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Pictures of Ancient Greece architecture

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The term Ancient, or Archaic, Greece refers to the years 700-480 B.C., not the Classical Age (480-323 B.C.) known for its art, architecture and philosophy. Archaic Greece saw advances in art, poetry and technology, but is known as the age in which the polis, or city-state, was invented. The polis became the defining feature of Greek political life for hundreds of years.

The Birth of the City-State

During the so-called "Greek Dark Ages" before the Archaic period, people lived scattered throughout Greece in small farming villages. As they grew larger, these villages began to evolve. Some built walls. Most built a marketplace (an agora) and a community meeting place. They developed governments and organized their citizens according to some sort of constitution or set of laws. They raised armies and collected taxes. And every one of these city-states (known as poleis) was said to be protected by a particular god or goddess, to whom the citizens of the polis owed a great deal of reverence, respect and sacrifice. (Athens's deity was Athena, for example; so was Sparta's.)

Did you know? Greek military leaders trained the heavily armed hoplite soldiers to fight in a massive formation called a phalanx: standing shoulder to shoulder, the men were protected by their neighbor's shield. This intimidating technique played an important role in the Persian Wars and helped the Greeks build their empire.

Though their citizens had in common what Herodotus called "the same stock and the same speech, our shared temples of the gods and religious rituals, our similar customs," every Greek city-state was different. The largest, Sparta, controlled about 300 square miles of territory; the smallest had just a few hundred people. However, by the dawn of the Archaic period in the seventh century B.C., the city-states had developed a number of common characteristics. They all had economies that were based on agriculture, not trade: For this reason, land was every city-state's most valuable resource. Also, most had overthrown their hereditary kings, or basileus, and were ruled by a small number of wealthy aristocrats.

These people monopolized political power. (For example, they refused to let ordinary people serve on councils or assemblies.) They also monopolized the best farmland, and some even claimed to be descended from the Greek gods. Because "the poor with their wives and children were enslaved to the rich and had no political rights," Aristotle said, "there was conflict between the nobles and the people for a long time."

Colonization

Emigration was one way to relieve some of this tension. Land was the most important source of wealth in the city-states; it was also, obviously, in finite supply. The pressure of population growth pushed many men away from their home poleis and into sparsely populated areas around Greece and the Aegean. Between 750 B.C. and 600 B.C., Greek colonies sprang up from the Mediterranean to Asia Minor, from North Africa to the coast of the Black Sea. By the end of the seventh century B.C., there were more than 1,500 colonial poleis.

Each of these poleis was an independent city-state. In this way, the colonies of the Archaic period were different from other colonies we are familiar with: The people who lived there were not ruled by or bound to the city-states from which they came. The new poleis were self-governing and self-sufficient.

The Rise of the Tyrants

As time passed and their populations grew, many of these agricultural city-states began to produce consumer goods such as pottery, cloth, wine and metalwork. Trade in these goods made some people-usually not members of the old aristocracy-very wealthy. These people resented the unchecked power of the oligarchs and banded together, sometimes with the aid of heavily-armed soldiers called hoplites, to put new leaders in charge.

These leaders were known as tyrants. Some tyrants turned out to be just as autocratic as the oligarchs they replaced, while others proved to be enlightened leaders. (Pheidon of Argos established an orderly system of weights and measures, for instance, while Theagenes of Megara brought running water to his city.) However, their rule did not last: The classical period brought with it a series of political reforms that created the system of Ancient Greek democracy known as demokratia, or "rule by the people."

Archaic Renaissance?

The colonial migrations of the Archaic period had an important effect on its art and literature: They spread Greek styles far and wide and encouraged people from all over to participate in the era's creative revolutions. The epic poet Homer, from Ionia, produced his "Iliad" and "Odyssey" during the Archaic period. Sculptors created kouroi and korai, carefully proportioned human figures that served as memorials to the dead. Scientists and mathematicians made progress too: Anaximandros devised a theory of gravity; Xenophanes wrote about his discovery of fossils and Pythagoras of Kroton discovered his famous Pythagorean Theorem.

The economic, political, technological and artistic developments of the Archaic period readied the Greek city-states for the monumental changes of the next few centuries.

Photo Galleries

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The term Ancient, or Archaic, Greece refers to the years 700-480 B.C., not the Classical Age (480-323 B.C.) known for its art, architecture and philosophy. Archaic Greece saw advances in art, poetry and technology, but is known as the age in which the polis, or city-state, was invented.

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A Guide to the Golden Age of Greece By Julie Ferris 

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A Guide to the Golden Age of Greece By Julie Ferris 

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This book covers a wide variety of topics in Ancient Greece, including: travel, clothing, food, the theater, olympic games, Sparta, and a survival guide.

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Video Resource: Ancient Greece Mythology

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Video Resource: Ancient Greece Mythology

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"Myth has two main functions," the poet and scholar Robert Graves wrote in 1955. "The first is to answer the sort of awkward questions that children ask, such as 'Who made the world? How will it end? Who was the first man? Where do souls go after death?'...The second function of myth is to justify an existing social system and account for traditional rites and customs." In ancient Greece, stories about gods and goddesses and heroes and monsters were an important part of everyday life. They explained everything from religious rituals to the weather, and they gave meaning to the world people saw around them.

Greek Mythology: Sources

In Greek mythology, there is no single original text like the Christian Bible or the Hindu Vedas that introduces all of the myths' characters and stories. Instead, the earliest Greek myths were part of an oral tradition that began in the Bronze Age, and their plots and themes unfolded gradually in the written literature of the archaic and classical periods. The poet Homer's 8th-century BC epics the Iliad and the Odyssey, for example, tell the story of the (mythical) Trojan War as a divine conflict as well as a human one. They do not, however, bother to introduce the gods and goddesses who are their main characters, since readers and listeners would already have been familiar with them.

Did you know? Many consumer products get their names from Greek mythology. Nike sneakers are the namesake of the goddess of victory, for example, and the website Amazon.com is named after the race of mythical female warriors. Many high school, college and professional sports teams (Titans, Spartans and Trojans, for instance) also get their names from mythological sources.

Around 700 BC, the poet Hesiod's Theogony offered the first written cosmogony, or origin story, of Greek mythology. The Theogony tells the story of the universe's journey from nothingness (Chaos, a primeval void) to being, and details an elaborate family tree of elements, gods and goddesses who evolved from Chaos and descended from Gaia (Earth), Ouranos (Sky), Pontos (Sea) and Tartaros (the Underworld).

Later Greek writers and artists used and elaborated upon these sources in their own work. For instance, mythological figures and events appear in the 5th-century plays of Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides and the lyric poems of Pindar. Writers such as the 2nd-century BC Greek mythographer Apollodorus of Athens and the 1st-century BC Roman historian Gaius Julius Hyginus compiled the ancient myths and legends for contemporary audiences.

Greek Mythology: The Olympians

At the center of Greek mythology is the pantheon of deities who were said to live on Mount Olympus, the highest mountain in Greece. From their perch, they ruled every aspect of human life. Olympian gods and goddesses looked like men and women (though they could change themselves into animals and other things) and were-as many myths recounted-vulnerable to human foibles and passions.

The twelve main Olympians are:

Zeus (Jupiter, in Roman mythology): the king of all the gods (and father to many) and god of weather, law and fate

Hera (Juno): the queen of the gods and goddess of women and marriage

Aphrodite (Venus): goddess of beauty and love

Apollo (Apollo): god of prophesy, music and poetry and knowledge

Ares (Mars): god of war

Artemis (Diana): goddess of hunting, animals and childbirth

Athena (Minerva): goddess of wisdom and defense

Demeter (Ceres): goddess of agriculture and grain

Dionysus (Bacchus): god of wine, pleasure and festivity

Hephaestus (Vulcan): god of fire, metalworking and sculpture

Hermes (Mercury): god of travel, hospitality and trade and Zeus's personal messenger

Poseidon (Neptune): god of the sea

Other gods and goddesses sometimes included in the roster of Olympians are:

Hades (Pluto): god of the underworld

Hestia (Vesta): goddess of home and family

Eros (Cupid): god of sex and minion to Aphrodite

Greek Mythology: Heroes and Monsters

Greek mythology does not just tell the stories of gods and goddesses, however. Human heroes-such as Heracles, the adventurer who performed 12 impossible labors for King Eurystheus (and was subsequently worshipped as a god for his accomplishment); Pandora, the first woman, whose curiosity brought evil to mankind; Pygmalion, the king who fell in love with an ivory statue; Arachne, the weaver who was turned into a spider for her arrogance; handsome Trojan prince Ganymede who became the cupbearer for the gods; Midas, the king with the golden touch; and Narcissus, the young man who fell in love with his own reflection-are just as significant. Monsters and "hybrids" (human-animal forms) also feature prominently in the tales: the winged horse Pegasus, the horse-man Centaur, the lion-woman Sphinx and the bird-woman Harpies, the one-eyed giant Cyclops, automatons (metal creatures given life by Hephaestus), manticores and unicorns, Gorgons, pygmies, minotaurs, satyrs and dragons of all sorts. Many of these creatures have become almost as well known as the gods, goddesses and heroes who share their stories.

Greek Mythology: Past and Present

The characters, stories, themes and lessons of Greek mythology have shaped art and literature for thousands of years. They appear in Renaissance paintings such as Botticelli's Birth of Venus and Raphael's Triumph of Galatea and writings like Dante's Inferno; Romantic poetry and libretti; and scores of more recent novels, plays and films.

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"Myth has two main functions," the poet and scholar Robert Graves wrote in 1955. "The first is to answer the sort of awkward questions that children ask, such as 'Who made the world? How will it end? Who was the first man?

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A list of activities to learn about representative and direct democracy

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Suggested Activities

Students consider the merits of direct and representative democracies by deciding which would be most effective in a given situation. Each student writes a persuasive letter to the school principal to recommend which decision-making process to use to make a fair and equitable school decision.
A. Assess the merits of direct and representative democracies.

Analyze photographs of democratic participation
Remind students that democracy is a government of and for the people that requires active participation of citizens in the political process. Active participation can take many forms. Show students a variety of photographs that portray citizens involved in the political process. Include photographs of voters, protesters, someone delivering a speech, a town council meeting, election signs on lawns and a letter to the editor. For sources of photographs, see newspapers, news magazines and authorized student resources. Ask students to identify what is happening in each photograph and to describe the nature of political participation in each image.

Concept attainment activity: Direct and representative democracies
Tell students that they will consider two types of democratic participation but do not tell them the names of the types. Tell them they will be shown examples first. Their challenge is to determine what the examples in List A share in common and what the examples in List B share in common.

To begin the activity, show one statement from List A and one from List B. Ask students to work alone to identify the differences between the two examples. Show a second pair of examples. Ask students to continue to work alone to identify differences, but this time they will also consider how the examples in List A are similar to one another and how they are different from examples in List B. Show the third pair of examples and this time, ask students to work with a partner. Reveal the final pair of examples and ask students to share their conclusions about the commonalities and differences in List A and List B and how the examples in the two lists differ.

Next, provide students with two testers and ask them which list each tester belongs to. By this point students should understand that List A examples are of decisions being made by people chosen to represent a larger group, and List B examples are of decisions made through the direct input of people. Finally, reveal the labels used to describe each type of democratic decision making--representative and direct.
Concept Attainment

List A

List B

Testers for Concept Attainment

For more information on concept attainment, see Concept Attainment (Support Material).

Review Canada's political system
Ask students to consider whether Canada's political system would fit better with Group A or Group B. If students need to review Canada's democratic system, ask them to read a short selection from an authorized student resource or other source that outlines how government officials are selected and the nature of citizen participation. Encourage students to consider multiple perspectives.

Use Venn diagrams to analyze representative and direct democracies
Explain to students that Venn diagrams are often used to show relationships. Show them the three possible Venn diagrams:

Share nothing in common

Ask students to consider which Venn diagram best reflects the relationship between direct and representative democracies. To test their hypotheses, students may work with a partner or in small groups to complete the Venn diagram. They should use relevant, accurate and significant aspects of each of the models of political decision making.

Students might indicate that either the overlapping circles or the circle within the circle best reflect the relationship between direct and representative democracy.

If they choose the circle within the circle, they may organize their evidence to show that both are democracies, both are based on the interests of the people and, therefore, both reside inside the larger circle.

Alternatively, they may argue that the overlapping circles are a more accurate reflection. These students may use the common areas to capture the focus on the interests of the people and the side areas to reflect the different approaches to decision making.

If students are able to provide evidence and sound reasoning, either answer should be acceptable.

For more information, see Venn Diagrams (Support Material).

Introduce case studies
Tell students that they will be working in groups to prepare a recommendation for the most effective democratic decision-making process in a particular situation. Their group will recommend a direct, representative or blended system for their case study. They will need to explain why they recommend one system over another. If they choose a blended system, they need to explain which aspects of each system they would recommend.

Provide each group of three or four students with one of the case studies in Case Studies: Direct, Representative and Blended Systems (Lesson Material).

Remind students that in all of the case studies, the goal is to recommend the decision-making process that will best ensure an effective democratic process.

Rate the merits of direct and representative systems
Encourage students to use criteria when selecting an appropriate democratic process. Criteria may include:

allows decisions to be made in a timely and affordable manner

leads to informed decision making by citizens

reflects a range of perspectives and points of view

encourages thoughtful decision making

reflects the principles of democracy-justice, equity, freedoms, representation.

To help students apply these criteria to their case study, you may wish to provide them with a chart. See Rating Options in Case Studies (Lesson Material).

For more information, see Rating Options (Support Material).

Share conclusions
Invite student groups to share their recommendations. You may want groups working with the same case study to share with one another. Encourage students to ask questions about how they reached their decisions.
B. Write a persuasive letter recommending either a direct, representative or blended system.

Present a scenario
Tell students that your school has a projected surplus of $5,000. Last year, in a similar situation, your principal, without input from the student body, decided that the school needed new soccer posts. This decision was well received by a small number of students (the soccer fans) but most of the student population was unhappy with this decision.

This year, your principal has decided to gather student input on how to spend the surplus. However, he wants to ensure that the decision-making process does not become too overwhelming. He does not have a lot of time to sort through student responses but wants to ensure that all student voices are heard and that the maximum number of students is satisfied with the outcome. The decision needs to be made in a timely manner. The principal is unsure which decision-making process would be most effective. Because your Grade 6 class is studying democracy, the principal has asked your class to provide some advice.

Write a persuasive letter
Ask students to write a persuasive letter to the principal, recommending a direct, representative or blended system of democratic decision making. Remind students to consider the four principles of an effective democracy-justice, equity, freedoms, representation-and the relative merits of direct and representative democracies.

See Developing Effective Arguments (Support Material) for detailed suggestions on how to teach and assess the tools for persuasive letter writing.

Remind students of the criteria for an effective democratic decision-making process:

allows for timely and affordable decisions

leads to informed decision making

reflects a range of people's interests

encourages careful deliberation

makes people feel a part of the process.

Share letters
Ask students to return to their groups and to read their letters to one another.

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The Merits of Direct and Representative Democracies

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Students consider the merits of direct and representative democracies by deciding which would be most effective in a given situation. Each student writes a persuasive letter to the school principal to recommend which decision-making process to use to make a fair and equitable school decision. A. Assess the merits of direct and representative democracies.

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Students can explore Ancient Greek topics, play games, and quiz themselves.

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Kids learn about the civilization and history of ancient Greece including the government, philosophy, science, Athens, Sparta, daily life, people, art, architecture, theater, and mythology. Educational articles for students, schools, and teachers.

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A map of Alexander the Great's Empire

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This video covers the Spartans in the Trojan War

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Deconstructing History: Spartans Video - Sparta - HISTORY.com

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Ten-thousand strong, the Spartan army was highly skilled and technologically advanced for its time.

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Black Ships Before Troy by Rosemary Sutcliff tells the complete story of the Battle of Troy

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Students can explore how the Empire of Alexander the Great came about

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Jigsaw activity that uses primary and secondary sources to examine the Persian Wars

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Mr. Barth  Social Studies 6  ​Northwest School of the Arts

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STATION 1 RESOURCE: Reading Essentials - Greece and Persia

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Archaeological sites of Athens
https://www.lonelyplanet.com/greece/athens/collections/archaeological-sites/a/col/720b0f1c-eed9-4fa9-8084-9808d2b29650/359421

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Children's book: History for Kids: A History of Ancient Athens and Sparta for Children

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Children's book: History for Kids: A History of Ancient Athens and Sparta for Children

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https://www.amazon.com/History-Kids-Ancient-Athens-Children-ebook/dp/B00C11H5HC/ref=pd_sim_351_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=4VHNYV438C7Y9SPHG9YP&dpID=51fdEKsizhL&preST=_SX342_QL70_&dpSrc=detail

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https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1mNJQ0DtyADcHNZVzR0ejNOZW8/view

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=45&v=M7V1a1I5BL0

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http://www.ancientgreece.co.uk/

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Statues of Plato, Socrates, Aristotle, and Alexander The Great 

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Statues of Plato, Socrates, Aristotle, and Alexander The Great 

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The Children’s Homer (The Adventures of Odysseus and the Tale of Troy by Padraic Colum, illustrated by Willy Pogany

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The Children’s Homer (The Adventures of Odysseus and the Tale of Troy by Padraic Colum, illustrated by Willy Pogany

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Students can choose a person (Homer, Plato, Aristotle, etc) and write clues about them, and then other students will have to guess who they are.

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In this lesson plan, which is adaptable for any grade level, students use BrainPOP resources to explore the life and works of historical figures. Students will research their selected historical figure, create a "Who Am I?" bag of clues about their figure, and invite classmates to deduce which historical figure they researched.

Students will:

1. Explore the life and works of a self-selected historical figure.

2. Create a bag of clues about the historical figure.

3. Invite classmates to guess the identity of their chosen historical figure.

Materials:

Computers with internet access for BrainPOP

One paper bag for each student

Preparation:

Determine whether students will work alone or cooperatively to complete their "Who Am I?" bags. You may wish to provide written directions or an assessment rubric for students to guide them in their projects. Preview the BrainPOP Jr. and/or BrainPOP movie topics (listed on this page) to determine which ones are appropriate for your students, and list them for children to choose from.

Create a "Who Am I?" bag as a model for the class. Select a historical figure or event and create or gather clues to help students guess the identity of your figure. For example, if you choose Amelia Earhart, you could put a tiny model airplane, pair of goggles, map of Kansas, and the numbers "99" on a piece of paper. (Instead of real objects, you could also use printed images from the internet.) Put your name on the outside of the bag and ensure you've followed whatever project guidelines you plan to give students.

Lesson Procedure:

1. Show the class your "Who Am I?" bag. Invite students to pull one item out of the bag at a time and try to infer who your bag represents.

2. Show students the list of related BrainPOP and/or BrainPOP Jr. topics you've selected and invite students to select one person to research. Present the project guidelines and go over the assessment criteria.

3. Allow students to watch the BrainPOP or BrainPOP Jr. movie about their selected historical figure and explore the related movie resources. As they look around the topic page, they should record possible items they could use for their "Who Am I?" bags.

4. Give students time in class to create their bags, or allow them to work on their bags at home.

5. Once the bags are completed, divide the class in half. Station half the class at different places in the room with their bags. Rotate the other half of the class through the stations so that they have a chance to pull the clues out of each bag and guess who the bag represents. You may wish to set a timer for this activity and teach students to automatically move to the next station when the timer goes off. Then have the two halves of the class switch roles.

6. Have students self-reflect on the activity and their work. Which clues would they present differently next time? Would they make their clues more or less difficult, and why? What did they learn through this activity?

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Famous Historical Figures Lesson Plan: Who Am I? | BrainPOP Educators

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In this lesson plan, which is adaptable for any grade level, students use BrainPOP resources to explore the life and works of historical figures. Students will research their selected historical figure, create a "Who Am I?" bag of clues about their figure, and invite classmates to deduce which historical figure they researched.

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Students can read short biographies on famous people in ancient Greece using the Ducksters website.

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Ancient Greece for Kids: 25 Famous People of Ancient Greece

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Kids learn about 25 famous people of Ancient Greece. The history of this world civilization.

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This 5 minute animation gives an overview of who Alexander the Great is and his role in Ancient Greece.

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This lesson teaches about the history of the Olympics and provides students the opportunity to research how the Olympics were in Ancient Greece compared to how they are now.