Ancient Greece By Constance Joy Patenall

Greek Legends The Minotaur was a terrifying beast! He had a bull’s head and a man’s body. He lived in an underground maze and ate children who were sacrificed to him. King Theseus killed the Minotaur and saved the children.

Medusa had hair made from snakes and if anybody looked into her eyes they would suddenly turn to stone. King Polydectes commanded Perseus to go on a dangerous quest to chop off scary Medusa’s head. Perseus visited the three blind witches who told him where to find Medusa’s cave. Before he got to Medusa he had to kill a two-headed wolf and a huge snake. He cleverly used his golden metal shield to find Medusa’s reflection and crept up on her and chopped off her head with his golden sword.

Ancient Greek schools were very unfair because they had uncomfortable benches with no backs and only boys were allowed to go. Girls had to stay at home where their mum’s taught them how to cook, do maths and reading. Boys from rich families went to school when they were seven years old and left when they were fourteen. They learned maths, reading, writing and music because they thought these would give them a better life. You won’t believe this. They did PE naked! Greek Schools

Trojan Horse A beautiful Greek princess called Helen ran away with a Trojan prince called Paris. Helen’s family sent a brave soldier called Odysseus and his army to get her back. They were not strong enough to break into the city of Troy so they used their brains to build a big wooden horse. They left the Trojan Horse outside the city walls and the Trojans brought it into their city. In the middle of the night the Greek soldiers hiding inside the Trojan Horse crept out and captured Helen and took her home to Greece.

Olympic Games The Olympic Games were held in Olympia in south-west Greece and began 2,700 years ago. They were held every 4 years. At the Olympic games people did boxing, wrestling, running and throwing. The most prestigious event was the 200 metre sprint. The winners won bay leaf crowns, olive oil, pottery and fine clothes.

Gods & Goddesses Zeus was the king of all gods. He can control thunder, fate, rain and lightening. Hades was the god of the dead. He was one of Zeus’s brothers. He has a three-headed dog called Cerberus who guards all the dead people.

Plays & Poems This is a lyre. It is like a small harp but it has a tortoise shell at the bottom to make it sound louder. In ancient Greece, poems were read out loud while music was played on the lyre. Greek tragedies were very sad and Greek comedies were very funny. All the actors were men and they had to dress up like girls for the female bits of the play.

Farming & Fishing Men ploughed the fields, cut down trees, sheared sheep and harvested grain. Women milked sheep and goats, made cheese, grew vegetables, kept chickens and bees, and gathered wild herbs and berries. Children scared birds away from the crops and watched over the sheep and goats.

Family Life Fathers chose their son’s wife and their daughter’s husband. They chose someone they thought would be good for the whole family. Girls got married when they were young teenangers to men who would be much older, like 30. The fathers was the most important person in the house.

I hope you enjoyed my presentation about Ancient Greece. Connie Patenall