Lesson Plan - Papyrus (Basic)
The original lesson was written for American
Grade 6 students and the readability level, and the degree of difficulty
of the assignments, reflects this.This original lesson may be found here.
Lesson Plan (Basic), found below, is
a version of the same lesson but is written for students who are learning
English as a second language, students who are academially challenged,
or students in a lower grade. Consequently, the students' material
is written at a much lower readability level with assignments appropriate
for this level.
Contents of this lesson plan:
1. Student's information sheet
2. Student's assignments
3. Teacher's notes
(Why
not let your students work with authentic papyrus imported from Egypt?)
4. Assessment rubric
1. Student's information sheet
Papyrus was the main writing surface
used by the Egyptians.
Papyrus was invented very early on in Egypt's history. Examples have survived
from the 1st Dynasty (3100-2890 B.C.E.) and it was used continuously until
the 11th century C.E.
Papyrus was also used in the ancient civilizations
of Kush, Greece and Rome.
How was papyrus
made? Papyrus was made from a reed like plant
that grew in the marshes of the river Nile. The plant grew
to a height of about 10 feet.
When harvested, the hard outer fibers
were peeled away and the core was sliced into strips. The
strips were soaked in water. This removed most of the sugar
content.
After soaking, the strips were pounded and the water drained away. The strips
were then placed side by side, overlapping slightly.
A second set of strips was then placed
at right angles to the first, again overlapping slightly.
They were again pounded and left to dry under a heavy weight.
Enough sugar remained in the strips to seal them together.
Finally, the surface was polished to a smooth
finish by rubbing with a stone or block of wood. The surface
was then ready for writing with paint or ink.
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2. Student's
assignments
Assignment 1
a) On
the handout "Papyrus" there
is a description of how papyrus was made together with diagrams.
b) Study the description and diagrams carefully.
c) Write a set
of instructions explaining how to make papyrus.
d) The information below on instructions will
help you. |
Instructions
 a)
Instructions tell us how to make something or how to do something.
If they are to be understood easily, they need to be written one
step at a time.
b) They need to be as simple as possible, and it helps if
each step is numbered.
c) It also helps if diagrams are included.
Here are some examples to get you started.
a)
Instead
of writing "Papyrus was made from
a reed like plant that grew in the marshes of the river Nile," you
would write, "Gather papyrus reeds from the marshes."
b)
Instead
of writing "The plant
was cut down and the outer part of the stalk
peeled away," you would write, "Peel away
the outer part of the stalk."
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| Assignment 2
Research
a) See if you can find out if the Ancient Egyptians
made anything else from the papyrus plant.
b) Create a list and see if you can illustrate each
item.
Assignment 3
a) Fill in the blanks in the following statements
with either the words "clay tablets" or the word "papyrus."
b)
Sort
out the statements into those that support clay tablets as the
better writing system, and those that support papyrus as the better
system.
 1.
------ was light and easy to transport.
2. ------ was easier to draw and paint on.
3. ------ could
be made quickly and easily while making ------- was a long and
difficult task.
4. A collection of ------ would need a lot of
storage space while ------ was easy to store.
5. ------ could be reused more easily.
6. ------ was stronger and lasted longer.
7. In the event of a fire ------would survive
but ------ would perish. |
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3.
Teacher's Notes
The purpose of this lesson is to:
a) give students an understanding of the main writing material of the ancient
world;
b) provide an opportunity to use verbs in the imperative mood (commands).
c) encourage students to carry out research on papyrus;
d) compare and contrast the writing systems of Egypt and Mesopotamia.
i) Spend some time as a class working through the information
on papyrus.
ii) Discuss the information using the opportunity to
recall what the class learned about writing in Mesopotamia.
This will prepare students for Assignment 3.
iii)Bring out in discussion how, although the resultant
writing mediums were quite different (namely papyrus and clay tablets), both
societies achieved the same goal. They both used, in a very successful way, a
raw material that was abundantly available.
iv) If possible, have students examine and handle
authentic papyrus from Egypt.
WER
can supply schools with papyrus. These have outlines on
them allowing the students to paint within the guidelines to
produce an attractive piece of artwork (blank papyrus also
available). This activity gives students experience of working
in much the same way as the Ancient Egyptians where some of
the artists were trained to draw the outlines and others to
provide the color.
Assignments on Papyrus (teacher's
notes)
In these assignments students develop:
a) Historical and geographic literacy;
b) Language skills;
c) Critical thinking skills;
d) Basic study skills.
a) Students increase their historical knowledge by understanding papyrus
- its purpose, method of production and place in history. In comparing Egypt
and Mesopotamia in the context of writing materials, they are able to see
how these two societies make full use of the freely available raw materials
to develop successful writing materials. In the one case the papyrus reed
which grew extensively in the marshes of the Nile; in the other, clay which
was freely available to the people of the land between the two rivers.
b) Students have the opportunity to work in the genre of writing instructions.
c) Critical thinking skills are called upon in order to compare and contrast
the experiences of Egypt and Mesopotamia.
d) The activities in this assignment call for the skills of research on the
use of the papyrus plant in Ancient Egypt. (possible answers: Papyrus was
lashed together to make canoes and rafts. It was woven into mats, baskets
and sandals and the fibers were twisted together to make rope).
4.
Assessment Rubric
Evidence of the following skills and knowledge should be looked
for in the student's completed assignments.
Assessment Rubric for Assignment 1
The student's set of instructions:
a) are easily understood;
b) are written in correct chronological order;
c) are written with the verbs consistently in the imperative mood;
d) reflect a clear understanding of papyrus and how it is made;
e) include clear diagrams that further clarify the written instructions.
Assessment Rubric for
Assignment 2
The student's report:
a) contains at least two uses for the papyrus plant, other than as a writing
medium;
b) reflects evidence of basic research;
c) contains illustrations that enhance the written report. Assessment Rubric
for Assignment 3
The student shows evidence of understanding the qualities of both wriitng mediums
by:
a) supplying the missing words in all the statements;
b) sorting the statements into 3 to support papyrus and 4 to support clay tablets.
Evidence of the following
skills and knowledge should be looked for in the student's completed
assignments.
Details on papyrus available here.
Order form available here.
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