November 11, 2008

PFLEX classes are working on independent research projects relating in some
way to the Egypt unit we have been studying.  Some children are interested in
mummies, some in comparing pyramids from around the world.  Others are
researching people from the past, such as Cleopatra, Hatshepsut, and, of
course, the ever-interesting, King Tut!  Several children wondered about
children from the past. What games did they play?  How did they live? What did
they wear?  Hieroglyphics and the Egyptian number system, Egyptian mythology
and gods, and how Egyptian warfare compares to later warfare are all topics
your students are researching. 

We will be working on these projects through December, and I hope to have a
day close to the winter holidays when parents can visit and see what their
students have accomplished.  We are using both computer and print resources,
from Renzulli to NetTrekker to encyclopedias, with resources ranging from a
great Fun with Mummies site that shows how the Egyptians mummified bodies, to
a Nova site that puts you right in a pyramid's passages and chambers, then
lets you stand on top of a pyramid to see the view all around. Children are
using GoogleEarth, and will be using PowerPoint, Word, and other programs for
their projects, as well as building models, writing plays, creating artworks,
and pretending to be people from Egypt's past.

Your children are welcome to work on their projects at home, in class when
there is time, and in PFLEX class -- at both Dessau Elementary and Brookhollow
Elementary, we have access to computers in PFLEX.