Houghton Mifflin Social Studies
A Message of Ancient Days
Lesson at a Glance
Chapter 7, Lesson 1: The Gift of the Nile (pp. 186-190)
The Big Idea
Framework Concept: Culture The Nile River valley enabled
Egyptians to develop a long-lasting civilization.
- Review the geography of river valleys and the impact of annual
flooding. You might want to refer to ancient Mesopotamia or China.
Ask students to consider what the Egyptians got from the Nile and
how their civilization might have been different if not for the Nile.
Lesson Outline
Use the Lesson Outline to preview the content of
the lesson. You may wish to print it for your students as a guide during reading.
Check for Understanding
- Divide students into working groups. Assign each group an accomplishment of
early Egyptian civilization, such as farming, irrigation, paper, government by
kings, etc. Ask each group to write a paragraph on how the accomplishment was
connected, directly or indirectly, to the Nile River. Have each group present
to the class, and discuss.
- Have each student choose to be a typical ancient Egyptian craftsman,
farmer, fisherman, or priest. Then have students study the chart on page
188 showing the Nile Valley flood cycle, and create a comic strip with
three panels showing his or her respective life during each of the seasons.
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