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The Great Pyramid of Khufu is made up from over 200 layers of horizontal limestone blocks, and the area of each layer is slightly less than the one below. The Egyptians had to be very precise when building the pyramids to get them to the shape they are. The ‘bent pyramid’ in Egypt gets its name because the incline changes part way up. The Egyptians used a plumb bob and a tri-square to check they were building accurately.

Before watching this clip, students could come up with explanations for how the Egyptians built the pyramids so accurately. After sharing the clip, students could make their own cubit rods using their palms and fingers. Students could mark out a large square on the ground using string and their cubit rod. How can they be sure it is a perfect square? Students could try out some Egyptian methods as described in the clip. Can they get it right the first time or did it take several attempts? Students could discuss the difficulty involved and the talent of the early Egyptians.

Students could also be challenged to find the height of each layer of horizontal limestone blocks, given that there were 200 in total. For a greater challenge, they could find the indent taken at each level and therefore find the area of the second, third, fourth layer and so on. Students could also carry out further research into the ‘Bent Pyramid’ and find out what went wrong.