1. 6th Grade World History
Ancient Egypt

2. The Nile Valley Essential Question:
How did the geography of the Nile River valley lead to the growth of a civilization there?

3. A Mighty River Nile River Drank from it Bathed in it
Cooking and cleaning
Fish

4. A Sheltered Land
Before it reaches the Mediterranean Sea, the Nile forms a delta
Desert located on either side – keeps armies away from Egypt’s territory
Traded in the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea

5. The River People Nile floods were predictable and consistent
Leave behind a layer of dark, fertile mud
Irrigation Techniques
Dug canals to carry water to fields beyond the river’s reach
Papyrus – reed plant
Baskets, sandals, river rafts and paper!

8. Hieroglyphics Created symbols that stood for objects, ideas and sounds
Few people could read and write
Scribes: Few Egyptian men
Kept records for rulers, priests and traders
Carved hieroglyphics into stone monuments

9. The Rise of Government in Ancient Egypt
Irrigation systems had to be built and maintained
Surplus grain had to be stored and passed out in the case of need
Disputes over land ownership had to be settled
Earliest rulers were village chiefs who would gradually take over neighboring villages

10. Upper and Lower Egypt
4000 B.C.E. – Egypt was made up of 2 large kingdoms
Lower Egypt
Upper Egypt
3100 B.C.E. – Upper Egypt conquered Lower Egypt
Egypt was ruled by 31 dynasties grouped into 3 categories
Old Kingdom
Middle Kingdom
New Kingdom

12. Egypt’s Social Classes
Pharaoh
Priests and Nobles
Traders, Artisans, Shopkeepers and Scribes
Farmers and Herders
Unskilled Workers

14. Family Life Men were often considered the head of the household
However, Egyptian women enjoyed more rights than females in almost every other early civilization
Few Egyptian children attended school
Mothers taught daughters
Fathers taught sons

15. Making Connections
1. What is papyrus and how did the Egyptian’s use it?
2. Cause and Effect: Name three things that led to the growth of government in Ancient Egypt.
3. Answer the Essential Question: How did the geography of the Nile River valley lead to the growth of a civilization there?

16. Egypt’s Old Kingdom Essential Question:
What characterized the religious beliefs of the Ancient Egyptians?

17. Old Kingdom Rulers – 2600-2300 B.C.E.
Pharaoh
All powerful ruler who guided all activity
Lived in grand palaces
Appointed officials to carry out their wishes
Considered to be the son of Re – The Sun God

18. Egypt’s Religion
Worshipped many deities who were believed to control nature and human activities
Re – The Sun God
Isis – Worshipped as the ideal wife and mother
Osiris – God of the Dead
Hapi – Ruled the Nile River

19. Life After Death
Hopeful view that life after death would be better than the life before it
Book of the Dead
Collection of spells and prayers to obtain life after death
For centuries, Egyptians believed only the pharaohs and elite few could enjoy the afterlife and their spirit would travel to the afterlife after death
Body could not be decayed for this journey

20. Enbalming and Mummification
Protection for the Pharaoh’s Body
Egyptians learned much about the human body through embalming
Apply natron, a special salt to the body
Remove organs from body
Body is stored for several days to dry
Body is filled with spices and perfumes
Body is sewed shut
Mummy is placed inside wooden coffin inside tomb
Body is tightly wrapped in linen
Body cleaned with special oils

21. The Pyramids
Protected bodies of dead pharaohs from floods, animals and grave robbers
Held supplies pharaohs would need in the afterlife
Clothing
Furniture
Jewelry
Food
Skilled artisans used copper tools to cut stone into huge blocks
Pulled stone on sleds to pyramid site
Dragged and pushed them up ramps to be set in place
Great Pyramid at Giza

25. Making Connections
1. What might Egyptians have learned from embalming bodies?
2. Answer the Essential Question: What characterized the religious beliefs of the Ancient Egyptians?

27. The Egyptian Empire Essential Question:
How did Akenaton upset the traditional order of the New Kingdom?

28. The Middle Kingdom 2050-1670 B.C.E.
New dynasty came to power
Moved Egyptian capital to Thebes
Golden Age of stability, prosperity and achievement
Forced conquered people to send tribute to the pharaoh

29. The Arts Blossom
Painters covered walls of tombs and temples with colorful scenes of the deities and daily life
Sculptors created large statues of pharaohs
Tombs were cut into the side of cliffs – Valley of the Kings

31. The New Kingdom Queen Hatshepsut
More interested in trade than conquest
Traded beads, gold, ivory, ebony and incense for wood
Trade under her rule brought great wealth to Egypt

32. Expanding the Empire
Thutmose III’s armies expanded Egypt North of Mesopotamia and into Africa
Enslaved prisoners of war
Could own land, marry and eventually be granted freedom

33. The Legacies of Two Pharaohs
Amenhotep/Akhenaton
Introduced one god worship of Aton
Removed priests who resisted the changes
People saw this as an attack on Egypt itself
Devotion to a new religion caused him to ignore the attack of the Hittites who took over much of the empire

34. The Legacies of Two Pharaohs
Tutankhamen – The Boy King
Restored the old religion
Died unexpectedly – murder?
Most famous of all pharaohs because of his brilliant gold funeral mask

35. End of the New Kingdom
Ramses II – rebuilt the empire and constructed new temples
Karnak
Thebes
Temples were the homes of gods and goddesses

36. Egypt’s Decline and Fall
Later pharaohs have difficulty controlling a large empire
Egypt was attacked by people from the Mediterranean
Iron weapons
Egypt changed hands several times
670B.C.E. – Egypt is taken over by the Assyrians

37. Making Connections
1. What improvements did the Middle Kingdom rulers make?
2. Answer the Essential Question: How did Akenaton upset the traditional order of the New Kingdom?