The Pharaoh’s Secret - Mrs. Moran's Class Websitemrsvanessamoran.weebly.com/.../the_pharaohs_secret… · · 2015-05-05How would you feel if you had a dream like Talibah’s?

The Pharaoh’s Secret Written by: Marissa Moss

Name: ____________________

Created by Mrs. Moran

9/2012

Chapter 1 - The Voice

Vocabulary

monstrosity (pg. 1)

translucent (pg. 4)

corridor (pg. 6)

obelisks (pg. 8)

papyrus (pg. 10)

As you read chapter one, keep track of all you learn about each character in

the chart below.

Adom Talibah Dad Mom

Comprehension Questions

1. Why did Talibah feel disappointed upon seeing Cairo?

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3. How would you feel if you had a dream like Talibah’s? What do you think

her dream means?

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2. What does Talibah mean when she says, “That boy can really pack it

away?” (page 12)

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Prediction

Why do you think Talibah has such a strong reaction to walking into the

museum?

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Chapter 2 - The Sphinx Speaks

Vocabulary

chaotic (pg. 14)

jackal (pg. 17)

nourish (pg. 19)

shrine (pg. 21)

antiquity (pg. 21)


1. Does Adom understand when Dad describes the “perfume of Egypt” on

page 15? How do you know?

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2. Why does Talibah slip a paperback copy of the Book of the Dead into her

mother’s coffin? Do you think it helped her navigate through the afterlife?

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3. Dad’s mouth tightens and his mouth stiffens when Adom asks questions

about Mom. How would you have felt talking about someone you cared about

that has passed away? Have you ever experienced this personally?

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Prediction

Why do you think Talibah is so drawn to the artifacts related to

Hatshepsut? Make a prediction as to how Hatshepsut may be important part

of the story.

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Chapter 3 - A Journey

Vocabulary

elaborate (pg. 36)

vizier (pg. 39)

ordinariness (pg. 43)

throng (pg. 45)


1. How did Rashid find the tomb of Hapuseneb, the vizier under Hatshepsut?

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2. What Egyptian city are Rashid, Adom and Talibah going to at the end of

the chapter? What will they see while there?

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Foreign Language

On page 46, Dad hugs Rashid and says “Inshallah, God willing” to him. Visit

the website below to hear how this word is correctly pronounced in Islamic.

http://islamic-dictionary.com/index.php?word=inshallah

Chapter 4 - Sandscapes

Vocabulary

tainted (pg. 48)

flourishes (pg. 50) *in context*

obelisks (pg. 52)

parched (pg. 54)


1. What were some of the motives behind Talibah rejecting the ice-cream

bar from Rashid? Would you have done the same? Explain.

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2. Describe a time when you have or may look at someone the same way Adom

looks at Talibah when she wakes from her dream on page 54.

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3. What is Maat, as described by Rashid?

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Conducting Research

Find more information on Maat at the following website:

http://www.ancientegyptonline.co.uk/maat

Write a summary of your findings below in your own words.

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Chapter 5 - The Keeper of Order

Vocabulary

ponderous (pg. 60)

solemn (pg. 60)

alabaster (pg. 60)

intricately (pg. 61)

immunity (pg. 62)

ferried (pg. 64)

placard (pg. 68)


1. How is Rashid similar to Dad?

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2. Talibah feels queasy seeing the cobra wrapped around Adom’s arm. How

would you have handled seeing someone you care about in this same

predicament?

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3. Do you believe the obelisks from the temple site are the same ones from

Talibah’s dreams? Why or why not?

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4. Reread page 75. What pharaoh name would you choose? Explain the

meaning of your name and why you chose it.

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Make a Cartouche

View the example of Hatshepsut’s cartouche at the website below:

http://www.harcourtschool.com/activity/cartouche/cartouche.html

Then have you’re your own name translated and copy it below.

Chapter 6 – Another Page from the Past

Vocabulary

felucca (pg. 78)

bazaar (pg. 79)

serpentine (pg. 80)


1. What makes Talibah think of her English teacher, Mr. Harris?

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2. Why does Talibah draw Hatshepsut next to Queen Elizabeth? What does

she mean by saying “They seem like a good match.”?

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3. What do you think are some possible reasons that monuments of

Hatshepsut and Senenmut were defaced and desecrated?

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Chapter 7 – Hidden Treasure

Vocabulary

papyrus (pg. 91)

scribe (pg. 91)

compose (pg. 92)

perpetual (pg. 94)


1. What motives do you think Senenmut had for asking Meru to “compose his

own writing?”

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2. Who is Hapuseneb?

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3. Do you think it is a coincidence that the lady from the library is wearing

the same snake bracelet the old woman wore? Why or why not?

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Chapter 8 – The Wrong Name

Vocabulary

conjure (pg. 101)

efficient (pg. 107)

vanished (pg. 107)


1. Why do you think reading the name “Neferure” cause such a strong

reaction from Talibah?

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2. Do you think whomever wants Talibah to find Senenmut made a mistake?

Why or why not?

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3. Decipher the hieroglyph on page 110 for yourself. What do you think it

means?

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Chapter 9 – Holy of Holies

Vocabulary

intimidating (pg. 114)

inflamed (pg. 116) *in context*

objections (pg. 116)

testament (pg. 117)

mortuary (pg. 125)

mesmerized (pg. 126)

colonnades (pg. 126)


1. Why do you think Senenmut wants to delay the marriage of Thutmose III

and Neferure for one year?

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2. Draw a pencil sketch of Neferure as described on page 114.

3. Look carefully at the sketch on page 118. Does anything look familiar?

What do you think it means?

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4. What did Senenmut bring Meru to see inside the shrine of the Pharaoh?

What was the purpose of the carvings?

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5. What is the difference between a mortuary temple and a tomb according

to Rashid?

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Chapter 10 – Scarred Stone

Vocabulary

exquisite (pg. 132)

admonishing (pg. 133)

contours (pg. 133)

expertise (pg. 134)

methodically (pg. 137)


1. What advantage would it serve for Hatshepsut to be portrayed as a boy?

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2. What happened to the images of Hatshepsut and her name? Why was this

done?

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Chapter 11 – Mothers

Vocabulary

rubble (pg. 144)

archeologist (pg. 144)

ungrateful (pg. 147)


1. Can you explain why Dad acted the way he did after Mom died?

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2. Why does Talibah break down and cry at the end of the chapter?

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Chapter 12 – Starry Skies

Vocabulary

suppressed (pg. 149)

hawking (pg. 149)

ominous (pg. 150)

impudence (pg. 157)

sarcophagus (pg. 157)


1. Why do you think Rashid described the tomb as an evil place?

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2. Why do you think Rashid so upset that Senenmut had a royal burial and a

royal sarcophagus?

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Chapter 13 – Soul Deaths

Vocabulary

saddled (pg. 159) *in context*

immersing (pg. 160)

stifle (pg. 162)


1. In your own words, describe Meru’s account on pages 162-163.

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2. Formulate your own fourth reason for Senenmut’s vanishing.

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3. At the end of the chapter, Talibah cannot remember any dreams, only

blankness. What do you think this means?

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Chapter 14 – Another Gift

Vocabulary

thrusting (pg. 166)

diagrammatic (pg. 167)

drawls (pg. 169)

monumental (pg. 170) *in context*

snide (pg. 171)

uncanny (pg, 174)

millennia (pg. 175)

elusive (pg. 177)

riveted (pg. 177)


1. Answer Talibah’s question on page 169.

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2. What does the stone statue represent?

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3. How would you explain the “jab” Rashid took at Senenmut?

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4. What explanation do you have for Talibah’s reaction when entering

Hapuseneb’s tomb on page 174?

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5. What explanation do you have for Rashid’s sudden change in demeanor?

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6. Do you think the ring belongs to Hapuseneb? Why or why not?

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Chapter 15 – The Ring

Vocabulary

enthralled (pg. 181)

lapis lazuli (pg. 181)

infuriatingly (pg. 187)

exasperated (pg. 190)


1. Why do you think Talibah finally decides to confide in Adom?

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2. Do you think Mom told Talibah about Senenmut and she just forgot, or do

you think Mom only told Adom? Defend your position.

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3. Answer Adom’s question on page 189. “Why would Hapuseneb have

Senenmut’s ring?”

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Chapter 16 - Water

Vocabulary

sulfurous (pg. 202)

curtness (pg. 202)


1. Why does the sound of the splash elicit such a sharp panic in Talibah?

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2. Rashid has always seemed creepy to Talibah. Why does she think that is?

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3. Answer the last two questions at the end of the chapter.

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Chapter 17 – The Eighteenth Dynasty

Vocabulary

galabeyah (pg. 206)

quavers (pg. 206)

loping (pg. 208)

flanked (pg. 210)

chiseled (pg. 211)

regal (pg. 213)


1. What do you think Hatshepsut yells at the short bald man? Why is she so

upset?

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2. Was Talibah ever asleep? Justify your position with evidence from the

chapter.

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Chapter 18 – The Twenty-first Century

Vocabulary

submerged (pg. 217)

inflict (pg. 217)

signet (pg. 218)

drastic (pg. 222)

conveniently (pg. 223)


1. Were the hands pulling Talibah down in the water Senenmut’s disturbed

ka, wanting to inflict the same fate it suffered on anyone unlucky enough to fall into the river where he drowned OR was the Hapuseneb’s spirit, doomed

to haunt the place where it committed its horrible crime? Defend your

position.

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2. Summarize the sequence of events as described by Talibah in the last

paragraph of page 220 in the graphic organizer below.

3. How do you think Dad will react when Talibah and Adom share their

“interesting news?”

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4. Would you react in the same way as described above? Why or why not?

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Chapter 19 – The Seeker

Vocabulary

baritone (pg. 225)

plausible (pg. 227)

heirloom (pg. 230)

encircling (pg. 233)


1. Explain the special meaning behind Talibah’s name.

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2. Why does Dad cry when he sees the bracelet on Talibah’s arm?

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3. Is there a better solution to Dad’s explanation on page 232 for why he

doesn’t talk about Mom?

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Chapter 20 - Darkness

Vocabulary

coincidence (pg. 234)

decended (pg. 235)

rational (pg. 243)

1. Interpret the meaning of “Daughter and not by daughter. Neferure and

not Neferure” on page 237.

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2. Was it Hatshepsut’s or Mom’s voice saying these words?

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3. Why is telling the truth on page 240 “the worst thing possible?”

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4. Can you explain what must have happened to cause Rashid to react so

strongly to Adom’s accusation that Hapuseneb was a murderer?

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5. Rashid explains his reaction as a result of heat and long days of work. Do

you believe this explanation? Why or why not?

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Chapter 21 – The Bracelet

Vocabulary

cajoles (pg. 244)

abruptly (pg. 247)

bidding (pg. 248)

tortuous (pg. 249)

formidable (pg. 250)

unfurls (pg. 252)

resented (pg. 255)


1. Thurmose III defaced Hatshepsut’s name on the walls of her temple.

Why do you think he did that? What was he hoping to accomplish by

bringing Senenmut and Hatshepsut back together in the afterlife even

though he resented Senenmut?

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2. Talibah feels a “weight in the pit of her stomach” on page 257. What

causes her to feel this way?

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Chapter 22 – The Key

Vocabulary

triumphantly (pg. 260)

scuttling (pg. 263)

menacing (pg. 263)

nuisance (pg. 264)

chit (pg. 265)


1. What was Rahid’s intension when he put the scorpion in Talibah’s and

Adom’s hotel room?

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2. What were some of his motives for doing this evil deed?

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3. From the information given, can you develop a set of instructions for

Talibah and Adom as to what they need to do next.

1. Go _________________________________________.

2. Open _______________________________________.

3. Get ________________________________________.

4. Bring it _____________________________________.

Chapter 23 – Back to the Tomb

Vocabulary

insists (pg. 269)

hesitate (pg. 270)

deduction (pg. 279)

pathetic (pg. 285)

loathsome (pg. 285)

sullied (pg. 285)


1. Why does Talibah say that it is “foolish to go into the desert without

water” even though they’ll be traveling at night?

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2. Talibah decides not to give the men the payment for taking her and Adom

across the Nile until after they have returned. Is this a wise decision in

your opinion?

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3. Explain the gift that Talibah and Adom both receive on their way across

the Nile River. Is this a gift that you would have liked to receive?

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4. Thurmose III defaced Hatshepsut’s name on the walls of her temple.

What is the reason that he did this as explained on page 282?

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5. Draw a family tree as described on pages 282 to 284. Be sure to include

Senenmut, Hatshepsut, Thurmose III, Neferure, Talibah, Adom, Meru, and

Mom.

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6. What is the gift Rashid offers Talibah and Adom? Is this truly a gift in

your opinion? Why or why not?

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Chapter 24 – Snake Eyes

Vocabulary

elaborate (pg. 290)

engulfing (pg. 292)

anguished (pg. 292)

writhe (pg. 292)


1. Talibah speculates about the connection between Rashid and Hatshepsut.

Which theory do you agree with? Support your position with evidence from

the text.

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2. “If it’s going to bite, let it bite me first. Maybe there won’t be much

poison left for Adom” goes through Talibah’s mind in the chapter. Would

everyone think the same way Talibah does here? What would cause someone

to think that way?

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3. Describe the events on pages 292 and 293 in your own words. Then draw a

sketch to go along with your description.

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Chapter 25 – Resting Place

Vocabulary

silhouetted (pg. 295)

rhythmic (pg. 296)

bureaucracy (pg. 299)

soprano (pg. 301)


1. Dad mistakenly thinks that Mom’s unfinished business in the face of her

death was raising her children. What did she really need to finish?

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2. How is justice served in this chapter? Do you think this is a good thing or

a bad thing?

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3. Talibah, Dad, and Adom sing Mom’s lullaby after burying Senenmut’s ring.

Do you think this is a fitting way to bury him? What would you have done

differently?

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Author’s Note

Did anything strike you as fascinating or uncanny during the author’s note?

Make a list of at least 5 things you found in the space provided below.

1. _____________________________________________________

2. _____________________________________________________

3. _____________________________________________________

4. _____________________________________________________

5. _____________________________________________________

Documents

The Pharaoh’s Secret - Mrs. Moran's Class Websitemrsvanessamoran.weebly.com/.../the_pharaohs_secret… · · 2015-05-05How would you feel if you had a dream like Talibah’s?