In Brief Literacy Lesson Ideas Maths Lesson Idea

TM Storytime Myths and Legends: The Secret Sphinx 1 Teaching Resources

The Secret Sphinx is a myth from Egypt about a future IN BRIEF pharaoh who finds the statue of the Great Sphinx buried in the desert.

1 LITERACY LESSON IDEAS

The Secret Sphinx is a good story to introduce ancient Egypt as a topic – it touches on the pyramids of Giza, Egyptian gods and pharaohs too. Find out more about the Sphinx on our Sphinx Fact Sheet and learn about seven of the most famous pharaohs in our Great Egyptian Pharaohs Sheet.

See our Secret Sphinx Word Wise Sheet to find the meanings of unfamiliar words, and complete the comprehension and literacy exercises here too.

Arrange key moments in the myth in the correct order using our Story Sequencing Sheet.

Write the story in your own words using our Simple Storyboards Sheet.

How would you tell this story on a carved tablet like the Dream Stele? Have a go at our Secret Sphinx: Writing Sheet.

Act out The Secret Sphinx story using our printable Sphinx and Pharaoh Character Masks.

Also read another fantastic Egyptian myth, Ra’s Secret Name, in Storytime Issue 22, which you can purchase from our back issue shop: http://www.storytimemagazine.com/shop 2 MATHS LESSON IDEA

Use the pyramids of Giza, which are next to the Great Sphinx, as a starting point to talk about 3D shapes. Build your own paper pyramids using our Pyramid Maker Sheet.

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© storytimemagazine.com 2018 TM Storytime Myths and Legends: The Secret Sphinx 2 Teaching Resources 3 HISTORY LESSON IDEAS Bring the work of archaeologists to life by doing your own classroom dig. Fill buckets or trays with sand and bury Ancient Egyptian ‘artefacts’ or ‘monuments’ in the sand. Use a plastic lion toy to represent a sphinx or wooden building blocks to look like pyramids.

See Tutankhamun’s golden mask up close and get fun facts about other famous pharaohs from DK Find Out: https://www.dkfindout.com/uk/history/ancient-egypt/tutankhamun/

For the perfect combination of fun and learning, watch the Crafty Cleopatra Special of Horrible Histories on BBC iPlayer: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/cbbc/episode/ b060pwn6/horrible-histories-series-6-7-crafty-cleopatra-special

It’s believed that the pharaoh Khafra was kind to the Egyptians who built the Great Sphinx. We think this because archaeologists have dug up the lunches of workers in the sands around the Sphinx. They ate fine foods and lived in comfortable quarters nearby. However, they only had stone hammers and copper chisels, which got blunt very quickly and they worked in the hot desert. Using our Storytime Diary Sheet, write an entry by one of the workers who carved the Great Sphinx. Describe a day in his or her life.

4 GEOGRAPHY LESSON IDEAS

Find the Great Sphinx of Giza on a map of Egypt.

What language do people speak in Egypt?

What is Egypt’s national currency? What is the capital city of Egypt? Which continent is Egypt in? Find a picture of Egypt’s flag. Find Memphis on the map, which is now in ruins.

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Sculpt your own sphinx from modelling clay.

Print off our Ancient Egyptian Headdress Sheet and colour it in. Cut it out and attach it to a 2 inch-wide strip of card, long enough to wrap around your head. Wear it just like the Great Sphinx. You could use with our masks to act out the story or as a starting point for exploring fashion in Ancient Egypt.

Complete the picture on our Sphinx Art Sheet by adding a nose and a beard. Colour it in. Experts think the Great Sphinx was once painted red, blue and yellow, so why not use these colours?

Draw your favourite Egyptian pharaoh or god on our Storytime Picture Frame. Refer to the illustrations in Storytime Issue 45 for guidance.

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rces TM The SecretSphinx: Word WiseSheet2 5. WhatdidtheSphinxaskofPrinceThutmoseandwhy? 4. WhatdidPrinceThutmosespotwhenhestartedtopraythegods? 3. WhydidPrinceThutmoselethisservantsstayattheoasis? 2. 1. WhywerePrinceThutmose’s brothersjealousofhim? QUICK COMPREHENSION CHECKER WhydidPrinceThutmoseavoidhisbrothers? WRITE IT! to theGreatSphinx. In yourownwords,write PrinceThutmose’s promise THUTMOSE’S PROMISE Te Storytime a ching Resou rces TM

Myths andLegends: TheSecretSphinx

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to clear the sand from around the sphinx.

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a ching Resou rces TM TM Storytime The Secret Sphinx: Storyboard sheet Teaching Resources NAME CLASS Use the pictures to write The Secret Sphinx in your words. 1 2

______

3 4

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WRITING Imagine you are Pharaoh Thutmose IV carving your story on the Dream Stele tablet. What SHEET would you tell people? Write it here.

The Great Sphinx is one of Egypt’s most famous landmarks. It is located in Giza, where there also three great pyramids.

Experts think the Sphinx was built over 4,500 years ago, around 2,500 BC. They believe it was built for the pharaoh Khafra.

The Sphinx is 73 metres long and 20 metres high. It is one of the largest sculptures in the world – and the largest statue from ancient times.

It has the body and tail of a lion and the head of a human, wearing a royal headdress.

It was carved from a single piece of rock, and experts think it took one hundred workers around three years to complete it.

When it was first built, it may have been painted red with blue and yellow details, as flecks of paint have been found on it.

Over thousands of years, the statue has been worn away by wind and sand, which is why its nose is missing. You can see parts of its headdress and beard in the British Museum in London. The sphinx isn’t Also in Egypt, there is a place called Sphinx just a statue, it was a Alley. It’s a long avenue between two temples mythological creature and it is lined with statues of sphinxes. famous in ancient Egypt, Greece and Asia. In some cultures, it had The sphinx is so wings too. huge, its nose WOW! would have been over 1.5 metres tall, which is taller than most children!

NAME FACT FAMOUS FOR… RULED He wasn’t heir to the Making peace with one of Around throne and may have Egypt’s biggest enemies 1400 - 1 THUTMOSE IV overthrown his brothers and creating the Dream 1390 BC to become pharaoh. Stele in our story. Though he built the Ordering the building largest pyramid, the of the Great Pyramid of only statue of him is the Giza – the oldest and 2589 - 2 KHUFU smallest Egyptian royal biggest of the three main 2566 BC sculpture ever found. pyramids. It was built as It’s only 7.5cm high! a tomb for him. He got Egyptian workers He was Khufu’s son, but Around to build the Great Sphinx, called himself ‘Son of 2560 - 3 KHAFRA as well as the second Ra’. Ra was the sun god. 2534 BC largest pyramid at Giza. His tomb and golden At the age of 9, he was burial mask were Around the youngest pharaoh found in perfect 1334 - 1325 4 TUTANKHAMUN ever, but he died before condition by two British BC the age of 20. archaeologists in 1922. She refused to step down when her husband She was a strong female died, so ruled alongside leader in a time when 1498 - 1483 5 HATSHEPSUT her stepson, Thutmose most countries were ruled BC III, who was a great by men. military leader. RAMSES II He was a powerful (ALSO SPELT ruler of Egypt’s ‘New He had at least 95 Around 6 Kingdom’ and led an children and declared 1279 - 1213 RAMESSES OR army of 10,000. He also himself a god. BC RAMESES) built lots of temples. When one brother tried to She was Ancient Egypt’s force her out of Egypt, she last queen and she ruled joined forces with Julius 51 - 30 BC 7 CLEOPATRA VII jointly with her younger Caesar and the Roman brothers. army to take back her rightful place as leader.

WRITE FAVOURITE PHARAOH Choose your favourite pharaoh and do some research. IT! Can you find out an interesting fact about him or her? © storytimemagazine.com 2018 the secretsphinx: Diary Sheet NAME CLASS Date: carved theGreatSphinxofGiza. Write adiaryentryfordayinthelifeofone oftheworkerswho

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Follow the lines to cut out this shape and PYRAMID stick it together to make one of the Great MAKER SHEET Pyramids of Giza. Colour it in too!

© storytimemagazine.com 2018 TM Storytime THE SECreT SPHINX: Egyptian Headdress Sheet Teaching Resources Colour in the headdress, then cut it out and stick it to a card headband. See Tutankhamun’s gold and blue headdress for inspiration. © storytimemagazine.com 2018 TM Storytime Myths and Legends: The SECret sphinx Teaching Resources

Draw on the Sphinx’s missing nose and SPHINX ART beard, and then colour in the picture.

Print out and cut out our Pharaoh and Sphinx masks to act out the Egyptian myth in Storytime Issue 45.

2018 myth inStorytime Issue45. Print outandcutourPharaohSphinxmaskstoacttheEgyptian The SecretSphinx: Character Masks 2018 Te Storytime a ching Resou rces