What Was Ancient Egypt?

🕐 4 min 53 sec 👦 Ages 6–8 🌍 English
Join Owlo and Koko as they explore ancient Egypt, discovering pyramids and the Nile River while learning about history in a fun way!
Identify key features of ancient Egypt Locate Egypt on a map Understand the significance of pyramids Learn about the Nile River
📖 Story Script
                    Koko:
                    Owlo, yesterday I found a book with mama all about ancient civilizations. It had the most amazing pictures in it!
                
                    Owlo:
                    What kind of pictures were they, Koko? Tell me a little more about them.
                
                    Koko:
                    There were these huge triangular buildings, and people wearing really strange hats. And so much gold everywhere!
                
                    Owlo:
                    Those triangular buildings are called pyramids, Koko. They were built in ancient Egypt, thousands and thousands of years ago.
                
                    Koko:
                    Ancient Egypt? Where exactly is that in the world?
                
                    Owlo:
                    Let us head over to the library. I have a wonderful book there that will show us everything.
                
                    Owlo:
                    Look, here is the big map. Egypt is in the northeast of Africa, stretching along a very long river.
                
                    Koko:
                    Wow, that river is enormous! What is the name of that river?
                
                    Owlo:
                    That river is called the Nile. The Nile is one of the longest rivers in the entire world.
                
                    Koko:
                    But why did people choose to live right next to that river?
                
                    Owlo:
                    Great question. Every year, the river brought fresh water and rich, fertile soil. That meant people could grow plenty of food there.
                
                    Koko:
                    That is really clever! But who exactly lived in ancient Egypt?
                
                    Owlo:
                    There were ordinary people, like farmers and craftsmen. But there was also one very powerful ruler, who was called a pharaoh.
                
                    Koko:
                    A pharaoh? That sounds like such a special and interesting word.
                
                    Owlo:
                    A pharaoh was the ruler of all of Egypt. The people believed that he was almost like a god.
                
                    Koko:
                    Those pharaohs must have thought very highly of themselves, that is for sure!
                
                    Owlo:
                    You are absolutely right, Koko. They had enormous buildings constructed in their honor, so they would never be forgotten.
                
                    Koko:
                    Are those the same pyramids I saw in mama's book?
                
                    Owlo:
                    Exactly right! The pyramids were actually giant tombs built for the pharaohs. They were constructed using enormous blocks of stone.
                
                    Koko:
                    But how did they build them? They did not have cranes or machines back then, did they?
                
                    Owlo:
                    That is exactly what scientists still wonder about. Thousands of workers hauled the heavy stones using ropes and wooden sledges.
                
                    Koko:
                    That sounds incredibly hard. What about those strange little pictures I saw in the book? What were those?
                
                    Owlo:
                    Those pictures are called hieroglyphics. It was a special writing system that the ancient Egyptians used to record things.
                
                    Koko:
                    So instead of using letters, they drew tiny little pictures to write with?
                
                    Owlo:
                    Very good! A small bird could represent a letter, or even a whole word. It was a very clever system indeed.
                
                    Koko:
                    I would love to write my own name using hieroglyphics. That would be so incredibly cool!
                
                    Owlo:
                    We can look that up together in this book shortly. But first, can you tell me anything about the gods of Egypt?
                
                    Koko:
                    In mama's book I saw figures with animal heads on human bodies. Were those the Egyptian gods?
                
                    Owlo:
                    Yes, well remembered! The ancient Egyptians believed in many gods. Some of those gods had a human body with the head of an animal.
                
                    Koko:
                    That is a little bit like me, a fox head sitting on top of a human body!
                
                    Owlo:
                    A very fitting comparison. The god Anubis had the head of a jackal, and he was the god of life after death.
                
                    Koko:
                    Life after death? That sounds a little bit scary and mysterious to me.
                
                    Owlo:
                    The Egyptians believed you continued living in another world after you died. That is why they buried their pharaohs with all of their belongings.
                
                    Koko:
                    Oh, so all those golden things inside the tombs were meant for the pharaoh in their next life?
                
                    Owlo:
                    Exactly. They also created mummies. They wrapped the body in special cloth so it would be preserved for a very long time.
                
                    Koko:
                    Mummies! I know about those. They are a little bit creepy, but also really, really fascinating.
                
                    Owlo:
                    They truly are fascinating. Thanks to mummies, scientists today still know a great deal about how people lived in ancient Egypt.
                
                    Koko:
                    Owlo, ancient Egypt is honestly the most exciting thing I have ever learned about. Can you ask me what I have discovered today?
                
                    Owlo:
                    Of course, Koko. So tell me, what have you learned today about ancient Egypt?
                
                    Koko:
                    Okay, here we go! Ancient Egypt was in Africa, along a river called the Nile. The ruler was called a pharaoh, and was incredibly powerful. They built pyramids as tombs, and wrote using tiny pictures called hieroglyphics. They believed in many gods with animal heads, and they made mummies to preserve people after death. And next time, I really want to learn how to write my own name in hieroglyphics, because that would just be the best thing ever!