Draw your own representation of the Greek view of the world on the paper plate using colored pencils and the map on the previous page as a guideline.Read The Gods and Goddesses of Olympus by Aliki.This was the closest the Greeks got to the idea of heaven only the best and brightest of the dead people got to go there. So, if I say I parked in Ethiopia this morning, would that mean I’m close to my office or far away? The Ethiopians were said to be on good terms with the gods and liked to entertain them. In Greek drama, mention is often made of various gods being in Ethiopia, meaning really far away. This was a land of constant vacation where people were said to live for 1,000 years. When the old people became tired of living, they threw themselves into the sea. In the north lived the Hyperboreans - an extremely happy people for whom life was sweet. The river Ocean flowed around the world in a clockwise motion. Their world was divided by the Mediterranean, which means "Middle of the Lands" in Latin. At the center of the Universe was Greece. The Greeks believed that the world was flat, but circular, like a paper plate. The Greek view of the world was a little different than ours. Zeus rescued his previously swallowed siblings, and all was right with the world. Rhea got a little sick of seeing all of her children swallowed alive, so she tricked Cronus when her sixth child, Zeus, was born she wrapped up a rock to look like a baby and had Cronus swallow that instead. It didn’t last, though, because Cronus heard a prophecy that one of his sons would dethrone him, so every time his wife, Rhea, had a baby, he swallowed it. This was called the Golden Age because men, who had been made by a Titan named Prometheus, were living in harmony.
Cronus became the king (bye-bye Uranus), and married his sister, Rhea - another Titan. Gaia was pretty ticked at Uranus for being a jerk, so she helped Cronus overthrow him. Uranus hated all the Titans and was actually quite ugly about it - but there are only a couple of Titans that you need to remember: first, Oceanus, the god of the sea, and then Cronus, the strongest and best one of all.
First they had a bunch of monsters including the Cyclops, and then they created the Titans as the second generation. Gaia, the Earth, held up Uranus, the sky. This was called Chaos.Īfter Chaos, more divinities, or gods, came into being. It was not nothing there was matter, but it was unorganized, shapeless, mixed up and dark. Now, the longer answer: In the beginning, the universe was without form. Humans and gods fought for supremacy, and the humans won a few rounds but eventually got trounced and became more and more miserable. The short answer to how the Greeks viewed the creation of the world is this: Scary old gods came first they got stomped down by their kids, who were better looking, younger gods. Understanding the beginning of the story, the creation of the world, gives us a framework to build upon as we learn about the different myths. Lesson 1: Greek Creation MythologyĪlthough when we think of mythology we think of a collection of stories, there is a beginning to them. Note:Do not give student(s) the filled-in copy of the Gods/Goddesses chart.
Internet access to look up relevant sites.Mythology by Edith Hamilton (which served as a source for this lesson plan).Greek Myths and Legends by Cheryl Evans.The Mighty 12: Superheroes of Greek Myths by Charles Smith.The Gods and Goddesses of Olympus by Aliki.D’Aulaires’ Book of Greek Myths by Ingri and Edgar Parin D’Aulaire.Create their own myth explaining a natural phenomenon.Identify the names and key features of the Olympian gods/goddesses.Describe the Greek view of the world’s geography.Understand the terms Chaos, Gaia, Uranus, Cronus, Zeus, Rhea, Hyperboreans, Ethiopia, Mediterranean, and Elysian Fields.Learning ObjectivesĪfter completing the lessons in this unit, students will be able to: In this lesson plan, students will gain an understanding of Greek mythology and the Olympian gods and goddesses. Greek mythology is not only interesting, but it is also the foundation of allusion and character genesis in literature.
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