Ancient Egyptians’ Afterlife

Overview

This 60-minute lesson introduces Year 3 students to Ancient Egyptian beliefs about the afterlife, focusing on where they thought they would go after death. The lesson is designed to engage all learners through interactive storytelling, comparative discussion, and creative tasks, ensuring alignment with the National Curriculum for England (History programme of study for Key Stage 2).

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National Curriculum Links

History: Key Stage 2 (Years 3 and 4)

• Pupils should be taught to:
  • know and understand significant aspects of the history of the wider world including the nature of ancient civilisations – Ancient Egypt
  • understand key features and events of the past
  • use historical vocabulary to communicate

Specific Learning Objectives for this Lesson

By the end of the lesson, pupils will be able to:

• Describe what the Ancient Egyptians believed would happen after death.
• Explain the significance of the afterlife in Ancient Egyptian culture.
• Use appropriate historical vocabulary such as ‘afterlife’, ‘mummification’, ‘pharaoh’, and ‘hieroglyphs’.
• Compare beliefs about the afterlife from Ancient Egypt to pupils’ own ideas or other cultures.

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Resources

• Storybook or script summarising Ancient Egyptian beliefs about the afterlife (age-appropriate)
• Images or replicas: Canopic jars, Book of the Dead scrolls, sarcophagus, and hieroglyph examples
• Large world map or timeline showing Ancient Egypt's place in history
• Whiteboard and markers
• Differentiated worksheet templates (3 levels) for 15-minute task
• Coloured pencils/crayons
• Sticky notes

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Lesson Timings and Activities

1. Introduction (10 minutes)

• Starter question: Ask, “Where do people think they go when they die?” Write responses on the board.
• Show images of Ancient Egyptian artefacts linked to death (e.g., mummies, pyramids).
• Briefly narrate a 3-minute storytelling session about the journey of a Pharaoh to the afterlife, using simple language and visual aids.
• Introduce key vocabulary on the board: ‘afterlife’, ‘mummification’, ‘Ka’, ‘Book of the Dead’.

2. Core Teaching – Exploring Beliefs (15 minutes)

• Explain that Ancient Egyptians believed in a special life after death, called the afterlife, where the soul continued.
• Show images of the resources and link each to an element of the belief (e.g., Canopic jars hold internal organs for the afterlife; Book of the Dead contains spells to help the journey).
• Use a simple diagram or timeline to show what happens after death according to the Ancient Egyptians: death → mummification → judgement by Osiris → afterlife.
• Pause for quick comprehension checks by asking questions such as “Why did Egyptians mummify bodies?” or “Who is Osiris?”

3. 15-Minute Differentiated Task – Create Your Own Afterlife Map

• Task overview: Pupils create a simple ‘map’ or drawing showing what they think would happen to them after death based on Ancient Egyptian beliefs or their imagination.
• Differentiation:
  • Support (Lower ability): Use a template with labelled boxes and pictures to colour and match. Prompt words included.
  • On task (Middle ability): Draw their own map and write 1-2 sentences per stage of the afterlife journey using key vocabulary.
  • Challenge (Higher ability): Write a short paragraph describing their afterlife journey, including comparisons to other belief systems or own ideas.
• Provide coloured pencils and help as needed.

4. Sharing and Reflection (10 minutes)

• Pupils volunteer to share their work in pairs or small groups, explaining their afterlife map.
• Discussion using sticky notes: “What surprised you about Ancient Egyptian beliefs?” and “What’s similar or different to what we believe or have heard?”
• Teacher collects a few anonymised sticky notes and reads aloud to highlight variety and understanding.

5. Plenary (10 minutes)

• Quiz-style recap game using whiteboard or interactive questioning:
  • “What did Egyptians believe happened to the Ka after death?”
  • “What did the Book of the Dead help with?”
  • “Why was it important to be judged by Osiris?”
• Recap key vocabulary one last time.
• Highlight upcoming lessons about Ancient Egyptian daily life and culture as a point of interest.

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Assessment Opportunities

• Observations during paired share and group discussion for verbal understanding.
• Completed differentiated task checked for comprehension, use of vocabulary and expression of concepts.
• Plenary quiz responses to assess retention of key facts and ideas.

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Special Notes for Teachers

• Encourage creativity in the 15-minute task to allow learners to connect personally with the history content.
• Use sentences starters for lower ability to scaffold writing tasks (e.g., “The Ancient Egyptians believed...”).
• Highlight that Ancient Egyptian beliefs were complex but this lesson captures the key parts relevant to Year 3.
• Use voice modulation during storytelling to maintain engagement.
• Display vocabulary throughout the lesson on a dedicated working wall or flipchart.

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This lesson plan fully aligns with the National Curriculum requirements for History at Key Stage 2, using active learning strategies and differentiation to meet the needs of 30 pupils aged 7-8.