Visual & Performing Arts · 1st Grade

Active learning ideas

Art from Ancient Egypt: Hieroglyphs and Pharaohs

First graders learn best when they can connect ideas to their own surroundings. This topic works because it starts with things they see every day—murals, statues, and monuments—and shows them how art tells stories about people, places, and history.

• Common Core State Standards
• NCAS: Connecting VA.Cn11.1.1
• NCAS: Responding VA.Re7.1.1

• 20–50 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 3 activities

Activity 01

• Inquiry Circle
• 50 min · Small Groups

Inquiry Circle: The School Mural

In small groups, students brainstorm a 'message' they want to send to their school (e.g., 'Be Kind'). They then work together to sketch a large-scale mural design on butcher paper that represents that message.

Analyze how hieroglyphs tell stories and convey meaning.

Facilitation Tip

During the Collaborative Investigation, circulate quietly and listen for students to use terms like 'story,' 'community,' or 'symbol' in their conversations.

What to look for

Present students with images of common Egyptian symbols (e.g., ankh, eye of Horus, scarab beetle). Ask them to draw the symbol and write one sentence about what it might represent based on class discussions.

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Self-Management
• Self-Awareness

Activity 02

• Gallery Walk
• 40 min · Whole Class

Gallery Walk: Neighborhood Detectives

Take a walk around the school or use Google Street View to find examples of public art. Students use a checklist to identify if the art is a statue, a painting, or a monument and what 'clues' tell them about its meaning.

Compare the art of Ancient Egypt to modern forms of storytelling.

Facilitation Tip

During the Gallery Walk, remind students to look closely at details in the art and to jot quick notes or sketches in their detective notebooks.

What to look for

Show students a simple hieroglyphic message or a section of a tomb painting. Ask: 'What story do you think this art is trying to tell? How is it similar to or different from a story told in a book or a cartoon today?'

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Create
• Relationship Skills
• Social Awareness

Activity 03

• Think-Pair-Share
• 20 min · Pairs

Think-Pair-Share: Who is it For?

Show a picture of a famous public monument. Pairs discuss who they think the 'audience' is and why the artist chose to put it outside instead of inside a building.

Explain the significance of specific symbols in Egyptian art.

Facilitation Tip

During the Think-Pair-Share, give students exactly one minute to think and one minute to share before calling on pairs to respond.

What to look for

Provide students with a small piece of paper. Ask them to draw one thing they learned about pharaohs or gods in Egyptian art and write one word to describe its importance.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

A few notes on teaching this unit

Teachers know that first graders need concrete examples to grasp abstract ideas like symbols and community values. Use real photographs of local public art alongside examples from Ancient Egypt to help students see the connections. Avoid overloading them with too many symbols at once; focus on two or three that reappear in different artworks. Research shows that when students create their own symbols during activities, they retain the meaning more deeply.

By the end of these activities, students will understand that public art is created for everyone and that it often includes symbols, stories, and people important to a community. They will be able to share their observations, ask questions, and connect art to community values.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During the Collaborative Investigation: The School Mural, watch for students to call all wall decorations 'graffiti' or 'mess.'

  Use this moment to point to a section of the mural and ask, 'How is this part different from tagging or scribbles you might see elsewhere? Who do you think decided what should go on this wall?' Guide students to notice the planning, colors, and messages in the mural.

• During the Gallery Walk: Neighborhood Detectives, watch for students to assume all statues are of 'important' people.

  Bring a list of who or what the statues represent in your neighborhood. Ask students to find one they think is surprising or unusual, then discuss why that person or thing might be important to the community.

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Methods used in this brief

• Inquiry Circle
• Gallery Walk
• Think-Pair-Share