Egypt – The Old Kingdom
Center 2
Developed by Drew Mills
GLEs:
17. Describe the defining characteristics of major world civilizations from political, social, and economic perspectives (H1A-M2)
Introduction:
The First and Second Dynasties ruled Egypt for about four centuries. Around 2700 BC, the Third Dynasty rose to power.
Its rule began the Old Kingdom, a period in Egyptian history that lasted from about 2700 BC to 2200 BC. During the Old
Kingdom, the Egyptians continued to develop their political system. This system was based on the belief that the
pharaoh was both a king and a god.
By 2200 BC, Egypt had about 2 million people. At the top of Egyptian society was the pharaoh. Just below him were the
upper classes, which included priests and key government officials. Many of these priests and officials were nobles, or
people from rich and powerful families. Below the nobles was a middle class of lesser government officials, scribes,
crafts-people, and merchants. Egypt’s lower class, about 80 percent of the population, was made up mostly of farmers.
During flood season, when they could not work the fields, farmers worked on the pharaoh’s building projects. Below
farmers in the social order were slaves and servants.
Essential focus question: How was society structured in Egypt’s Old Kingdom?
Task:
Your team has been employed by Sphinx trading card company. You have been promoted to head a new division. The
new division is in charge of designing new trading cards of the four levels of society in Egypt’s Old Kingdom. You will use
resources provided to assist in the creation of your trading cards.
Process:
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You will be assigned/choose a role
Assist teammates in preparation for assigned task.
You should share any information with your teammates to answer any questions you might have as you progress
through your creation/design.
1. Your team will design and create four trading cards on the four levels of society in Egypt’s Old Kingdom.
2. Each member will select a role:
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Graphic researcher – locate pictures that depicts the members of each social level
Data entry – compile and input all the information onto the trading card
Researcher – locate needed information (see Essential focus questions in the Introduction)
Egypt’s Old Kingdom society levels Resources:
NetTrekker:
 Go to www.cpsb.org.
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Click the Parent/Students tab above the announcements.
Click Net Trekker under Resources
Type the Egyptian social class you are researching in the keyword box.
Image Search
Select the word “image” about the keyword box
CyberSleuth Kids
 Go to www.cybersleuth-kids.com
 Type the Egyptian social class you are researching in the Search box.
3. After gathering information, the team will design and create a Trading Card for each of the four levels of society
in Egypt’s Old Kingdom. Facts and pictures will be the basis of the Trading Cards. See center folder for rubric.
a.
b.
c.
d.
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Trading Card – Top Level (Pharoah)
Trading Card – Second Level (Nobles)
Trading Card – Third Level (Scribes and Craftspeople)
Trading Card – Bottom Level (Farmers, Servants, and Slaves)
Complete using “Trading Card” template
When finished, click “file”, then “save as.” File name will be your first and last name, Trading
Card (Drew Mills, Trading Card). Save on computer desktop.
Evaluation:
Rubric for Trading Card
Conclusion:
Think about how the society of Egypt’s Old Kingdom was structured. How did this structure influence each social class’s
everyday life?
Adapted from resources found at the following website
http://webquest.sdsu.edu/templates/lesson-template1.htm
Based on a template from The WebQuest Page