Ancient Greece
Grade 7
By Sabrina Kilbourne and Amy
Warner
Introduction

This unit will introduce students to the
mythological characters and culture of
Ancient Greece. This lesson will take
approximately ten class periods and will
be used in a 7th grade world history
classroom.
Objectives

Students will:
– Study mythological characters of Ancient
Greece and compare and contrast.
– Discuss group readings and individual
research of Greek mythology
– Use the internet, library, and in-class
resources to discover basic elements of Greek
mythology. Share verbally what they have
learned about Greek mythology in a guidedquestion group discussion
Objectives Continued…

Students will:
– Create, illustrate, and write about their own
mythological character
– Create watercolor illustrations, write short
stories about their created character, and
relate it to a specific element of mythology
– Be able to present their mythological
character during a group discussion
– Write a 1-2 page paper identifying their
character’s special abilities
Day 1
Introduce Greek mythology using PPT
 Discuss research project with overhead of
the rubric
 Break students into research groups

Content

Vocabulary
– Myth: comes from the Greek word “mythos,” which originally
meant “speech” or “discourse” but which later came to mean
“fable” or “legend”
– Mythology: refers to a collection of myths that together form a
mythological system
– Demigod: a half god or an inferior deity; a fabulous hero, the
offspring of a deity and a mortal (example: Herakles)
– Attributes: that which is attributed: a quality that is considered
as belonging to, or inherent in a person or thing; an essential or
necessary property or characteristic
– Symbol: something that represents something else by
association, resemblance, or convention
Content

Creation of the Olympian Gods
– In the beginning there was an empty darkness. The
only thing in this void was Nyx, a bird with black
wings.
– With the wind she laid a golden egg and for ages she
sat upon this egg. Finally life began to stir in the egg
and out of it rose Eros, the god of love. One half of
the shell rose into the air and became the sky and the
other became the Earth.
– Eros named the sky Uranus and the Earth he named
Gaea. Then Eros made them fall in love.
Content
Uranus and Gaea had many children together
called Titans.
 Some of their children become afraid of the
power of their children. Kronus, in an effort to
protect himself, swallowed his children when
they were still infants.
 His wife Rhea hid their youngest child. She gave
him a rock wrapped in swaddling clothes, which
he swallowed, thinking it was his son, Zeus.

Content
Once the child, Zeus, had reached manhood his
mother instructed him on how to trick his father
to give up his brothers and sisters.
 Once this was accomplished the children fought
a mighty war against their father and the other
Titans.
 After much fighting the younger generation won.
With Zeus as their leader, they began to furnish
Gaea with life and Uranus with stars.

Content



Soon the Earth lacked only two things: man and animals.
Zeus summoned his sons Prometheus (fore-thought) and
Epimetheus (after-thought). He told them to go to Earth
and create men and animals and give them each a gift.
Prometheus set to work forming men in the image of the
gods and Epimetheus worked on the animals. As
Epimetheus worked he gave each animal he created one
of the gifts.
After Epimetheus had completed his work Prometheus
finally finished making men. However when he went to
see what gift to give man Epimetheus shamefacedly
informed him that he had foolishly used all the gifts.
Content



Distressed, Prometheus decided he had to give man fire,
even though gods were the only ones meant to have
access to it. As the sun god rode out into the world the
next morning Prometheus took some of the fire and
brought it back to man.
When Zeus discovered Prometheus' deed he became
furious. He ordered his son to be chained to a mountain
and for a vulture to peck out his liver every day till
eternity.
Then he began to devise a punishment for mankind.
Another of his sons created a woman of great beauty,
Pandora. Each of the gods gave her a gift. Zeus' present
was curiosity and a box which he ordered her never to
open. Then he presented her to Epimetheus as a wife.
Content




Pandora's life with Epimetheus was happy except for her intense
longing to open the box. She was convinced that because the gods
and goddesses had showered so many glorious gifts upon her that
this one would also be wonderful. One day when Epimetheus was
gone she opened the box.
Out of the box flew all of the horrors which plague the world today pain, sickness, envy, greed. Upon hearing Pandora's screams
Epimetheus rushed home and fastened the lid shut, but all of the
evils had already escaped.
Later that night they heard a voice coming from the box saying,
"Let me out. I am hope."
Pandora and Epimetheus released her and she flew out into the
world to give hope to humankind.
Content
Greek Name
Roman Name
Description
Zeus
Jupiter
God of the Sky and King of the Gods
Hera
Juno
Goddess of Marriage and Childbirth
Poseidon
Neptune
God of the Sea
Hades
Pluto
God of the Underworld
Athena
Minerva
Goddess of Wisdom and War
Apollo
Apollo
God of the Sun and Music
Artemis
Diana
Goddess of Wild Things, Huntress
Aphrodite
Venus
Goddess of Love and Beauty
Hermes
Mercury
Messenger of the Gods, God of
Commerce
Ares
Mars
God of War
Hephaestus
Vulcan
God of the Forge and Fire
Hestia
Vesta
Goddess of the Hearth, Home, and
Fertility
Demeter
Ceres
Goddess of Corn, Earth, and Harvest
Dionysus
Bacchus
God of the Vine, Wine, Merriment
Day 2
Discuss Greek mythology using PPT
 The class will read together Book of Greek
Myths by Ingri and Edgar D’Aulaire
 Students will be led in a guided discussion
regarding readings

Days 3 & 4
Students will be in the library/computer
lab to do research and fill in their
Mythological Characters Chart
 For homework, students will be required
to write one paragraph about a
mythological god/goddess of their choice
explaining what they learned from their
research about that character.

Day 5
Turn in “Mythological Characters Chart”
 Begin written activity

– Students will break into their groups and create their
own mythological character.
– The character must have one symbol and one
attribute and they must be accompanied by an
explanation of the significance of their character
– Students will use their handout as a reference for
examples.
– Each student will write one page explaining their
mythological character.
Day 6
Go to
http://www.metmuseum.org/Works_Of_Art/dep
artment.asp?dep=13
 Look at several art pieces depicting mythological
characters and students must answer the
following questions (no right or wrong answer)

– How do you interpret this artwork? (What do you
think when you see it?)
– Thinking back to your research, what mythological
characters do you think each piece of artwork
represents and why?
Days 7 & 8
After viewing the artwork students will be
required to create their own depiction of
the mythological characters they created
in their groups using watercolor. They
must illustrate they key points.
 Review key points: one character, one
symbol, one attribute, and the significance
of their character.

Day 9

Students will share their mythological
character painting with the class,
explaining the attribute and symbol and
what the character means to them.
Day 10
Students will complete a short vocabulary
quiz (vocabulary was brought in during
the introduction)
 As a group, the class will discuss:

– What is a myth?
– Which of the characters that we studied did
you find most interesting? Why?
– How are these myths reflected in our culture?
Evaluation

Five example multiple choice questions
1. Myth means:
a. Fable or legend
b. God-like
c. Forgotten
2. Zeus is the God of:
a. The mountains
b. The sky
c. War
3. Mars is the Roman counterpart to the Greek god:
a. Apollo
b. Dionysus
c. Ares
Evaluation

Continued
4. A demi-god is:
a. A god with the name demi.
b. Half-human, half-god
c. A god that has somehow been killed.
5. Hades is the god of:
a. The underworld
b. Water
c. Heaven
Evaluation

Objective
– 1. Choose 1 God or Goddess and explain how
their myth is portrayed in today's society.
– 2. Identify the Titans.
Evaluation

Matching
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
1. Aphrodite
2. Apollo
3. Ares
4. Artemis
5. Athena
6. Demeter
7. Dionysus
8. Hades
9. Hephaestus
10. Hera
11. Hermes
12. Hestia
13. Poseidon
14. Zeus
a. Goddess of the Corn, Earth, and Harvest
b. God of the Sky, King of the Gods
c. God fo the Forge and Fire
d. Goddess of Marriage, Queen of the Gods
e. God of the Sea
f. God of the Underworld
g. Goddess of Wisdom and War
h. Goddess of Wild Things and the Moon
i. God of the Sun and Music
j. God of Commerce and Messenger of the Gods
k. Goddess of the Hearth and Home
l. Goddess of Love and Beauty
m. God of War
n. God of the Vine, Wine, and Merriment
Student Resources
Books

The Ancient Greeks (People of the Ancient World) by Allison Lassieur. Franklin Watts March 2005
–
Explores the culture of Ancient Greece.
–
Book of Greek myths.
–
Explores Greek culture and mythology.
–
Book of reproducible materials for students about Ancient Greek
–
Explores Greek mythology.
–
Maps, charts, illustrations, and text trace the history and culture of ancient Greece.
–
Pictures of artifacts from Ancient Greece.
–
Illustrated history of Greek art.
–
Retelling of Greek Myths for young readers.
–
Book of Greek myths

Greek Gods and Heroes. Robert Graves. Laurel Leaf; Reissue edition (October 15, 1965)

Gods and Goddesses in Greek Mythology. Michelle M. Houle, William Sauts Bock. Enslow Publishers (March 2001)

History Pockets, Ancient Greece – Activity Book

Book of Greek Myths. Ingri and Edgar D’Aulaire

Ancient Greece (Cultural Atlas for Young People) (Hardcover). Anton Powell, Sean Sheehan.
Facts on File; Revised edition (June 2003)

Religion & the Gods (World of Ancient Greece) (Paperback)
Robert Hull. Franklin Watts (March 2000).

Ancient Greece (History in Art) (Paperback). Andrew Langley. Raintree (August 30, 2005)

Tales of the Greek Heroes: Retold From the Ancient Authors (Puffin Classics) (Paperback). Roger Lancelvn and
Alan Langord. Puffin; Reprint edition (March 1, 1995).

Heroes, Gods and Monsters of the Greek Myths (Mass Market Paperback). Bernard Evslin. Laurel Leaf; Reissue
edition (September 1, 1984).
Teacher Resources

Gods, Heroes and Men of Ancient Greece: Mythology's Great Tales
of Valor and Romance. W.H.D. Rouse.
– Overview of Greek myths.

Ancient Greece: Ancient History Series, Volume II (Ancient
History). William E. Dunstan. Wadsworth Publishing; 1 edition
(February 28, 2000).
– Overview of Greek history.

The Oxford History of Classical Art (Oxford Illustrated Histories).
John Boardman. Oxford University Press, USA (June 1, 2001)
– Review of classical art (Greek and Roman) – good for comparison.

Hellenistic Art: The Art of the Classical World from the Death of
Alexander the Great to the Battle of Actium. Christine Mitchell
Havelock. W. W. Norton & Company; Rev Ed edition (June 1981)
– Overview of Greek art.

Social Studies: The World. Scott Foresman. (2003)
– 7th Grade World History Textbook with basic information regarding Greek gods
and goddesses
Media Resources
Posters
Title: Ancient Greece - The British
Museum Type: Poster
Size: 24 x 36 in
Item #: 389757
 Title: Delphi, Greece Artist: David Ball
 Title: Relief of the Mourning Athena, circa
460Type: Giclee Print
Size: 18 x 24 in
Item #: 1344505

Media Resources
CD-Rom

Wrath of Gods CD-Rom
– Games and other activities about the
Olympian Gods.
 EXPLORING HISTORY THROUGH PRIMARY
SOURCES: World History Book & CD Rom
– Art, maps, etc.
Resources
Transparencies

Greece, the Hellenistic Age Book of
Transparencies
– Maps, art, charts of gods and goddesses, etc.

Rubric for Mythological Characters research
– Help explain to students what is expected of their
research

Mythological Characters Chart Transparency
– Discuss mythological characters with students
Media Resources
DVD/Video

Ancient Greek Art and Architecture. DVD.
Educational Video Network, Inc. 21 mins.
ASIN: B0007KY824
– Overview of Greek art.
 ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS: GREECE—VIDEO
QUIZ
– Video Quiz over Ancient Greece.

MYTHOLOGY IN LITERARY CULTURE . VHS.
Clearview/Eav, 2000. 20 minutes.
– Discusses how mythology is used in popular literature
Media Resources
Audio

Music of the Ancient Greeks Audio CD
– IOANNIDIS NIKOLAOS
 Classical Greek music.

Ingri and Edgar D’Aulaire. Book of Greek
Myths. Airplay Audio Publishing.
(September, 1996) Audio Cassette.
– Audio Book which tells the stories of Greek
myths
Media Resources
Websites

Perseus
–
http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/vor


Mythweb
–
http://www.mythweb.com/


http://www.metmuseum.org/Works_Of_Art/department.asp?dep=13

http://www.pantheon.org/areas/mythology/europe/greek/

http://www.cycladic-m.gr/

Art exhibit of classical art.
Smithsonian Institute
–
http://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/numismatics/corinth/


Collection of myths.
Museum of Cycladic Art
–

Art exhibit of classical art.
Encyclopedia Mythica
–

Collection of myths.
Metropolitan Museum
–

Collection of classical resources.
Art and history exhibit of Ancient Greece.
Winged Sandals
– http://www.abc.net.au/arts/wingedsandals/
 Interactive website for students about Ancient Greece.