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Games for the Hieroglyphic Alphabet

Ancient Egyptians kept records and old stories with hieroglyphics. Unlike English, the Egyptian alphabet used pictures to represent consonant sounds. Decoding hieroglyphics only became possible after the discovery of the Rosetta stone in 1799. But teachers and parents can make their own codes using the fundamental hieroglyphs for party and classroom activities.

Hieroglyphic Memory
- Children learn painlessly through play. One simple way to make children aware of Egyptian symbols is through the simple game of Memory. Print out two copies of each phonetic symbol on card stock. Cut the cards apart and place them face down on the table. Players take turns flipping over the cards and matching the symbols. To teach the individual sounds, print two cards for each symbol with both the Egyptian symbol and the alphabet letter. Play the matching games with these identical cards for a week. Then print one Egyptian symbol with a small letter at the bottom as a reminder. Print a corresponding card with a large letter and a small symbol. Players then match the letter with each phonetic symbol.
Code Breaker
- Players familiar with the basics of hieroglyphics are ready to put that knowledge to good use. Write simple sentences in the hieroglyphics. Players work to figure out the English equivalents of the Egyptian symbols. To make this game more fun, and historically accurate, provide players with their own ̶0;Rosetta Stone.̶1; Make a poster with the same phrase written in English and hieroglyphics.
Egyptian Board Game
- Create a board game where each player is an archeologist searching for the Pharaoh̵7;s treasure. Draw a track on a large piece of poster board with lines to designate individual spaces. Write cards with adventurous statements like: ̶0;You just found the cartouche of Queen Hapshetsut, move ahead three spaces,̶1; or ̶0;Cobras! Move back a space.̶1; Write each number in Egyptian hieroglyphics. Decorate the board with hieroglyphics that spell out the name of your game and other fun sayings.
Mystery Game
- Pretend that players have just found the hidden diary of a great Egyptologist. This explorer is the only one to find a tomb with unimaginable archeological riches. The only problem is that the entire diary is written in hieroglyphics. Players decode each clue and follow the instructions to reveal more clues. Split large groups into teams and let them race to the treasure. This game is equally difficult for both adults and children, so it is a game that lends itself to family parties and other mixed age groups.

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