The entire Birch Lane student body and parents had the opportunity to tour a museum of Ancient Egyptian artifacts and ask “pharaohs,” such as Cleopatra and King Khufu questions about their lives, right in their own school. The museum was created by sixth-grade students in Lisa Dorsa’s social studies classes to showcase what they learned after completing extensive research on the ancient civilization. Each sixth grader researched a pharaoh using Google Chromebooks to access websites and videos, and used their research to create a slide presentation and to develop 10 interview questions. Each student took on the persona of the pharaoh they researched as their peers asked them the questions they developed. The students also presented a prop, project or costume they created to their classmates while answering the questions. After the presentations were completed, all their research and creative projects were put on display in the museum.
“Creating the museum and bringing together all that the students learned in a very hands-on, tangible way not only made learning fun and enjoyable for the students, but made it memorable and a more valuable learning experience,” said Dorsa.
Students were excited and eager to share what they learned with other students in their school.
Allison Gonzalez, who was dressed as Cleopatra, said of the assignment, “It was a lot of work but it paid off because I liked how all the kids came over to me and asked me questions and I was able to answer them,” she said.
Sixth-grader Michael Maron, who created a pyramid and a face mask as part of his project, said he enjoyed learning about mummification and about the structures the Egyptians built and why they were built in certain ways for the pharaohs.
In addition to their research projects, students experienced the unique and interactive exploration of world history through a special assembly by guest speaker and world traveler Mike Harrold, who used a PowerPoint presentation, artifacts and anecdotes to educate, motivate and promote multicultural awareness and respect. Through his slide presentation, Harrold brought the students on a journey through Egypt, India and China and helped develop a sense of appreciation for cultures all over the world. The assembly was coordinated in partnership with the PTA Arts in Education Committee.
