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Web Wise: How to Use an Online Encyclopedia

You can use the Internet to learn more about ancient Egypt. Suppose you wanted to find out about hieroglyphs, the picture symbols ancient Egyptians used in their written language. One way to learn about this topic would be to look it up in an online encyclopedia. To do so, follow these steps:

1. Print out this web page to use as a guide.
2. Go to the Microsoft Encarta Concise Encyclopedia.
3. On the Microsoft Encarta Concise Encyclopedia Homepage, type "hieroglyphs" in the box to the left of the word "find." Then press Return or click Find.
4. Review the results of your search. Then click the hotlink for "Hieroglyphs."
5. Read the article about hieroglyphs. As your read, think about the similarities and differences between Egyptian hieroglyphs and the English alphabet. You may want to take notes.
6. Next, complete the comparison chart on the next page by putting a checkmark in each box for which the statement in the left-hand column is true.

    

Characteristic	True for Egyptian Hieroglyphs?	True for the English Alphabet?
Pictures of recognizable objects represent sounds and words.
Vowels are not written.
Groups of characters or words can be written vertically or horizontally.
Groups of characters or words are usually written from right to left.
Written passages include nouns, verbs, and other parts of speech.

1. Return to Web Wise: How to Use an Online Encyclopedia by clicking the Back button on the browser toolbar several times.

Now go to Artifacts at Home: Examining Pieces of Your Family History for a fun activity you can do at home.