: Encourage students to present their itineraries in aspreadsheet. Students can use programs such as Microsoft Excel orAppleWorks Spreadsheet to budget their tour. You may want to spend timeshowing students the format of a budget ahead of time.

Additional information about teaching students how to prepare and usebudgets can be found at: • http://www.treasurer.state.oh.us/k-mm-4.htm • http://www.nevada.edu/~jilll/jillswebquest.html • http://prometheus.educ.ncat.edu/dpi/ss/SS6231.htm

In the culminating phase of this project, students will plan their exhibition. Thisevent will be a celebration of student achievement. Students will present what theyhave learned and display their related projects to invited guests.

Begin by distributing the Animation Letter to your students. This letter introducesthe final activity for the project. According to the letter, each cooperative group willcreate a short animation advertising the exhibition.

These animations will provide an opportunity for your students to demonstratelearning and summarize their research from the entire project. At the culminatingevent these videos can be used as an introduction or as a “break” betweenpresentations.

Make sure your students understand what they are required to do. As a class,brainstorm what types of information should be included in the commercials. Youmay want to spend some time looking at real commercials. As a class, discuss whatworks and doesn’t work in these commercials. Ask students how they can apply thisinformation to creating their own commercials.

Creating an animation requires careful planning. Students should createstoryboards carefully detailing their plan. Each group should develop its own focusor approach that is different from the other groups. Provide time for each group topresent its storyboard with the class prior to working on the computer. Havingstudents articulate their plan will help ensure they have a clear well developed plan.It will also ensure that there is no overlap among the groups.

Animation requires movement of characters. Students will use Kar2ouche:Egyptians to create their animation. The following tips will help students createsense of movement in their commercials:

• Shorten the frame length: The default for each frame is 10seconds. However, you can shorten this to as little as 0.1seconds. Click the “Timeline” tab in the Presentation area.You can drag the right-hand side of each frame to shortenor lengthen the time.

• Use transitions: Adding transitions such as “fade” canenhance your animation by smoothing movement onthe screen. There are two ways to add transitions. Inthe Composition are you can click the “Transition”button on the top right of a frame to select the desiredtransition. You can also click the “Transition” tab inthe Presentation area and drag the desired transitiononto the frame.

• Duplicate frames: Save time by duplicating frames andmoving the characters slightly. To do this, drag the frameyou want to duplicate onto the “New Frame” icon. Thenslightly change the scale, rotation, or pose of thecharacters in the new frame. Repeat as necessary.Note: When you duplicate a frame, you maintain the sameframe length and transition.

Technology Tip: You can publish the finished commercials on yourschool’s web site by saving the storyboard as a movie. After the animationsare finished, click the “Save Movie” button. Note, however, that transitionswill not be preserved in movie format.

The following web sites provide a variety of hands-on activities that can beused to enhance this project. You may want to add these student products toyour “souvenirs” section:

♦ Make Your Own Mummy:http://www.rom.on.ca/egypt/mummy/mum1.html

♦ Build A Scale Model Of The Great Pyramid:http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/pyramid/geometry/model.html

♦ Design and Make an Ancient Egyptian Box:http://atschool.eduweb.co.uk/trinity/projects/egypt/

♦ Build a Pharaoh Death Mask:http://www.clemusart.com/archive/pharaoh/rosetta/rose3d.html

After completing all this work, it is time to celebrate student achievement. This isone of the more important aspects to the project and will give your students agenuine opportunity to share their accomplishments.

Encourage students to “dress up” for their event or consider wearing “Egyptian”costumes. Have an administrator hand out certificates to each participatingstudent. Try to involve students in planning this day as much as possible. Studentsshould feel that this is their day! Some possible student responsibilities could be:

♦ Create an invitation for the event, to invite other classes, teachers,administrators, and parents.

♦ Create a “press release” about the event for the school newspaper.♦ Decorate the auditorium or room where you are holding the event.♦ Write a letter thanking the “Institute” for giving the class this opportunity.♦ Plan and prepare refreshments for the audience.♦ Write memos or letters informing other teachers, administrators, and

custodial staff any schedule or room changes caused by the event.

Each student should be given an opportunity to present his or her work, butremember to keep it brief. Try to vary the types of presentations as much aspossible. If several students worked on a project together, each one shouldparticipate in presenting the work. Whenever possible, use projectors or televisionmonitors to showcase digital presentations, such as the kiosk or other multimediadisplays. Encourage your students to summarize or discuss what they learned andhow they accomplished their task, rather than “reading” their work to the audience.

Each student should prepare what he or she will say. Give students plenty of timeto rehearse ahead of time. If students haven’t presented in front of an audiencebefore, you may have to model this for them. Discuss criteria for presenting likemaking eye contact and speaking slowly.

Students will be working with storyboards throughout this project. However, yourstudents may not know what a storyboard is or how to develop one. The followingactivity will help students learn the basics of storyboarding.

A storyboard is a way to graphically organize and show a sequence of ideas. Since itis easier to create a storyboard for a finished product, tell your students to they areto create a storyboard based on a short piece of video, such as a televisioncommercial. You may choose tohave the whole class use onecommercial or have each groupcreate a storyboard on a differentcommercial.1

A storyboard can take manydifferent formats. The format youdevelop for this practice activitywill be used for the actualstoryboards students will create inthe project.

Use the following checklist to help make decisions about what format you want thestoryboard to take:

q Do you want the storyboard to be done on a computer or by hand? Is eitherformat acceptable?

q Are you going to create a template for students to use? (Many teachers create ageneric template on the computer and students use Post-It notes to writeinformation. This makes it very easy to make changes as the project progresses.)

q Visuals: Should students sketch what the “shot” will look like, or should theydescribe the shot in a few short sentences?

q Narration: Do you want students to write out a detailed script or simplysummarize what will be said?

q What other information do you want included (such as music, special effects,titles, etc)?

• Storyboard elements: http://www.indezine.com/ideas/storybrd.html• Creativity Lab: http://www.creativitylab.com/jump_start/storyboardfrm.htm• All about storyboarding: http://w3.tvi.cc.nm.us/~jvelez/MMS170/storyboard/

1 If you think it is appropriate, consider assigning this activity for homework. This can save class time

and allow each student to choose his or her own commercial.

: (F ILL IN ___S AS APPROPRIATE .)

Includes little essentialinformation and one or

two facts. Includes fewerthan __ pages.

Includes some essentialinformation with few

citations and few facts.Includes fewer than __

pages.

Includes essential informationwith most sources properly

cited with enough elaborationto give the audience an

understanding of the topic.Includes at least __ pages.

Covers the topic completely andin depth. Includes properly cited

sources and completeinformation. Encourages the

audience to want to know more.Includes at least __ pages.

Includes more than __errors in grammar,

spelling, punctuation,capitalization, etc.

Includes between __ and__ errors in grammar,spelling, punctuation,

capitalization, etc.

Includes fewer than __ errorsin grammar, spelling,

punctuation, capitalization, etc.

Grammar, spelling, punctuation,and capitalization are correct. No

errors in text.

Cannot work with othersin most situations.

Cannot share decisionsor responsibilities.

Works with others buthas difficulty sharing

decisions andresponsibilities.

Works well with others. Takespart in most decisions andcontributes a fair share to

group.

Works well with others.Assumes a clear role andrelated responsibilities.

Motivates others to do their best.

Has great difficultycommunicating ideas.

Uses poor voiceprojection. Shows little

preparation or incompletework.

Has some difficultycommunicating ideas due

to one or more of thefollowing: voice projection,

lack of preparation, orincomplete work.

Communicates ideas withproper voice projection.

Adequate preparation anddelivery apparent.

Communicates ideas withenthusiasm, proper voice,

projection, appropriate language,and clear delivery. Is able to get

audience enthusiastic orinterested in topic.

(F ILL IN ___S AS APPROPRIATE .) Students are graded on their individualcontributions as well as their cooperative effort in the overall layout and appearance of the guidebook.

Includes little essentialinformation and one or

two facts.

Research is from onlyone source.

Includes some essentialinformation and few facts.Research is from only one

or two sources.

Includes essentialinformation with enough

elaboration to give readersan understanding of thetopic. Research is from

several sources.

Covers the topic completely and indepth. Includes properly cited sources

and complete information.Encourages readers to know more.

Research is from a variety of differenttypes of sources.

Includes more than __errors in grammar,


Includes between __ and__ errors in grammar,spelling, punctuation,

capitalization, etc.

Includes fewer than __errors in grammar,


Grammar, spelling, punctuation, andcapitalization are correct. No errors in

text.

Cannot work withothers in most

situations. Cannotshare decisions orresponsibilities.

Works with others buthas difficulty sharing

decisions andresponsibilities.

Works well with others.Takes part in most

decisions and contributesa fair share to group.

Works well with others. Assumes aclear role and related responsibilities.

Motivates others to do their best.

Individual page is notvisually appealing. Itmay be unclear ordifficult to read.

Individual page is notinteresting or visually

appealing. Parts may beunclear or difficult to read.

Individual page isinteresting and visuallyappealing. It is clear and

easy to read.

Individual page is interesting andvisually appealing. It captures theattention and is clear and easy to

read.

Cairo, Egypt

Dear Class ________________________:

As president of the Institute of Ancient Egypt, it is my pleasure to inform youthat our organization is planning to take our world-famous exhibit of ancientEgyptian artifacts on tour. Rather than visiting museums, the Institute isplanning to go to schools across the United States. We have selected yourschool as our first stop and would like your class help us plan our tour.

With your cooperation, we will work together to develop a plan to present ourexhibit in an exciting and educational way. This plan will be used as a model topresent our exhibit across the United States. Our goal is to provide studentsjust like you with a general understanding of and appreciation for the historyand culture of ancient Egypt.

You should know that there is a lot of hard work ahead of us. We will have to planout our exhibit, prepare educational presentations, and much, much more. Sinceyour class will be critical in making important decisions about this tour, you willneed to learn as much as you can about ancient Egypt. You can begin byresearching each of the following topics and preparing a graphic organizer basedon your research:

• Egyptian Writing • Gods and Goddesses • Mummification• Pharaohs • Pyramids • Temples

Your teacher will help divide your class into groups. Each group will be responsiblefor one of the listed topics. I look forward to seeing your work and beginning ourcooperative effort in bringing ancient Egypt to your school!

Sincerely,

Frank PharaohPresident

Cairo, Egypt

Dear Class ________________________:

Thank you for sending us your wonderful graphic organizers. We are so excited tohave you help us with this project.

The next thing we would like you to do is help us create a multimedia display towelcome visitors to our exhibit. The topic we have chosen is The Daily Lives ofAncient Egyptians.

To help us prepare this display, we would like you to create a simple presentationcomparing how Egyptian life is alike and/or different from our lives today. Youshould research topics related to daily life, such as families, food, clothing, andgovernment. The more topics you include, the better the final display will be.

You will need to put your research together into one multimedia presentation. Besure to keep careful notes and cite your sources. We look forward to seeing yourresearch.

Sincerely,


Cairo, Egypt

Dear Class ________________________:

Everyone at the Institute is very impressed with the welcome display your classhas created. You have more than proven yourself for the next task.

As you know, the Institute of Ancient Egypt is renown for its extensive collectionof Egyptian artifacts and display models. Shipping the entire collection to theUnited States would be impossible. Therefore, we need to make some very toughchoices and could use your help.

Based on your research of ancient Egypt, we would like you to help us decidewhich pieces should be included on the tour. Please browse through our collectionof artifacts and models and choose the10 most important, impressive, and/orinteresting.

Then create a guidebook for visitors. Each artifact or display should be placed on aseparate page of the guidebook. For each artifact or display you should include adescription of the item and an explanation of the significance of the item. Sincethis guidebook is intended for students, try to keep the information botheducational and interesting.

We look forward to seeing your choices.

Sincerely,


Cairo, Egypt

Dear Class ________________________:

Plans for our tour are now in full swing, thanks to the wonderful work you did onthe guidebook. Once again, everyone at the Institute was very impressed with thequality of your work. However, there is still quite a lot of work left to do. We hopeyou are ready!

One of the ways our Institute helps pay for these tours is by selling souvenirs atthe exhibitions. Of course we have all the usual souvenirs, but we would like tocreate a special set of souvenirs specifically for this special tour. This is where youcome in.

One of our most popular souvenirs is a postcard. We would like you to create aseries of educational postcards depicting either the great Pharaohs or the deities ofancient Egypt. In order to be a top seller, the postcards must be attractive andinteresting. They should also include specific information about the Pharaoh ordeity depicted.

We look forward to seeing your ideas.

Sincerely,


Cairo, Egypt

Dear Class ________________________:

Thank you for all the wonderful postcards. We have already begun production tosell these wonderful souvenirs on the upcoming tour. We also have some wonderfulnews. The Institute for Ancient Egypt has just received a donation of a computerkiosk to use on our tour.

In case you don’t know, the word “kiosk” simply means a public place or structurewhere one can obtain information, either in person or by computer. You may haveseen these small booths at museums you have visited.

After much deliberation, we have decided to use our computer kiosk to retell someof the wonderful stories of ancient Egypt. Once again, this is where you come in.We need you to find out some of the stories, legends, and myths of ancient Egyptand retell them in your own words. You will need to make a multimediapresentation for each story. Be sure to include audio recordings as part of yourpresentation, since these kiosks will be “self-running.”

I know that this is a big job, but we are sure you can handle it. We look forward toseeing your finished work.

Sincerely,


Cairo, Egypt

Dear Class ________________________:

We are getting ready to ship our exhibition to the United States for the tour. As youknow, your school will be the first stop. However, we still haven’t figured out towhich other cities we should go.

We would like to visit as many cities as possible, but we are limited by our travelbudget. We need you to develop a travel plan for our tour that fits into our budget.Your plan should indicate which cities we will visit, the distance and travel timebetween these cities, the cost of each part of the trip, and how man das the exhibitshould be on display in each city. You should also prepare a map showing the besttravel routes between cities.

We would like to present our exhibition in at least five different cities. You will needthe following information to help you plan your itinerary:

♦ The total travel budget for the tour is $10,000.♦ It will cost an average of $1.17 per mile to transport the exhibition.♦ Truck rental costs $35 per day (Remember: only travel days are charged).♦ It will cost $225 to unpack the truck each time we get to a new city. It will

cost and another $225 to pack the truck again when we leave.♦ The truck can travel up to 500 miles each day.♦ The cost for each day the exhibit is on display in a city is $150 per day.

Each city included in your plan must be in a different state. We want to targetlarge cities so look for cities with populations of more than 500,000 people. Use thepopulation size to help you decide how long the exhibit should be on display. Thelarger the population, the longer the exhibition should stay in that city. However,the exhibit should be on display no less than two days but no more than four daysin each city. We trust your judgment.

In order to make arrangements at the various schools, we need to have thisitinerary ready by _____________________. We look forward to seeing your plan.

Sincerely,


Cairo, Egypt

Dear Class ________________________:

Everyone at the Institute of Ancient Egypt is extremely pleased with all the workyou have done so far. Everything is just about ready and we are looking forward tothe upcoming tour. We have just one last assignment for you.

We would like to advertise our exhibition in each of the cities we will tour. We thinkthe best way to do this is to create a series of short, animated commercials,informing the public about the Egyptian Exhibition. We would like you to createthese commercials.

Each commercial should be between 1 to 2 minutes long. In your commercials youshould inform the public about the exhibition and what it will include. Remember,it is very important that these commercials be exciting and interesting to attract asmany people as possible. Highlight the reasons why people will want to come theexhibition.

These advertisements will make or break the tour, so be sure to make them asconvincing and inviting as possible. We know you can do it!

Sincerely,


Cairo, Egypt

proudly presents this

to

for outstanding performance and lasting contribution to the

on this, the day of , .


The Egypt Experience

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Transcript of The Egypt Experience