Decoding Hieroglyphics Help Girlstart decode these secret messages! Use a cipher to translate hieroglyphic phrases and discover the language of Ancient Egyptian writing and communication.

TEKS: SCI 3-5.4 A: The student is expected to identify information regarding a problem and explain the steps toward the solution. SCI 5.2 D: The student is expected to analyze and interpret information to construct reasonable explanations.

Materials: • Hieroglyphics Cipher (included below) • Hieroglyphics Decoding Challenge page (attached below) • Paper • Pencil

Experiment/How To: 1. Use the Hieroglyphics Cipher to help you decode the messages on the Hieroglyphics Decoding page.

Having trouble with a word? Sometimes the same hieroglyph is used for different letters! Use the surrounding letters as clues to make sure you are plugging in the correct letter for each symbol.

2. Use paper to create your own hieroglyphic secret messages to share with family and friends! Hieroglyphics Cipher:

STEM Connection: Ancient Egyptians communicated extensively through writing. Instead of letters, they used hieroglyphs, which were pictures of an object that represented a word, syllable, or sound. This writing system was known as hieroglyphics, and it grew from just a few symbols to a complex communication structure with over 1,000 hieroglyphs! Messages were drawn in special places such as monuments, pottery, statues, temples, and tombs. Hieroglyphs were carved into walls or painted on pottery by important priests and artists who understood their meaning, but these messages were often a mystery to most Egyptians. Furthermore, as Egyptian culture changed, so did their methods of communication. They started using the Greek alphabet and people did not pass down the meaning of hieroglyphs to future generations. In fact, the entire hieroglyphic system was lost for over 1,000 years until the discovery of the Rosetta Stone. The Rosetta Stone was a large stone tablet that acted as a cipher, or, a way of decoding information. It showed Greek words next to their Egyptian hieroglyphic counterparts. People could read Greek, so cryptologists used the Rosetta Stone to decipher the meaning of each hieroglyph. Deciphering something means converting an unknown message written in “secret code” into something understandable. Now, we are able to understand what the Ancient Egyptians wrote using hieroglyphs, and we can even use these symbols to create secret messages of our own!

Career: Cryptologists analyze and interpret data in order to decipher and encrypt coded messages. They often work for the military or companies that deal with important information that must remain secretive. To be a cryptologist, a degree in math or computer science is often required, as well as great analytical skills.

Resources: https://www.ancient.eu/Egyptian_Hieroglyphs/ https://www.ducksters.com/history/ancient_egyptian_hieroglyphics.php https://www.mobilefish.com/services/hieroglyphs/hieroglyphs.php

Hieroglyphics Decoding Challenge Use the Hieroglyphics Cipher to decode the following secret messages.

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