Thanks to Education World for use of my Mrs. Waffenschmidt illustration.

Thanks to Education World for use of my Mrs. Waffenschmidt illustration.
Click on icon to go to my website: http://www.gailhennessey.com

Monday, October 26, 2026

King Tut Day is Coming!

 




King Tut Day is Coming- November 4th. Download this FREEBIE on King Tut and the discovery of his tomb. https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/King-TuT-Day-November-4th-Interactive-Notebook-Activity-FREE-2184199


The tomb of King Tutankhamun was discovered by Howard Carter in 1922. Although a king of Egypt, called a pharaoh, for only a couple of years, he was famous for all the treasures that still were in his tomb. The tomb was recently found to have major cracks near the entrance and the burial chamber. There is concern that the tomb could collapse.Additionally, fungus,growing on the ancient murals due to humidity, is destroying the 3300 year old paintings. Egyptian officials are starting to determine what needs to be done to preserve the tomb , found near Luxor, for future generations.



Interesting facts:
1. Lord Carnarvon was bitten by a mosquito, while in Egypt and died days later. It is said that the lights in Cairo, Egypt, went out when Carnarvon died. Also, back in London, his dog is said to have started to howl and, died.  When King Tut's mummy was unwrapped, a mark was found in the same location as the mosquito bit on Lord Carnarvon. It was around this time that the idea of a curse on those that went inside the tomb began to gain in popularity!

2. One of the discoveries in the tomb, in addition to golden statues and a golden throne, jewels and chariots, was a box of UNDERWEAR for King Tut to use in the afterlife.

3. Licorice was also found in King Tut's tomb.

4. Each of King Tut's toes were individually wrapped in gold!

5. Watermelon seeds were found in King Tut's tomb. 

6. With the discovery of the tomb, all things Egyptian became very popular. Women began to wear dresses with Egyptian patterns. Songs about King Tut were written,dances created and beauty products were advertised with Egyptian themes.  This popularity in all things  ancient Egyptian was  called "Tutmania".

7. Twenty-two pounds of gold were used to make the gold mask of King Tut.


Questions:
A number of people that went into the tomb died under unusual circumstances. However, the person that discovered the tomb,Howard Carter, lived a long life. So, if there was a curse(as stated on the entrance of Tut's tomb), it didn't harm Carter. WHAT might explain why some people may have died from being in the tomb, opened for the first time in centuries?

When Howard Carter discovered the tomb, he waited weeks for Lord Carnarvon to travel by ship to be there for the opening of the tomb. He had guards stand watch at the entrance of the tomb. He did NOT go inside. He felt that since Lord Carnarvon had funded the expedition, he should be there for the "opening". Could you have waited?

Read my article, "Mummies Share Their Secrets" at Science News for Student: https://www.snexplores.org/article/mummies-share-their-secrets

You may wish to check  out You Tube for a song done by comedian Steve Martin, "King Tut".(Review it first as there is one word which may not be appropriate). You could just share the lyrics and skip over the word.)

                       
Check my Resource on King Tut, A Reader's Theater Script with LOTS of information on King Tut, mummy making and the discovery of his tomb: http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/King-Tut-Wrapping-with-a-Mummy-Biographical-PlayTo-Tell-the-Truth-Play-338665

Illustration from Clipsafari and Pixabay-free




Photograph from Pixabay

Thursday, October 8, 2026

Halloween is Coming- CHOCOLATE TIME!

October means Halloween is coming and Halloween means...Candy, especially...chocolate!



Chocolate Fun Facts
by
Gail Skroback Hennessey
Do you love chocolate? If you do, you may want to hide a few bars away for a future date. Seems that chocolate may be running out and, in the not so distant future. Researchers says that chocolate, which comes from cacao beans, may be a thing of the past in less than 40 years! The reason, the warming of our planet is making for less and less places for the bean to thrive. Additionally, the demand for chocolate is growing, especially in places such as China where people are  developing a “sweet” tooth. More and more people are also especially sweet on dark chocolate, which requires more cocoa than other types of chocolate. Still another problem is that a fungus is attacking the cacao beans as they grow on the trees. Let’s hope that we can solve the chocolate problem, so we can all continue to enjoy its yummy taste! 

Click here for the free downloadable version of this Interactive Notebook Activity:


Chocolate Factoids:
1. Now THIS is a chocolate bar. Weighing 12,770 pounds when made, it earned the title of world's largest! A ton is 2000 pounds. Approximately, how many tons of chocolate was this bar? _______________

2. To make one pound of chocolate, you need about 400 cocoa beans.

3. Did you know that one of the things sold in Ben Franklin’s printing shop was chocolate? Write TWO facts you know about Ben Franklin:_____________and___________

4. Do you like white chocolate? Actually, it doesn’t have any cocoa and really isn’t chocolate!

5. Montezuma, the Aztec emperor, is said to have had 50 cups of a chocolate drink every day. He drank out of a golden goblet.

6. Originally, hot cocoa was served without sugar and was a very bitter drink.

7. An amazing 23 million Hershey kisses candies are made every day.

8. Milton Hershey had tickets for the maiden voyage of the Titanic but cancelled due to a meeting. Do you know anything about the Titanic? _________________

9. At one time, people in Meso-America(Central America) used cacao beans as money. What might be two problems using cacao beans as money?____________ and ___________

10. “Chocolate” comes from the word, “xocolatl, a Mayan word for “bitter water”.

11. If you have a cough, you may wish to try eating chocolate to get rid of a cough. Seems to work!

12. Chocolate is very dangerous for dogs and cats!

13. For a time in 2013, the country of Belgium made a stamp which had a chocolate flavor.

14. The candy M and Ms were developed as a treat for soldiers during World War 2. The hard shell kept the chocolate from melting too quickly.

15. The chocolate chip cookie was first baked by Ruth Wakefield. The year was 1930. In exchange for a lifetime of chocolate, she gave her recipe to the Nestle’s Company.

16. Did you know that two countries in Africa produce half the world’s chocolate? Those countries are Ghana and the Cote d’Ivoire.

17. On Columbus’ fourth visit, he is credited with bringing back  to Europe the first cocoa beans(1502-1504)

Your Turn:
1. What do you think this saying means? "Life is like a box of chocolates...you never know what you're gonna get.”( From the movie, Forrest Gump.)
2. What is your favorite chocolate treat? Write a descriptive paragraph describing your favorite chocolate treat to a Martian who has never experienced the treat.
3. Illustrate one of the chocolate factoids.
4. Using a world map, locate the countries mentioned in this information.



Teacher Page:
  1. Before reviewing the facts on chocolate, ask the students to share any prior knowledge they may have on chocolate.
  2. Have students review the factoids on chocolate and do the Your Turn section. Put the handout away and ask the students to write 5 facts they remember from the list.
3.  Review the responses to the Your Turn section.

Check out these resources:
The first in my series, Everything Has a History, check out my History of Candy Internet activity. Why not show your students that even candy has a history with this fun/informative web quest! Learn facts including marshmallows date back to 2000 BC and King Tut's Tomb contained licorice. I also have included several additional resources and extension activities. Great for a Friday, a day before a vacation activity or just when you'd like to share with kids that...everything has a history! https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Candy-History-of-Candy-Webquest-516787

2. https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Candy-9204152 There are 32 informative questions in this Test Your Knowledge Challenge on all things SWEET! Great for a Friday activity or for a substitute activity.

Illustration from Pixabay-free download