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Teaching topic: Ancient Egypt: Cross-curricular opportunities

This guide pulls together resources on Ancient Egypt for teaching purposes

Rationale of a thematic approach

"Cross-curricular integration or the thematic approach allows the teacher to cover more content in less time thus reducing the burden of curriculum overload. In fact integration allows the teacher to achieve the impossible, to give the children access to the broad curriculum and all its subject areas. Teachers have the freedom to choose a theme and cover that theme in a cross section of subjects"

- INTO Education Conference 2007

Background

Look out for the great Ancient Egypt resources marked 'free' on the UK-based site PlanBee

Suggested integration of Egyptian artefacts across the Irish primary curriculum

History curriculum

  • using evidence

Visual arts curriculum

  • looking and responding to shape, form, paint and colour etc.
  • making drawings

Science curriculum

  • observing, sorting and classifying (working scientifically)
  • materials (properties and characteristics)
  • designing and making

Related guides

Ancient Egypt in the Irish primary history curriculum

Strand: Working as an historian (all)

  • Time and chronology
  • Change and continuity
  • Cause and effect
  • Using evidence
  • Synthesis and communication
  • Empathy

Strand: Early peoples and ancient societies

  • Egyptians

Strand: Story

  • Stories from the lives of people in the past
  • Myths and legends

Suggested integration of Egypt / Ancient Egypt in the Irish primary curriculum

Geography curriculum (SESE curriculum)

  • Strand unit: people and places in other areas (human environments)
    • leads to: maps, globes and graphical skills (development of)
  • Strand unit: people and other lands
    • leads to: an environment in a non-European country
  • Strand unit: physical features of Europe and the world (natural environments)
    • leads to: Nile delta, desert
  • Strand unit: trade and development issues (human environments, senior classes)
    • leads to: trade in Ancient Egypt (see short video below)