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Tr i m e s t e r 2
GRADE 12
ADEC
ENGLISH TEACHING
RESOURCE BANK
ANCIENT GREEK EDUCATION
Non-Differentiated
Ancient Greek Education
Grade 12 | Trimester 2 | Ancient World, Modern World
Before you read
In ancient history two Greek city-states were both very powerful but were very different societies.
Spartan society placed great importance on military training. Spartans were considered to be great warriors.
On the other hand, Athens was a center of arts, learning and philosophy. Many famous philosophers came from
Athens.
Read the following statements and guess which city-state it applies to. Circle your idea.
1) Women had more rights here than most other places in the ancient world.
Sparta
/
Athens
2) All males had to serve in the army for one year.
Sparta
/
Athens
3) Citizens of this city-state were not allowed to participate in business.
Sparta
/
Athens
4) Even after they were married, men were not allowed to live with their wife
until the age of 30.
Sparta
/
Athens
5) This city-state was a democracy and all male citizens were allowed to vote
on important decisions.
Sparta /
Athens
Education in Ancient Greece
In ancient Athens, children’s lives were more
similar to ours today than we realise. They
played with toy soldiers, dolls, toy horses,
marbles and balls. Until they were able to
read, their parents told them folk stories about
their religion and heroes such as Achilles and
Hercules. Life for children in ancient Sparta was
very different from children born in Athens.
In Sparta, physical fitness and military skills
were considered more important than reading
and writing. The differences in how the ancient
Athenians and ancient Spartans educated their
children reflected the different values of
each society.
Athenian Education
During ancient times, education for boys and
girls was very different in Athens. Boys received
a formal education while girls did not go to
school. Until a boy was about six or seven years
old, his mother and a nurse (who was probably
a slave) looked after Athenian boys at home.
When an Athenian boy was about seven years
old he started going to school. These schools
were often run by private teachers, who were
paid by the parents.
In ancient Athens girls did not attend school.
Girls learned only the basics of reading and math
at home. Instead, mothers taught their daughters
everything they needed to know to manage a
home. This included learning how to manage
household workers, organize the shopping,
cleaning and cooking and also how to take care
of children.
A trusted family slave took each boy to school.
The slave went to all the boy’s lessons and made
sure he focused on all his lessons, behaved
properly and respected his teachers.
Athenian boys studied reading, writing,
arithmetic, geometry, history, music and poetry.
These subjects were not all taught in the same
school.
Usually reading, writing, arithmetic
and geometry were taught in one school, while
music and poetry were taught somewhere
else. The family slave would make sure that the
Athenian boy arrived at his lessons on time and
as scheduled.
Boys from poor families usually finished school
at fourteen. Boys from wealthier families
continued their education for four more years.
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Ancient Greek Education
Grade 12 | Trimester 2 | Ancient World, Modern World
Sometimes they studied extra subjects such as
astronomy and public speaking, which is also
called rhetoric.
When an Athenian boy turned eighteen he
began his military training. After a year of
training he was given a shield and a sword
by the government. The young soldier would
spend the next year patrolling and guarding
the territory around Athens. Having received
an excellent education and military training, at
twenty-one an ‘Athenian boy’ would become an
Athenian citizen who was well prepared to help
in the governing of Athens and contribute to
his society.
Spartan Education
When babies were born in Sparta, Spartan
soldiers would come to the house to examine
them. If the baby did not look healthy, it was
taken away and left to die or trained as a
slave. If the baby was healthy, it was assigned
membership in a brotherhood or sisterhood.
The boys in Sparta were sent to military
camps according to their brotherhood when
they turned seven. They learned how to read
and write until they were about fourteen. The
Spartan government wanted to make the boys
tough. To do this they were given little clothing
and no shoes. They slept on hard beds made
of reeds and were not given any covers.
They were not given enough food. They were
trained in how to steal food from farms and
how to survive under difficult circumstances.
These experiences prepared them to be good
soldiers. At the time, reading and writing were
not considered important skills in Sparta.
Between the ages of 18 and 20 each boy had to
pass a fitness test. If he did not pass the test,
he became a person of middle class who had
fewer rights and were not considered citizens. If
the boy succeeded in his physical examinations,
he served in the military and continued to train
as a soldier. Military service lasted until the age
of 60.
The girls were trained in the school of their
sisterhood. They were taught physical education.
Classes included wrestling, gymnastics and
combat training. The Spartans wanted girls to be
strong so that they would have healthy children.
At the age of eighteen the Spartan girl also had
to pass a fitness test. She was then assigned
a husband and allowed to return home. If she
failed the test, she was not permitted to be a
citizen even though she might have wanted to
serve her country.
Reading Comprehension
Work with a partner. One of you should read about Athenian education and the other should read about Spartan
education. After reading your section, list four facts you found in the text using complete sentences. The first one
is done as an example
Athenian education:
0) An Athenian boy stayed home with his mother until age six or seven.
1) 2) 3) 4) 24
Ancient Greek Education
Grade 12 | Trimester 2 | Ancient World, Modern World
Spartan education:
1) 2) 3) 4) Now work with your partner to decide which city-state the statement is describing. You’ll have to communicate
with your partner in order to get the correct answer. Some statements will describe something that is true
for both cities and some will not be true for either city. The first one is done as an example. Check the correct
answer.
F
0) Only boys attended school.
A) Athens
F
B) Sparta
F C) both Athens and Sparta
F
1) A trusted family slave made sure the students behaved in class.
A) Athens
F B) Sparta
F C) both Athens and Sparta
F
2) At around 19 years old all men had to pass a fitness test in order to become citizens.
F
A) Athens
B) Sparta
D) neither Athens or Sparta
F
F C) both Athens and Sparta
F
3) All men had to serve in the army for some period of his life.
F
A) Athens
B) Sparta
D) neither Athens or Sparta
F
F C) both Athens and Sparta
F
4) Boys from rich families finished school at 14 years old.
F
A) Athens
B) Sparta
D) neither Athens or Sparta
F
F C) both Athens and Sparta
F
F C) both Athens and Sparta
F
F C) both Athens and Sparta
F
C) both Athens and Sparta
F
5) Boys were taught how to read and write.
F
A) Athens
B) Sparta
D) neither Athens or Sparta
F
6) Girls were taught to read and write.
F
A) Athens
B) Sparta
D) neither Athens or Sparta
F
7) Students were taught how to fight and steal.
F
A) Athens
B) Sparta
D) neither Athens or Sparta
F
F 8) Girls were taught what they needed to know at home.
F
A) Athens
B) Sparta
D) neither Athens or Sparta
F
F C) both Athens and Sparta
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F
Ancient Greek Education
Grade 12 | Trimester 2 | Ancient World, Modern World
9) All men became citizens at 18 years old.
F
A) Athens
B) Sparta
D) neither Athens or Sparta
F
F C) both Athens and Sparta
F
10) The government provided all men with a free sword and shield.
F
A) Athens
B) Sparta
D) neither Athens or Sparta
F
F C) both Athens and Sparta
F
Grammar
Pronouns
Read the sentences and choose the best pronoun to fill the gap. The first one is done as an example.
F
0) In ancient Athens, only the boys attended school. They were accompanied by a trusted family slave.
A) He
F F B) Him
C) They
F
D) Them
F
1) In ancient Athens, girls were taught how to take care of a household by A) there
F B) their
F C) they’re
F D) her
F
2) In ancient Sparta, boys only learned how to read and write until 14. considered important.
A) They
F B) Them
F C) That
F skills were not
D) Those
F
3) A trusted family slave would make sure the boy paid attention and respected A) him
F B) his
F C) their
4) The Spartans wanted girls to be strong so that A) she
F B) her
F A) his
F B) him
D) that
teacher.
F
would have healthy children.
C) they
5) Boys from wealthier families continued F mothers.
F D) them
F
education for four more years.
F C) their
F D) he
F
6) When an Athenian boy turned eighteen he began his military training. After a year of training was given a shield and a sword by the government.
A) he
F B) him
F C) his
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F D) them
F
Ancient Greek Education
Grade 12 | Trimester 2 | Ancient World, Modern World
Vocabulary
Match the subjects to their definitions. The first one is done as an example.
0) history E 1) arithmetic
2) geometry 3) rhetoric 4) astronomy 5) poetry A) the study of poems
B) the study public speaking
C) the study of the stars
D) the study of numbers
E) the study of things that came before
F) the study of shapes
Critical Thinking
Make a list of the pros and cons of being a boy or girl in ancient Athens.
Boys
Pros
Cons
Girls
Pros
Cons
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Ancient Greek Education
Grade 12 | Trimester 2 | Ancient World, Modern World
Make a list of the pros and cons of being a boy or girl in ancient Sparta.
Boys
Pros
Cons
Girls
Pros
Cons
Writing
Write a story set in either ancient Athens or ancient Sparta from the point of view of a teenager. Describe some
kind of trouble the teenager might get into and how he or she might resolve the problem. Use information from
the text to add details to your story.
Extension
Now you know a little about what it was like to be a young person in ancient Athens and ancient Sparta Write
a paragraph explaining which ancient city-state you would choose to live in, if you had the choice Remember to
think about yourself, so consider what it would be like to be a boy or a girl in each place. Be sure to justify your
answers with reference to the information in the text.
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