greece.mrdonn.orgAncient Greece for Kids - City-States, Gods, Goddesses, Myths, Daily Life, Inventions, Geography, Ac

hievements, and more - Ancient Greece for Kids Privacy and Cookie Policy Ancient History Our Free Lesson Plans and Classroom Activities Archaeology Early Humans Mesopotamia Egypt Greece Rome China India Celts Myths Gods Games Quizzes 7 Wonders Free Use Clipart American History Our Free Lesson Plans and Classroom Activities Native Americans New World Explorers 13 Colonies Revolutionary War Creating a New Nation and US Constitution Western Expansion The Civil War Industrial Revolution WWI Roaring 20s Great Depression WWII More World History Our Free Lesson Plans and Classroom Activities Incas Mayas Aztecs African Kingdoms Vikings Middle Ages Renaissance Reformation and More Age of Exploration World Wars Quizzes Geography Holidays Around the World Main Index FAQ, , Contact Show More Show Less Ancient Greece for Kids Myths Games Activities Lessons Privacy Home Explore Adventures in Ancient Greece for Kids The ancient Greeks loved competitions and they loved to brag. To be fair, they had a great deal to brag about. The ancient Greeks gave us many gifts - the Olympics, democracy, the theatre, comedy, tragedy, the wheelbarrow, the alphabet, advances in medicine and science, architectural wonders like the ancient Greek columns, incredible myths, tales of legends, heroes, and fables, to name a few. Theirs was a culture envied and copied by other ancient civilizations. Come meet the ancient Greeks. Learn how the brave ancient Greek hero Theseus escaped the maze! Meet the god Apollo’s Oracle, where things are not always as they seem. Argue with Socrates, the great teacher. Read Aesop’s fables, a collection of very short stories that are still popular today. Play interactive games about ancient Greece. But first, a little background: Over two thousand five hundred (2,500+) years ago, ancient Greece was made up of many hundreds of Greek city-states, grouped together at the southern end of a very large peninsula that jutted out from Europe into the Mediterranean Sea. Smaller peninsulas stuck out from the main Greek peninsula, forming a great deal of natural coastline and many natural harbors. It’s no wonder the Greeks were great sailors and fishermen! A huge mountain range ran down the middle of the Greek peninsula. The people believed that the ancient Greek mystical world was ruled by a small group of powerful gods called the 12 Olympians who lived at the top of the highest mountain, Mount Olympus. Although you could try to climb to the top, you’d never make it because the top of Mount Olympus was hidden in fog and snow and magic. When things had to be decided in the mythical world, the council of 12 gods met on Mount Olympus to discuss things, which was a very Greek thing to do - talk it over first, and then either sign a legally binding document with agreed upon terms, go to war, or get even! That was the Greek way of doing things. The Greeks told wonderful myths about their gods. Poseidon, lord of the sea, could raise his hand and a new island would appear! Apollo brought up the sun every day, and his twin sister Artemis brought up the moon. Most of the gods avoided Ares. Nobody liked him much, not even his father, the mighty Zeus, but Ares was the god of war, so you had to keep him on your side if you could. Speaking of the mighty Zeus, king of all the gods, Zeus probably caused more trouble than any of them, even more than Aphrodite, the goddess of love. The Greeks did not limit their myths to stories about the 12 powerful Olympians. They told stories about all the gods and goddesses and the magical, mythical creatures in which they believed. Many of their mythical beings looked like people, but some looked like monsters, because, well .. they were! Fortunately, the ancient Greeks found a way to beat monsters, nearly always with trickery and cleverness, two skills that were greatly admired by the ancient Greeks. Ancient Greece was not a country. It was not an empire. It was a collection of over 1500 independent city-states (little itty bitty to great big sprawling villages and towns.) At one point, there were over 2,500 ancient Greek city-states on one peninsula, but some of them were taken over by another ancient Greek city-state, and some combined for safety. There was no central government, no central army, and no king or queen of ancient Greece that ruled all the city-states. Rather, each city-state had its own form of government with the power to rule only that city-state, and each city-state had its own way of doing things. Some city-states, like ancient Corinth, were ruled by kings, but each king only ruled that particular city-state. Some, like the warrior city-state of Sparta, were ruled by councils. Ancient Athens, the jewel of the ancient Greek city-states, experimented with an early form of democracy. As varied as they were in the way they governed themselves, when it came to culture and beliefs, the ancient Greek people had a great deal in common. The ancient Greeks spoke the same language. They worshiped the same gods. They told the same myths. They believed in beauty and honor. The ancient Greeks were very loyal to their city-state. But because of their common culture, they also recognized themselves as Greeks. The ancient Greek city-states did, on occasion, team up against a common foe. They also went to war with each other, unless the ancient Olympic Games were in progress . The Greeks invented the Olympics, and took the event quite seriously. Nearly all the ancient Greek city-states sent teams to participate. If two or more Greek city-states happen to be at war with each other when the game date arrived, war was halted for the duration of the games. The Greek Olympics were not the only games in ancient Greece - the Greeks loved competition of all sorts - but the Olympics were the most important. Every city-state wanted to brag that their athletics (their statues, their theatre, their fabrics) were the best! Welcome to Ancient Greece! For Kids Who were the ancient Greeks? Geography Maps of Ancient Greece Interactive Timelines of Ancient Greece Minoans - Myth: The monster in the maze Mycenaeans - very early Greece Dorians - the hated invaders Greek Dark Ages What is a civilization? What is a city-state? Rise of City-States Types of Government Roots of Democracy in Athens Athens Sparta Corinth Argos Megara The Ancient Greek Olympics Greek Alphabet NEW: The Hercules Detective Agency Join Herc and his friends as they solve many problems of the ancient Greeks (original story stories about daily life, government, gods and goddesses, and more. A very easy way to learn about Ancient Greece. Daily Life Greek Men Greek Women Greek Kids Greek Slaves Occupations Pets & Toys Houses Food Clothing Hair Styles Education, School Religion, Gods Greek Dance Wedding Customs Greek Theatre Greek Architecture & Art Greek Vases Tell a Story Greek Columns Elgin Marbles The Trojan War and the Legend of the Trojan Horse Greek Ships Greek Warriors Greek Wars Persian Wars The Delian League Peloponnesian War Famous Greeks - Archimedes, Hippocrates, more Pericles Funeral Oration Greek Philosophies Aristotle Socrates - the great teacher Aesop’s Fables Homer’s Iliad Homer’s Odyssey Alexander the Great The League of Corinth Hellenistic Greece Ancient Greek Gods & Goddesses Ancient Greek Mythical Monsters Ancient Greek Myths - retold by Lin Donn Here are some of them: Zeus, Hera, and Little Io The Competition, Athena and Poseidon Theseus, the Minotaur, and the Maze Dionysus and Ariadne Hades, Zeus, and the King of Corinth Icarus and Daedalus, Wings Baby Hercules & The 12 Labors of Hercules Demeter and Persephone, Reason for the Seasons Apollo’s Oracle at Delphi Apollo and Cassandra The Magic Rocks - a myth about Ares, the god of war Perseus, Andromeda, and the sea god, Poseidon Orpheus and Eurydice Eros & Psyche Aphrodite and the Trojan War Prometheus and the Gift of Fire Pandora’s Box Zeus and the Great Flood Zeus, Helios & Phaethon Three Tales of Echo - Hera, Narcissus,...