Cleopatra Lesson Activities
By John W. Healy

To view John W. Healy's article "The World's a Stage" click here.

Activity #1
Distribute to the class a drawing of a pyramid with eight horizontal levels that represent the social stratification of ancient Egypt.

At the bottom of the handout, in mixed order, list eight social groups of ancient Egypt. Other groups may be added as well. Suggested groups to include are: pharaohs, viziers, government officials, soldiers, scribes, merchants, farmers and slaves. Ask the class to fill in from the top of the pyramid to the bottom the highest to lowest levels of ancient Egyptian society.

Activity #2
Design a restaurant for one of the different social groups of ancient Egypt. While ancient Egypt did not have restaurants, imagine designing one for a particular Egyptian social class. Consider the social class and associated needs of the particular class chosen when designing restaurant accommodations.

Some examples are:

• Pharaohs would sit on wooden chairs; slaves would sit on the floor.
• Pharaohs would have more dishes to accommodate a greater variety of food choices; slaves would be limited to a menu of coarse beer, plain bread and vegetables.

Activity #3
Ask the class to write a paragraph describing the appearance of the pharaohs. Suggest to them the following levels of descriptive observation, which demonstrate assenting levels of understanding.

• The pharaohs wore specific clothing. (The lowest level)
• The pharaohs would wear different headwear for different occasions. (Middle level of understanding)
• The pharaohs would wear different headdresses for different occasions, such as a nemes for every day use, a double crown for business, a blue war crown for battle and a hemhemet in the temple. (Higher level of understanding)

For a reproducible Cleopatra fact sheet click here.

To view John W. Healy's article "The World's a Stage" click here.

Dr. John W. Healy teaches art at Woodland Middle School, East Meadow, NY.

March, 2007, Vol.37, No.6