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Overview:
Students will explore what artifacts tell us about a culture. They will briefly consider what modern "artifacts" reveal about human culture. Students will then examine several ancient Egyptian artifacts and discuss what they reveal about ancient Egyptian culture. Finally, they will compare objects that are representative of modern culture with those of ancient Egypt.
Connections to the Curriculum:
Geography, world history, anthropology
Connections to the National Geography Standards:
Standard 4: "The physical and human characteristics of places"
Standard 6: "How culture and experience influence people's perceptions of places and regions"
Standard 17: "How to apply geography to interpret the past"
Time:
Three to four hours
Materials Required:
Objectives:
Students will
- consider what modern artifacts reveal about a culture;
- explore how artifacts found in ancient Egyptian tombs can be used to paint a picture of daily life in ancient Egypt;
- discuss objects that represent modern culture; and
- compare modern "artifacts" to those of ancient Egypt.
Geographic Skills:
Asking Geographic Questions
Organizing Geographic Information
Answering Geographic Questions
Analyzing Geographic Information
S u g g e s t e d P r o c e d u r e
Opening:
When students enter the classroom, have three objects representative of your life and likes on your desk. Ask students to look at the objects and try to determine what they reveal about your life. Ask them to explain their reasoning. (For example, a trophy you won as coach of the baseball team might indicate your status as a team leader as well as suggest you enjoy baseball and are probably from one of the few countries that play the sport, most likely the United States.)
Tell students that there are people called archaeologists who look at old objects from people who lived long ago to learn about those people and the places they lived. Explain that those objects are called artifacts. Tell the class that they will be looking at pictures of artifacts found in the tomb of King Tut, a ruler from long ago who lived in Egypt (show the students Egypt on the globe or map) to try to learn more about him and where he lived.
Development:
Activity 1: Life in Ancient Egypt
Show the students the following images of artifacts from King Tut's tomb:
Ivory and stone bracelets
Ear studs
Alabaster perfume vase
Senet game board
Gold gilded wooden chariot
Chair
Chest
Ask the students:
- What do these artifacts tell you about King Tut?
- Can you tell what types of things were important to him?
- What might these objects tell us about the life of a King in ancient Egypt?
- What might these objects tell us about life in Egypt in general?
Then, show students the following images of other Egyptian artifacts. As a whole class, use the overhead projector and graphic organizer transparency (PDF, Adobe Reader required) to hypothesize about what these objects tell us about ancient Egypt.
Head of a Cow
Relief of Nebhepetre Mentuhotep II
Cosmetic Jar in the Form of a Cat
Libation Dish
Ostracon
Section from the "Book of the Dead" of Nany
Statuette of Isis and Horus
When you have completed the graphic organizer, have students share what they think they have learned about life in ancient Egypt through exploration of these artifacts.
Activity 2: Modern Artifacts
Ask students to consider what types of objects they think best represent them. For example, a student who loves sports might say a baseball bat, or a student who loves animals might choose a photo of his or her cat. Ask them to give some thought as to what three things would create a "snapshot" of their likes, dislikes, and daily life, and to write down or draw these things. When everyone is ready, have students share their choices with the class.
Explain to students that not only can artifacts reveal information about a particular person, but they also provide information about where and how they lived. Remind them that even when they were looking at the artifacts from King Tut's tomb, they were able to make guesses about life in Egypt in general, based on what they saw.
Place three objects representative of modern culture on your desk. (Some examples include a cell phone, computer, package of macaroni and cheese or other processed food, book, photo album, hand held video game, etc.) Ask students to imagine that it is in the far future and they are archaeologists who have just found these objects. Ask them what the objects reveal about the way we live now. Write the answers on the board or on chart paper.
Tell students that they will now act as archaeologists in their own classroom. Still pretending to be in the far future, have students explore their classroom taking notes on and drawing images of "artifacts" that they think can tell them about the culture that created and valued them. When they are finished, have students share their drawings with one another in small groups. As a class, discuss the drawings.
- Did most students select the same things to draw?
- What objects were chosen most frequently?
- What do these objects reveal about their culture?
- Were there any objects that students did not think were representative of their culture?
Closing:
As a class, generate a list of objects representative of modern culture using the class research. Write this list on the board or on chart paper. Now have students revisit the artifacts examined in the earlier part of this lesson and use this Venn diagram to compare and contrast the modern "artifacts" with those found in ancient Egypt. When they are done, ask students to share what their Venn diagrams tell them about the similarities and differences between ancient Egypt and their own culture.
Suggested Student Assessment:
Have students work in small groups to write illustrated stories about what they think life in ancient Egypt was like. Groups should compose their stories based on the artifacts they saw in the earlier part of the lesson, incorporating some of them into their stories and pictures.
Extending the Lesson:
- Create a class time capsule. Have each student bring in one object that they feel represents an aspect of modern culture and/or their home region. As a class, compose a letter to the future discoverers of the capsule. The letters should discuss the objects selected and explain their significance. Plan to store the capsule at your school for a future class to open.
- Students can explore Tut's tomb and Khufu's pyramid, as well as find out how mummies are made, here.
- Have students translate their names or a message into hieroglyphics.
- Have the class create a model of an Egyptian tomb.
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