Year 4 have been very busy continuing on with our topic ‘Ancient Egypt.’
As part of a DT lesson, the children learnt all about an invention created by the Egyptians to carry water – a shaduf.
How did the Egyptian farmers water their crops?
To lift the water from the canal the Egyptians used a shaduf.
A shaduf is a large pole balanced on a crossbeam, a rope and bucket on one end and a heavy counter weight at the other. By pulling the rope it lowered the bucket into the canal. The farmer then raised the bucket of water by pulling down on the weight. He then swung the pole around and emptied the bucket onto the field.
This lead us on to designing our own shaduf. 
Once the design process had been completed, it was time to start constructing. The children faced several challenges during this stage and had to find ways to overcome them.
“How will it stand up?”
“We need to make it sturdy and secure.”
Time to test the shadufs. Will they carry water from one place to another?
Success!
As well as making shadufs, Year 4 have enjoyed other Egyptian activities including painting their (now dry) Scarab beetles.
