School Based Technology Specialists Karen Miller and Barbara Brand interviewed Mr Wilson’s students, Marshall, Alex and Elijah.   The students in World History participated in a Project Based Learning activity exploring Ancient Egypt and were asked to become a museum curator and educate others on how geography influenced the development of society in Ancient Egypt. Below are excerpts from our conversation.  Take a look at the video we created to view the museum created in Minecraft.  

The following are in the students’ words.

The Nile River is the longest river in the world and it was the the source of Egypt’s civilization and agriculture.  The Nile would frequently flood due to heavy snow and frequent summer rains.  This frequent flooding was called inundation and provided crops with plenty of water to flourish, which led to a thriving economy and civilization. Water in the Nile provided fish, and other main food sources to the Ancient Egyptians  The Nile also served as a major trade route for merchants who trade gold, paper, rope, cloth and jewelry. This also led to a thriving growing economy.

Entering the pyramid guarded by the 2 royal camels, Buford and Thomas, we will learn more about Ancient Egypt.  Ancient Egypt was one of the most well-known ancient civilizations in history.  While their most famous achievement was the three pyramids of Giza, the Egyptians did many other things that not many people know about, such as the inventions of the ramp, incline plane, paper and the chair, just to name a few.  The first settlers are thought to have arrived at 6000 BCE or before, about 8000 years ago, making Egypt one of the oldest Neolithic civilizations as well as the most famous.  

In this museum you will learn about the culture of Ancient Egypt and how geography influenced it.  Ancient Egypt had two main parts, the Red Land and the Black Land. The Black Land was dark fertile land next to the Nile River.  The first settlers used this land to grow crops to feed themselves, and any animals they had. Organized farming allowed for permanent settlements which encouraged development of social structures, government, religion and writing, which all led to civilization.  The Red land was the harsh barren deserts that separated Egypt from its neighboring countries.  These deserts protected the mainlands from the invading armies.  They also held the valuable natural resources the Egyptian people traded such as gold, copper and various precious stone.

In the video, you will travel to the Nile, and into the pyramid.  In the pyramid, you will see a black tile pyramid on the wall, which represents the social structure of ancient Egypt, followed by a timeline.  At the very top of the social structure was the pharaoh, who was viewed as a human god. Under the pharaoh were governors and military leaders, who helped the pharaoh keep everything under control. Below the governors and military leaders were the scribes who knew how to read and write and were very valued.  Below those were the artisans and skilled workers.  At the bottom of the social structure pyramid were unskilled laborers and slaves who were just used for labor.

The timeline starts at 3000 BCE.  Hieroglyphics were developed around that time.  Around 2500 BCE, the pyramids of Giza are built.  The timeline continues until about 500 BCE, the fall of the Egyptian Empire.

Animals were a very important part of Egyptian Religion.  Many of the gods the Egyptians believed in were humans with the heads of animals, such as birds, lions, cattle, crocodiles, and other local wildlife.  Different gods were represented by different animals. Because the gods were worshiped, we can infer that the animals were highly respected in the ancient Egyptian Culture. Ancient Egyptians also believed in the afterlife.  Once a person died, his soul was allowed to leave the body, but the soul needed the body as a home, which is why they preserved the bodies to keep them in good condition.  They mummified their bodies and decorated their tombs with their belongings and various gifts to give the soul a nice comfortable home.  In the pyramid you will also see an Ankh, a symbol for ancient Egyptian Religion, as well as an emerald found in a pharaoh's tomb.

Rather than a president, ancient Egypt was led by pharaohs.  A pharaoh was similar to a king  and led politically and religiously, under the control of the gods. His main job was to maintain Mata, a harmony of justice, peace and morality.  The gods would advise the pharaoh, but the final decision was up to the individual.

Higher up in the pyramid is the Art and Culture section of the museum. Hieroglyphics, the symbols of communication, the Rosetta Stone, used to translate the Hieroglyphics, a statue of the famous king Tutankhamun, a gold stone worn by King Ramses, and a mummy of an ancient Egyptian scribe are a few of the artifacts featured in the Arts and Culture part of the museum.

At the very top of the pyramid is the summary section.  In conclusion, Egypt’s geography had a great influence on their culture and way of life.  Without the Nile River, Egypt would not have been able to sustain the economy and grow its society.  Without the Red land, it would have been easy to attack and it would have been hard to defend themselves other growing empires. They formed their system of writing, hieroglyphics, based on their surrounding, which is a reason why it is unique from other forms of writing.  The resources they had available to them affected the architecture and art they made.  All this being said, Ancient Egypt wouldn’t have been the great civilization it was without its geography.