Download Egypt Study Guide

Egypt Unit Study Guide
SS. 2.2 The student will demonstrate knowledge and understanding of life in ancient Egypt.
SS 2.2.1 The students will Describe the location and physical features of ancient Egypt.
 Egypt is located on the continent of Africa
 Egypt is south of the Mediterranean Sea
 The Nile River is located in Egypt and it flows northward through the Sahara Desert
 The climate is hot and dry (desert)
SS. 2.2.2 Students will describe how the people of ancient Egypt used their environment
(Environment is their surroundings)
 The Nile River flooded seasonally
 Seasonal flooding of the river made the soil near the river very fertile.
 Egyptians farmed and irrigated the land near the Nile River.
SS. 2.2.3 The students will describe the relationship between resources and the economic activity of
ancient Egypt.
 Resources- (Anything people consider useful)

Natural Resources (materials that come directly from nature)- The
Nile River- The Nile River is the longest river in the world. Ancient Egyptians needed
the river to survive. They got their drinking water from the river. They found
papyrus plants along the banks of the Nile that they used for paper. Fertile Soil
found along the banks of the Nile used to farm.

Human Resources(people working to produce goods and
services) – Egyptian People –pharaohs, farmers, scribes, servants, craftsmen, field
hands.
Pharaohs- Pharaohs were the rulers of Egypt. They were like king, but pharaohs
could be men or women. The people believed that pharaohs were living gods. King
Tut was a famous pharaoh. He became king when he was only nine years old. He
died when he was 19. He was buried in a tomb with gold, silver, and jewels.
Farmers- farmed the land along the Nile River. After the floods they dug narrow
lanes to irrigate the land. They used oxen to plow the fields, scatter the seeds and
then us sheep to trample the seeds into the black mud, they must keep away the
animals like the mice, locust, and hippopotamus that might ruin their crop. When
the crops are ready they harvest the crop. The field hands
Scribes- Scribes would learn how to write hieroglyphics. Only boys could be sribes.
They would write important things. They kept records of the flooding Nile, Measure
and record the grain, record the history of Egypt. They wrote on paper called
papyrus.
Pyramid Builder- when the Nile River is flooding many Egyptians (servents) leave
the village and go to Giza to serve the Pharaoh by cutting stone, size the stone, and
haul the stone on a sled, and push the block into place.
Herdsman- Tend the cattle, in summer the herdsmen travel north so that the cattle
can graze in grassy fields. They guard the herds, they wade in one of the river’s
branch watchful for the crocodile.
The Embalmer- is a chief priest. He performed the sacred rites when the master
died. He takes out the stomach, lungs, intestines, liver and store them in canopic
jars. They leave the heart because it is the home of the spirit but pull the brains out
with a hook of bronze. They try the body with crystals of natron and let it dry for
forty days. They wrap the body in linen. This wrapped body is called a mummy.
They place him in a cedar coffin.

Capital resources( goods made by people and used to produce
other goods and services)- tools used by the Egyptians. One tool was the
shaduf to irrigate their lands.

Economic Activities in Egypt- Farming along the Nile
SS,2.2.4 The students will describe the contributions of the people of ancient Egypt.
(contributions are the act of giving or doing something)
Architecture –(The design of buildings)
pyramids- Some of the greatest gifts the ancient Egyptians left behind were the Pyramids.
They were built as burial chambers for Egypt’s richest pharaohs. Deep inside each huge
pyramid is the mummy of a great pharaoh. The mummy was buried in a secret room filled
with golden treasures.

WritingEgyptians used Hieroglyphics or picture writing. Each symbol is called a character. Some
symbols stand for two or more letters. The symbols could also stand for ideas, things, or
sounds. Some places that you might find hieroglyphics in Egypt are on the walls of tombs,
on scrolls, or on a mummy case which is called a sarcophagus.

InventionsPaper made from papyrus. The papyrus plant grew along the banks of the line and the
Marshmen. The reeds are cut, pressed, and dried to make the paper.
The 365 day calendar is another important contribution for the ancient Egyptians. We still
use this type of calendar today! They made this calendar by studying the skies and marking
the Earth’s trip around the sun.
Clocks- Ancient Egyptians invented water clocks. They were pots marked with “hour” lines.
They had a tiny hole in the bottom where water can drip out. Water clocks were the best
way that ancient Egyptians measured time.
They also used Obelisks (OB-uh-liskz)- They were giant pointy stones. They were a type of
sun dial. The sun dial would be dysfunctional (they did not work) on cloudy days or at night.
Essential Question: How did the ancient Egyptians us the environment to meet their needs?
Why does the location of Egypt matter?