Great Egyptians

Specifically geared toward elementary school classroom use, this program includes three segments, approximately seven minutes each, fleshing out the life (occasionally a really short life) and times of Egypt's coolest rulers. After the death of her husband, Queen Hatshepsut literally donned a false beard and ruled Egypt successfully as King for 22 years. Certain to appeal to young murder mystery aficionados, the program investigates the untimely death of the 11-year-old boy king Tutankhamen. Finally, the video looks at the most legendary of Egyptian greats, Cleopatra (and if we're to believe the graffiti on the wall, a head-turner in a toga), whose weakness for high placed men in politics eventually led to her fall from grace. Sporting excellent camerawork during both reenactment scenes and on-location footage, together with outstanding samples of museum artifacts, this informative program is a solid choice for grade school science curriculum. [Note: The teacher's guide is really more of a pointer to the free online lesson plans at the Discovery School web site.] Aud: E, I. (N. Plympton)