Egyptian Visits for Schools
Invite Cleopatra and her priest into your school and be transported back in time to the year 31BCE. Cleopatra is the famous Queen of the Nile and this exciting Egyptian day promises to add learning and wonder to your topic.
The Egyptian School visit can also be delivered by King Ptolemy the Saviour as an alternative!
The Egyptian school visit can be booked for one or several classes for a full day or a half day. We have worked with up to four classes before.
Below is an outline of a typical Egyptian Visit.
Introduction
The Living Isis (usually) introduces herself and provides a general background on the time.
Every day clothing, objects and way of life are discussed as well as Egyptian Gods and Goddesses. The introduction usually features the Creation Myth also.
The Mummy Maker
Mummification
In this session, children will meet our specially made life-size Mummification dummy. It also features a ready made 6ft Mummy; a coffin and all the equipment needed for mummifying, as well as the opportunity for children to create their own replica artefacts from clay.
The priest (or Cleo!) takes the children through the complicated process of Mummification, using his recently dead friend for the children to practise on. The corpse dummy is designed to allow for children to take out organs for storage in the appropriate canopic jar etc.
Volunteers are asked variously to join in with aspects of the process, wearing various masks and even to stand in as a sacrificial bull – all will become clear. By the end, the mummy should be ready to place in its sarcophagus. This session incorporates art/DT skills.
Work Along The Nile
Work Along The Nile
This session is structured in three sections and offers an amazing opportunity to handle many authentic objects most of which are of museum quality. In groups, children are asked to problem-solve, working together to figure out clues as to which countries to trade and barter with for goods.
Then, they must pause their ordinary lives, as Egyptian citizens are asked to help to build pyramids as part of their taxes. Using fantastic kits, sourced internationally, children either build a pyramid or take part in a traditional artistic challenge.
Finally, groups handle a remarkable collection of replica artefacts, discussing each object to learn its use and the work role (or job) that matches it.
This session helps children to understand ordinary working lives of Egyptians and incorporates art/DT skills.
Egyptian Scribe
Children craft their own papyrus from strips of paper (to be provided in school, as well as glue and black paint, please) and then leave to dry.
Egyptian Hieroglyphic Writing is explored, with an explanation of
its decoding via the Rosetta Stone (if teacher-led) and/or its use in schooling of important children for official positions in society.
Children use our (highly coveted) class set of Egyptian Hieroglyphic Stencils to learn about hieroglyphs’ correspondence to individual letters and write their own name.
Various tools including an authentic Scribe’s Writing Set are displayed and children use similar reed pens and paint to draw up an official document of their choosing (ideally on their papyrus if it is dry) – name and address is suggested. This session incorporates art/DT.
Pastimes, Toys & Games
Pastimes, Toys & Games
Egyptian pastimes are discussed and authentically reproduced toys are shown. Cleopatra teaches the children some Egyptian dancing.
Children will have the opportunity to play with old Egyptian toys such as whipping tops and to try some games (with teachers’ permissions) eg. leapfrog and tug of war. We bring a class set of solid wood Mancalas for children to challenge each other at “the oldest game in the world” which has been found by archaeologists carved into the stone of the Great Pyramid at Giza.
Storytelling
Egyptian Myths & Storytelling
We always end the day with storytelling as a whole group, ideally fitting in a myth, told traditionally as well as one of our much-appreciated “silly stories” when all can join in together.
We, Greg and Lisa, work fully in role as Egyptians. This means that we use our subject knowledge to respond to questions as Egyptians would do. This historical interpreter’s commitment to authenticity is tempered with a teacher’s sense of appropriateness though – so we do not swear (as some reenactors will in school, claiming that this was the way it was!). Our focus is on the educational experience for the children and what serves them best, so the sessions are interactive and involve everyone.
The day is fully risk assessed and this can be emailed upon request. Confirmation of booking is taken as a contract between the school and The Specialists and acceptance of our T & C’s.
Greg and Lisa McCarthy have many years of experience working with children. Greg is a teacher and Lisa a former Occupational Therapist in learning disabilities. Both have DBS and public liability insurance.
Replica resources are meticulously researched and as authentic to the period as possible; many of museum standard. We will bring real animal hide and animal bone objects. We understand if anyone is sensitive to this (Lisa is a vegetarian in real life!) but please be prepared. Our bone replica artefacts really are made of bone – not plastic! Whilst the day features a real African Gazelle skin, for obvious reasons, the leopard “skin” for the Mummification session is faux fur!
Egyptian school visits for education. We provide a living history and reenactment service as historical interpreters focusing on the What can we find out about Ancient Egypt from what has survived topic. As re-enactors, we use storytelling/Egyptian myths, dance, writing using reeds and artefacts such as toys and games, full mummification kit etc. to bring the excitement of real history to your classroom.
Some of the locations we travel to for our Egyptians workshops are:
East-Midlands, Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Warwickshire, Leamington, Leicester, Hinckley, Nottingham, Coventry, Birmingham, Tamworth, Derbyshire, , Chesterfield, Ilkeston, Swadlincote, Nottinghamshire, Derby, Mansfield, Worksop, Newark, Loughborough, Melton Mowbray, Coalville, Lutterworth, Corby, Kettering, Wellingborough, Nuneaton, Solihull, Warwick, Rugby, West Midlands.
