Blue B (KS2) Test 1

The Abu Simbel Sun Festival

Mum, Dad, Max and I just got back from our holiday in Egypt. Egypt is a fascinating country, with a rich history going back thousands of years. We experienced all sorts of incredible things there – pyramids, mummies, museums and more! The highlight for me, though, was taking part in the Abu Simbel Sun Festival.

Abu Simbel is in the south of Egypt. There are two vast temples there, which were carved out of a mountain over 3000 years ago at the time of Pharaoh Ramses II. At the front of the temples are four huge statues of the Pharaoh. It’s amazing to think such enormous statues could be built all that time ago when there were no machines to cut the stone.

Then, over hundreds of years, sand completely covered the massive temples, and for centuries no one even knew they existed! They were rediscovered by accident in 1813 by an explorer from Switzerland. The area was then excavated to reveal the amazing temples and statues.

As if that wasn’t amazing enough, in 1964, the whole temple was cut into blocks and transported to a new location. This was done so that it wouldn’t be swamped when a new dam was built nearby. A team of engineers and archaeologists from around the world came together to save the temples. In 4 years they had moved them block by block to a higher location, just 210 metres away.

Luckily, we arrived at Abu Simbel at just the right time of year – 21st October. This meant that we were there the day before the Abu Simbel Sun Festival. The Sun Festival occurs twice a year to celebrate an event that happens at the temples. On 22nd February and 22nd October the rising sun hits the temples at just the right angle so that it shines into the internal chamber, and floods it with light for about six minutes. During this time, several statues in the chamber light up as the sun shines on them, including a statue of Ramses II. Of course, when the temples were moved, the archaeologists had to make sure that the statues were still at exactly the correct angle to catch the sun at dawn on the dates of the Sun Festival.

On the morning of 22nd October we had to get up extremely early to be part of the action! We went to the temples before sunrise and waited patiently inside the chamber as the crowds started to gather. As the sun rose at 6.20 a.m. we watched the piercing light hit the tops of the statues and slowly light up the chamber. It was remarkable, like nothing I’ve ever seen or experienced before. Afterwards, we joined the Egyptian people in a celebration dance outside the temples. People sang and played drums – it was lots of fun!

My family and I had an incredible time at the Sun Festival. I’ve already started planning my next travel adventure. Whatever happens, I know I’ll definitely be coming back to see even more of Egypt.

Pharaoh – an ancient Egyptian king archaeologists – people who study the lives of people who lived long ago

2 Blue B (KS2) Name: Test 1

Class: Date:

1 What type of text is Abu Simbel Sun Festival? Tick one box.

Persuasive text Recount

Instructions Explanation 1

2 What did the author say was the best part of the holiday in Egypt?

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3 Look at the paragraph beginning: Abu Simbel is in the south of Egypt. Which of the following would make a good sub-heading for this paragraph? Tick one box.

The temples at The mystery of Abu Simbel Abu Simbel

The Abu Simbel What is a Pharaoh? 1 Sun Festival

4 How can we tell that the author is surprised at how the statues were built?

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1 5 Look at the paragraph beginning: Then, over hundreds of years … Find two surprising things about the temples at Abu Simbel.

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6 Look at the sentence: The area was then excavated to reveal the amazing temples and statues. What does the word ‘excavated’ mean in this sentence?

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7 Number the following statements 1–5 to show the order in which they happened. The first one has been done for you.

The hidden temples were discovered.

The temple was cut into blocks.

The temples were covered by sand. 1

1 The area was excavated.

The blocks were transported to a higher location.

8 Why does the author use the word ‘Luckily’ at the beginning of the fifth paragraph?

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2 9 Look at the paragraph beginning: The Sun Festival occurs twice a year … Find and copy the word that means ‘inner’.

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10 Why does the author tell us that one of the statues that is lit by the rising sun is a statue of Ramses II? Tick one box.

Ramses was a Pharaoh.

Ramses was Pharaoh when the temples were built.

The sun hits the temple at just the right angle. 1 Several statues light up.

11 Why was it important that the archaeologists rebuilt the temples at exactly the same angle?

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12 Look at the paragraph beginning: On the morning of 22nd October … What does the author mean by ‘to be part of the action’?

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13 Look at the paragraph beginning: On the morning of 22nd October ... Why did the author and his family wait inside the chamber?

1 3 14 Which of the following statements are facts and which are opinions? Tick one box for each statement.

Fact Opinion

The temples at Abu Simbel are the most amazing in Egypt.

The temples at Abu Simbel had to be removed to save them.

The engineers who moved the 2 temples were very brave.

The engineers who moved the temples were very skilled.

15 Look back over the whole text. Find four words that tell us how astonished the author was by what he saw on his travels in Egypt.

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For teacher use Your mark out of 20 What went well

How to improve

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