Great Hymn to the Aten World Literature Lesson Plan for Grades 9-10 ELA

Use an engaging, literature-rich lesson plan to teach the Ancient Egyptian New Kingdom poem “The Great Hymn to the Aten” specifically for high school and higher-ed students.

What’s Inside:

5-Question Pre-Assessment

• Google Workspace and PDF Format
• 1 Teacher’s Note 
• 1 Lesson & Pacing Calendar
• 1 Public Domain text of “The Hymn to Aten.”
  • Includes engaging guided reading comprehension questions and determining the meaning of words in context
• Google Forms — 5-Question Pre-Assessment for “The Great Hymn to the Aten.”
• 18-count Question Bank
• 10-Question Reading Quiz on the Reign of Amunhotep IV
• Writing Activity (includes prompt, instructions, and notetaking form)
• Cornell Notetaking Template
• Frayer Model for Vocabulary Instruction
• Further Reading about Ancient Egyptian New Kingdom Poetry
• Extension Activity with Psalm 104
• Teacher Answer Key for All Questions

Note:

The hymn is attributed to the tenth pharaoh of the eighteenth dynasty, Amenhotep IV, who changed his name to Akhenaten in honor of the sun god Aten. Students will learn the literary device of apostrophe, the history of ancient Egyptian poetry, and the tension between monotheism and polytheism. The lesson encourages students to make their observations and text-to-text connections.

Possible Uses Across the Curriculum:

– High School or Higher-ed Humanities or Language Arts Class

– A Social Studies / History Unit on Ancient Egypt

– A Poetry Unit or Writing Lesson

Duration of Lesson: One 45 Minute lesson (plus plenty of extension activities)

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