Ancient WorldOrdinary TimeWeek 5 of 32

Ancient Greece I: The Birth of the Polis

Essential Question

How did small Greek city-states give the world democracy, drama, and the love of beauty?

This week the student steps into the world of the ancient Greeks, watching civilization rebuild after the Bronze Age collapse into something new: the polis, the self-governing city-state. We meet the Minoans and Mycenaeans, hear Homer sing of Troy, contrast democratic Athens with militarized Sparta, and discover the Greek love of beauty, competition, and reason that still shapes the West. Faith threads in through St. Paul preaching to the Athenians, the virtue of fortitude at Thermopylae, and YOUCAT's teaching on the Incarnation.

Liturgical note: Ordinary Time (early autumn). A good week to reflect on how God prepared the pagan world, including the Greeks, for the coming of Christ.

Threads at a Glance

What Each Thread Covers This Week

World History

Minoans & Mycenaeans, Homer & the Greek Dark Age, the rise of the polis, Athens (democracy) vs. Sparta, Greek myth & religion, the Olympics, daily life

US History

England's first colonies: Roanoke and Jamestown

Historical Figure

Pericles

Geography

Greece & the Aegean; draw mainland Greece, the Peloponnese, the Aegean, major city-states & colonies

Art History

Greek art I — Archaic kouroi, black- & red-figure pottery, the move to Classical, the Parthenon

Music History

Music in ancient Greece — the lyre & aulos, Pythagoras & the math of music, the Greek modes

Saint

St. Paul (who preached at Athens and Corinth)

Virtue

Fortitude (courage — Thermopylae)

Catechism

YOUCAT — Jesus Christ I: the Incarnation, true God and true man (Q72-Q85)

Grammar

Adjectives & adverbs — modifiers and degrees of comparison

Writing

Descriptive writing — vivid sensory detail (describe an ancient city)

Weekly Writing Assignment

A Day in an Ancient City

Write a vivid description of a single walk through Athens or Sparta at the height of its glory. Take your reader through the streets using all five senses: what do they see (the marble temples, the crowded agora), hear (debate, the hammer of a sculptor, an aulos), smell (olive oil, smoke, the sea), feel, and even taste? Choose strong, specific adjectives and adverbs rather than vague ones. Do not narrate a plot; paint a place so the reader feels they are there.

Skill: Descriptive writing — using vivid sensory detail and precise modifiersLength: 2-3 paragraphs (250-350 words)

Show rubric ▾

Uses at least four of the five senses with concrete, specific detail
Chooses precise, vivid adjectives and adverbs (no vague words like 'nice' or 'very big')
Stays focused on describing a place, with a clear sense of movement or order through it
Reflects accurate knowledge of the ancient Greek city (agora, temples, daily life)
Writing is clean: complete sentences, correct spelling and punctuation

The Week