Prehistoric Britain

The Shang Dynasty

Ancient Greece

Roman Britain

Ancient Egypt

Vikings and Anglo-Saxons

Medieval Monarchs

20th century conflict: World War I

20th century conflict: World War II

20th century conflict: The Cold War

History

Y6 History

Key Stage 2

Year 6

Y5 History

Year 5

Y4 History

Year 4

Y3 History

Year 3

UNIT

In this lesson, we will learn about how Ancient Greece was organised into different city states, each of them with their own set of rules and customs.

How was Ancient Greece organised?

﻿Hello to my fellow historians, and welcome to this first lesson on the unit on Ancient Greece. My name is Mr. Pedrozza, and I am extremely excited to be teaching you this unit. When I was in school a long, long time ago, as you can tell by my many wrinkles. I was absolutely fascinated about learning about this period of history. There are so many interesting things to learn about the ancient Greeks. And I can't wait to share everything I know with you, as well as learn some new things myself. So let's get started by looking at the question you will be answering in this lesson. So the question that we're going to answer is, how was ancient Greece organised? Let's have a look at the lesson structure. So we can begin with a star words. I'm going to share some key vocabulary, then we'll have a look at what Greece actually is, we're going to try to find it on a map. Then I'll tell you a little bit about Greece's geography. And then we'll have a look at the Greek city-states. And then at the very end is the end of lesson quiz. And the end lesson quiz is always going to be part, it's always going to come at the end of each lesson. So make sure you do that as it's going to help you to recap all of the learning that you do. So, let's look at the things that you're going to need. You're going to need your exercise book or a piece of paper where you can write some notes. You're going to need a pencil or a pen, and then you're going to also need a ruler. If you haven't got those things, go and get them now. Be quick. Super speedy course. Okay let's have a look at the star words. We've got five words, we've got geography, port, polis, government and democracy. Let's begin with geography, and geography are the physical features of an area on the earth surface. The physical features of an area and the surface is referred to as geography. Then we have port. A port is a place where ships load and unload cargo. A place where ships load and unload cargo is known as a port. Good job. Next one, we've got a polis, my turn and your turn, polis, polis, good job. And a polis is a city-state, which is like a small country within a region of Greece. Then we've got a government. A government is the type of system by which a community, a state or a nation is governed. The government is a type of system by which it communities, state or nation is governed, good job. And last, we got democracy and democracy is a form of government in which power rests with the people, either directly or through elected representatives. So let's begin by finding Greece. Now in this unit, we're going to study the history of ancient Greece. You might think, well, why are we studying about Greece? And the reason for that is that ancient Greece was one of the greatest, it's one of the greatest and most influential civilizations that has been in history. The ancient Greeks were great thinkers, they were great warriors, they were writers, actors, athletes, artists, architects, and politicians, and their achievements have left a lasting imprint on the world. This is why ancient Greece is sometimes known as a classical period, or classical antiquity, because of his great achievements, and long lasting influence over the rest of the world. But do you guys know where Greece is? Here, I'm showing you a map of a continent. What continent do you think I'm showing you a map of? That's right, is the continent of Europe. So what countries can you recognise on this continent? Can you recognise the UK? Point to the UK. If you said the UK is this island here, then you're absolutely right. Okay, so now that we know that, now we can recognise where the UK is, have a go, where do you think Greece might be? So that's the United Kingdom. Maybe you maybe even to Greece on holiday. Okay, ready? Three, two, one. And Greece is over here. So if you pointed that Greece on the map, awesome job, well done, well found. So the red shaded part shows modern Greece. So let's zoom in you ready? Three, two, one, zoom in. Now modern Greece, So Greece today is a country in South Eastern Europe. And it has a population around 10.9 million people. And its capital is the City of Athens. The capital is the City of Athens, good job. And Athens has a population of approximately 3 million people. So let's have a look at your very first task on the unit of ancient Greece. So there you go to complete a sentence, modern Greece is located in South East, what continent is Greece in? Have a think, have a go. Pause the video and complete this task. Did you get it right, tell me that you got it right, are you ready, three, two, one, Modern Greece is located in South East Europe, awesome job guys, well done. Now let's have a look. Modern Greece is surrounded by three seas. Is surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea, the Aegean Sea and the Ionian Sea. Let's try and find them on the map. So you've got the Mediterranean Sea here, you got the Aegean Sea, and you got the Ionian Sea. So three seas surround modern Greece. The mainland of Greece is 80% mountains, and it's surrounded by more than 1000 smaller islands. So this is a Greek mainland here. And then you can see around the mainland, there are around 1000 islands. Now Greece, enjoys hot summers and enjoys mild winters. So that in ancient times, people actually spend a lot of time outside working and chatting with their neighbours. So next question, how many seas is modern Greece surrounded by? Is modern Greece surrounded by two seas? Is it surrounded by three seas, is surrounded by four seas, is it surrounded by five? Have a think, how many seas is modern Greece surrounded by. A, B, C or D? At this point, pause the video and then have a go. Okay, let's see if you remember how many seas modern Greece is surrounded by. So how many seas is modern Greece surrounded by? It is surrounded by A, B, or C, D? It's B, it's surrounded by three seas. So modern Greece is surrounded by three seas, the Mediterranean Sea, the Aegean sea and the Ionian Sea. Excellent job guys. Well done. I'm going to leave this answer up so that you can copy it down, so that way you can check it against your own. Awesome, good job guys, well done. Okay, let's continue learning about Greece's geography. So in ancient Greece, so now we're moving back to ancient Greece. In ancient Greece, communication and long journeys by land were really difficult, because the mountainous terrain, and the mountainous terrain actually may travel also very difficult. And it was really difficult to farm on the rocky hillsides. So fishing and trade became really important part of people's daily lives. And a very famous ancient Greek philosopher, and writer called Plato, once wrote, "That the Greeks did not live on the land, but around the sea, like frogs on a pond." But due to Greece's mountainous geography, it's really difficult to farm, it was really difficult to travel, it was really difficult to communicate between each other. And therefore the seas and ports and fishing, and sailing became really important part of their lives. So let's have a look at this answer. So what specific feature of Greece's geography made farming, travel and communication difficult? What is it about Greece is geography that made all those things really difficult, back in ancient times? Have a look, pause the video and complete this task. Okay, let's have a look, ready? So what specific feature of Greece's geography made farming, travel and communication difficult? So the answer is Greece's mountainous terrain, made farming, farming, travel and communication, difficult, meaning that the seas and ports became an important part of everyday life. So the specific feature that made all those things difficult is the mountainous terrain. So again, at this point, I'm going to pause the video, you can pause the video too check your answer against mine. Okay, let's move on. So now that we know where Greece is, Greece, we know is in South Eastern Europe. We know a little bit about its geography, we know it's surrounded by three seas, the Mediterranean, the Ionian and the Aegean sea. We know that it's really mountainous. How did that impact the development of Greece during ancient times? So let's find out. So this unique geography of rocky mountains, seas and islands, it meant there was no unified Greek empire. That meant that it wasn't, Greece wasn't one big country, like it is now. The people at the time did not refer to themselves as being Greeks. Instead, they call themselves Hellenes. And they call the area that they lived in as Hellas. It was the Romans much later on, who gave the name Greece, to the region. So in this task, what I want you to do is I want you to use the keywords. So you got unified, Romans, Hellenes, you got Greece, mountainous and Hellas. Find out where, what you got to do is you got to figure out where these word are going to go in the sentences. Once you think you've got it, write the sentences down, and once you've written your sentence down, check them by reading them to yourself. So at this point, pause the video and then have a go. Okay, let's check those sentences. Are you ready? For much of its history, ancient Greece was not a unified empire. Its mountainous terrain made it difficult to unify the country. People refer to themselves as Hellenes and they referred to the area they lived in as Hellas. It was the Romans, which named the area as Greece. And so we got unified there, we got mountainous. We got Hellenes, we got Hellas, we got Romans, and then we have Greece. make sure that for Hellenes, Hellas, Romans and Greece, you have started those words with capital letters, because they are names. So make sure you do that. At this point, I'm going to pause the video, so you can check your answer against my own. Awesome job guys. Well done, okay, let's move on to next. As we learned earlier, people in ancient Greece, they lived in smaller communities, they lived in smaller cities known as a polis, or a city-state. And each city-state ruled itself. That means that they had their own governments, their own laws, and even their own army. The city-states were connected by the seas and the ports, and they tended to be located in the valleys between the mountains, or on coastal plains. So let's have a look at this one, is a true or false question. People in ancient Greece live in cities states, each one had its own government, laws and army. Is that true or is that false? True or false? Pause the video and complete that task. Okay, let's look at the answer to this question. So people in ancient Greece lived in city-states, each one has his own government, laws and army, is that true, or is that false? It is true. Okay, so let's find out a little bit more about Greek city-states. So the ancient Greek city-states had a lot of different types of government, because they all lived independently of each other. And one of the reasons why they were also independent from each other was because of Greece's geography. Remember, Greece's geography is really mountainous, it made it really difficult for travel, communication, and so on. Therefore, each Greek city-state, developed in their own independent way. So let's find out a bit more about it. So what kind of governments that Greek city-states have? Well, there could be monarchies, where kings ruled, and they pass the powers on to their heirs. There could be an oligarchy, where an elite few ruled over the people, there could be a tyranny, where one ruler sees power through strength and force. Or there could also be a democracy, where people were citizens, and they could vote to choose their own rulers. Now direct democracy where people voted to choose their own rulers emerged in the city of Athens. And it lasted for around 100 years, between 500 and 400 BC. However, I think in democracy, excluded slaves, excluded women, and excluded the poor. So therefore, it was mainly men, is primarily men who could vote, and those men had to have a certain amount of wealth. They could not be poor, they could not be slaves. So it wasn't a very democratic system of government. Here I have two questions, which I would love to prompt some really high level thinking from you. So, under which type of government would you have liked to live in if you were back in ancient Greece, and why, why would you want to live under that type of government? And then my next question, this trick question, actually, what do you think is unfair about the different types of government? I think there's something unfair about each of them. There's something unfair about the monarchy, there's something unfair about the oligarchy, there's something unfair about tyranny. And there was a little bit, there was something unfair about Athenian democracy. Remember, in Athenian democracy only men could vote. Women couldn't vote, poor people couldn't vote, slaves couldn't vote. So what's unfair about that system? So at this point, what I like to do, pause the video, if you are with someone next you, then you can have a discussion with them. If you're working on your own, then I would love you to write your own ideas. And once we come back, I will share my thinking. So I just pause the video and then have a go. Okay, let's have a look. I would love to hear your answers. And I would love to hear your, I would love to read your thinking. So, let's have a look, we have the monarchy, where the rulers pass on they pass to their heirs, we had the oligarchy, where an elite few ruled over the people, we had the tyranny, where one person, one strong ruler, was in control and then we had democracy, where people could vote for their representatives, But in a Athene democracy, only if you're a man of a certain amount of wealth. In my thinking, I think all of the systems of government in ancient Greek city-states, they were all unfair. And the monarchies, people didn't have much say, in who their rulers were, as power was transferred from the king to their heirs. There's no system, you couldn't vote for who the king was going to be. Under an oligarchy, only the rich and the powerful, have any power. Again, that's not very fair. And the tyranny, again, the problem here would be that all power is held by one single person, who would have got that power for strength and force and the use of violence. In my opinion, if I had been alive in ancient Greece, I would have wanted to live in a democracy, because I would have had some power to choose my rulers. However, if I had been poor, or if I had been a slave, I would not have had any rights. Also, remember that women didn't have any voting rights either. So the system was not very fair at all. But still, I think that type of democracy was still better than monarchy, it was still better than oligarchy, and it was still better than tyranny. I wonder what you guys made of that. So let's move on. So some of the main city-states in ancient Greece were as follows. So here's a map of some of the key ancient Greek city-states. So you've got Athens, and Athens is the most famous of the Greek city-states. Remember, Athens is the current capital of modern Greece. And Athens was the home of democracy, where people were allowed to vote for their own rulers. Next one, we have Knossos, so we got Athens here, and then we have Knossos on the island of Crete. Now, Knossos was the oldest city in the whole of ancient Greece. And it was located on the island of Crete, not on the Greek main island. Knossos was the centre of the Minoan civilization. Next one, we've got Olympia. We have Athens, we have Knossos, and we have Olympia here. Now, Olympia was the site of the original Olympic Games, where all of the different Greek city-states would send athletes to compete. And then lastly, we have Sparta. We had Athens, Athens is here, we have Knossos on the island of Crete, we have Olympia, and then we have Sparta. Now, why Sparta famous? Well, Sparta is famous for developing the greatest warriors of all of ancient Greece. Boys in Sparta would leave their families to begin training as soldiers at the age of seven. Whoa, imagine being seven, and being trained to be a soldier. That seems very tough. Now, let's complete this sentence here. So we got a sentence here and he have three key words that you can use, you can use the word Greece, rulers or Athens. Now that Greece and Athens, you got to use capital letters, because they're proper nouns they're names of places. So at this point, pause the video, and then have a go. Okay, let's have a look and see what the answer is, ready is the answer. So the city of Athens is viewed as the home of democracy, where people voted for their own rulers. It is the capital of Greece today. But remember, the key point to make about Athenian democracy is that even though it was a better system than the other forms of government like monarchy, oligarchy and tyranny, it wasn't great because you can only vote if you're a man of a certain amount of wealth. You couldn't vote if you're a woman, if you were poor, or if you're a slave. Not great at all. Guys, that is the end of your lesson. So create work today. It's now time to complete your end of lesson quiz. If you'd like to, please ask your parent or carer to share any of your work. And they can do that on Instagram. They can do it on Facebook, they can go on Twitter, they got to tag @OakNational, and they got to use the hashtag #LearnwithOak. So please ask your parents or carers to share your work for you. Awesome job guys, well done. I hope you enjoyed our first lesson on this unit on ancient Greece. I'm so excited to be learning about it. You can probably tell by my massive smile and the way I'm talking in a very good way. So thank you so much for all of your hard work today. I hope to see you for our next lesson. Goodbye my friends.

In this lesson, we will learn about how we know so much about Ancient Greece, exploring artefacts found by archaeologists, as well as looking at the extensive influence the Greeks had on the Roman Empire.

Why do we know so much about Ancient Greece?

﻿Hello there my fellow historians and welcome to the second lesson on this unit of Ancient Greece. My name is Mr. Pedroza and in this lesson, we're going to have a look at the following question. So the question is, why do we know so much about Ancient Greece? So let's have a look at the lesson structure for today. So we're going to begin with the Star Words, I'll share some key vocabulary, then we're going to have a look at what do archaeologists do? Then we'll have a look at a case study for the Minoans and how we know so much about this Greek civilization, then we'll end by having a look at the Greek influence on the Romans, which is another reason why we know so much about Ancient Greece and then at the very end is our end of lesson quiz. Things that you're going to need in this lesson, you'll need your exercise book or a piece of paper, you'll need your pencil or a pen and you'll need your ruler. So if you haven't got those things, go and get them now. Okay, let's have a look at the key Star Words for today. So this is the key vocabulary. So we've got archaeology, archaeologists, we've got fresco, we got historian, we got influence, and we got polytheism. So let's begin with archaeology. And archaeology is the study of humans through the recovery and the study of artefacts. Then we got archaeologist, and that archaeologist digs up and then studies artefacts such as poetry, tools, and buildings in order to learn about how humans lived in the past. Then we've got fresco and a fresco is a painting on freshly applied plaster, usually on wall surfaces. Next one we've got historian and a historian, is a bit like you, is someone who writes about or is an expert on history. We're all historians at the moment. Then we've got influence, and influence is the ability to affect or change how someone or something develops, behaves, or thinks. And then last we've got polytheism and polytheism is the belief in more than one God. So those are the vocabularies, those are Star Words that we need in this lesson. So let's begin with the first section. So what do archaeologists do? Well, one of the reasons why we know so much about Ancient Greece is thanks to the work of archaeologists. And archaeologists, they find and they study objects from the past to learn about how people used to live. These objects are called artefacts. What are the objects called? They're called artefacts, good job. And these objects are often from a very long time ago. So they have become buried underground, and the job of the archaeologist is to take them out from the ground. They have to be really careful so that they are not damaged. So let's have a look at the first task, what does an archaeologist do? Option one, is it draw pictures about how people used to live? Is option two, find and study artefacts to discover about how people lived in the past? Is it option three, do they read books about history to learn about how people used to live? Or is it option four, use maps to show where people used to live? So was it option one, two, three, or four? What does an archaeologist do? So at this point, pause the video and then have go. Okay, let's have a look. What does an archaeologist do? Is it one, two, three or four? It is number two. So an archaeologist finds and studies artefacts to discover how people lived in the past. Awesome job guys, well done. Now let's have a look at the first case study, and this case study is about the Minoans. So you might think, who are the Minoans? Well, the Ancient Greeks may have lived over 2000 years ago, but they left a lasting influence that still affects Western culture and way of life. And during the height of the Greek civilization, Greek culture spread throughout the Mediterranean and it was then imitated by the ancient Romans, who were another powerful empire. From democracy, to architecture, to art, we see the effects of Ancient Greece throughout the world today. And one of the ancient Greek civilizations that we have learned a lot about through archaeological finds is the Minoan civilization, and the Minoans were the first great Greek civilization. And they didn't live on the mainland but they actually lived on the neighbour island of Crete. So I'm going to point to where Crete is. So this is the island of Crete and this is the mainland. So, they were known as the Minoans after their legendary king, king Minos, and they lived between the years 2,200 BC and 1,450 BC. So let's complete the sentence. So here you have a sentence, you've got to complete it. At this point, what I want you to do is you're going to pause the video and then have a go. So which was the first Greek civilization and who were they named after? So have a go, pause the video and complete this task. Okay, let's have a look at that first task, the second task. So, complete the sentence. The Minoans were the first great Greek civilization. They we're known as such after the legendary king Minos. So, good job guys, well done. At this point, I'm going to put it up so that you can check it against your own. Awesome job guys, well done. Okay, let's continue. So let's learn a little bit more about them. Now, archaeologists have discovered that the Minoan civilization grew rich on trade and they built glorious palaces decorated with beautiful war paintings. And the term Minoa was coined by the archaeologists, Sir Arthur Evans, who uncovered the Minoan palace of Knossos in 1900 CE, and he named the culture for the ancient Greek king Minos. And on the right you can see the great palace of Knossos on the island of Crete. So, here's the next question. Which archaeologist coined the term Minoan? And here is a prompt that you can use to write a full sentence. So you could say the archaeologist who coined the term Minoan was, who was he? Again, pause the video and complete this task. Okay, let's have a look at that one. So which archaeologist coined the term Minoan? It was, of course, Sir Arthur Evans. So the archaeologist who coined the term Minoan was Sir Arthur Evans, who uncovered the Minoan palace at Knossos in 1900 CE. He named the culture after the Cretan king, Minos. Awesome job guys, well done, excellent work. Okay, I'm going to leave it up so that you can check it against your own. Now, let's continue. So let's learn a little bit more about the Minoan civilization. So one of the most striking archaeological finds regarding the Minoans is this fresco. This is a painting that was done on plaster, on wet plaster. And this fresco shows, it's called "The Bull-Leaping Fresco" as you can see. You might be able to see why it's called "The Bull-Leaping Fresco". Now, part of the palace of Knossos in Crete in Greece, and it was painted in around 1400 BC, and it offers one of the depictions of the ancient practise of bull leaping, which was a sport which was practised by the Minoans. Pretty dangerous sounding sport. And historians believe that it gives us an insight into the type of sports which the Minoans were engaged with. Others view it as representing the Minoans' belief in their mastery and supremacy over nature. Archaeologists have also discovered evidence of a writing system that was developed by the Minoans known as Linear A, and it was discovered by Sir Arthur Evans. And examples of Linear A have mostly been found on stone tablets as well as pottery. However, this language has not been deciphered and therefore the meaning of the various examples that have been found remains unknown. We don't know what it means because nobody has been able to decipher what the language means. Let's have a look at this one. Where have examples of Linear A been found? Remember that Linear A is the language that developed during the Minoan civilization. Again, here's my prompt. So examples of Linear A have been found on, where have they been found? On what type of artefacts have they found examples of Linear A? Here, pause the video and complete this task. Okay, let's have a look at the answer to this one. So where have examples of Linear A been found? The answer is examples of Linear A have been found on stone tablets and pottery. And remember, we don't know what it means because the language has not yet been deciphered. So we don't know what the messages say. I wonder what they say though. So let's have a look at the next bit. So what other sources of information do we have about ancient Greece? So other sources upon which historians have relied upon when studying Ancient Greece has been poetry and also coins. The ancient Greeks used to make pots from clay and large pots were used for cooking or storing food and small bowls and cups were made for people to eat and drink from, and as the Greeks became more skilled, they began to decorate their pots in order to commemorate, in order to remember important individuals as well as tell different stories, including those of their different gods. Coins from this era tended to commemorate important people, a tradition which continues with modern coinage. Most of the coins that you see now, in modern times, have an important person on them, and that tradition began with the ancient Greeks. For example, this coin that you can see on the right-hand side displays Alexander The Great, who was one of the most influential and powerful leaders of ancient Greece. In Ancient Greece, there were also prolific writers, that loved to write, and a lot of their surviving work informs us about life in ancient Greece. For example, the ancient Greek historian Herodotus, my apologies, was known as the father of history and he wrote all about his travels through Greece, Northern Africa, and Western Asia. He also chronicled the events of the wars between the Persian Empire and the Greek city states, and he wrote them in a book called "The Histories." Now, despite some doubts about his accuracy, some people think that he made a few things up, Herodotus is an important source of information about life in Ancient Greece, and the reason why is because he's an eye witness. He was present at the time. So what is Herodotus known as? Is he known as A, the father of geography? Is he known as the father of history? Is he known as the father of maths? Or is he known as the father of war? So what is the historian, Herodotus, known as? Is it A, B, C, or D? Again, at this point, pause the video and then have a go. Okay, let's have a look. What did you think? What is Herodotus, a historian, known as? A, B, C or D? It's, of course, B. So the Ancient Greek historian, Herodotus, is known as the father of history. Awesome job my friends. Now let's move on and see, let's learn about the Greek influence on the Romans. Now, one of the reasons as to why we know so much about the Ancient Greeks is due to the influence they had on another great civilization, the Romans. And based out of the city of Rome, the Romans became one of the largest and most powerful empires. And the Romans' initial interactions with Greeks were mainly trade, but they soon became influenced by the Greek ideas regarding warfare, religion, literature, art, and architecture. And in 146 BCE, the Romans, they conquered the Greek peninsula, bringing the Greeks into their empire. So let's have a look. You've got to compete the sentence and you have three key words that you can use. So you've got 146 BCE, you've got Romans, and you've got the word peninsula. So, have a think, where would those words go to complete that sentence? Once you think you've got it, write it down and then read it to check. So at this point, pause the video and complete this task. Okay, let's check. Ready? So, the Romans conquered the Greek peninsula in 146 BCE. Awesome job guys. Let's continue. Now, Greek ideas of education and language were highly valued and sought after within the Roman empire, and as a result, Greeks were often employed as tutors, musicians, doctors, and artists. For the rich and powerful, it was considered mandatory to learn Greek alongside Latin and to study the works of important philosophers such as Aristotle, Plato, and Socrates, whose work cover topics such as morality, philosophy, and science amongst others. And as a result, the work of all of these Ancient Greek philosophers became distributed across the empire, expanding the influence of their thinking to the present day. Let's have a look at this task. In this task, again we have some missing words in these sentences and you have some key words. You can use rich, Greek, Romans, education, mandatory, and philosophers. So have a think, where do you think those words would go to complete those sentences? Once you think you've got it down, write them down, and then read it back to check. So at this point, pause the video and then complete this task. Okay, let's check. Right. Greek ideas around education and language were highly valued by the Romans. For the rich and powerful, it was considered mandatory to learn Greek and study the works of philosophers such as Aristotle, Plato, and Socrates. And there we used up all six words. We used education, Romans, rich, mandatory, Greek, and philosophers. Awesome job. Okay, I'm going to put it up so that you can just check your work against my own. Awesome job guys, well done. Remember, in case you made a mistake, the reason why I stop at certain points is for you to just check your work and see that you've got it right. It's fine to make mistakes if you have. So let's continue. The Ancient Greek influence can also be seen in some of the buildings around us. Their architecture has been imitated throughout history. For example, this is a picture of the Parthenon, which was a former temple dedicated to the goddess, Athena, and this temple, the Parthenon, is in the city of Athens. Now the Romans, they copied many of the Greek ideas into their own buildings, their homes, and with the famous Colosseum displaying signs of Greek influence. And today, many government buildings are built in the Greek classical style, including the US Capitol Building and the US Supreme Court Building in Washington, DC. So you can see that even to the present day, Greek ideas about architecture and art are still really popular, and they're still imitated by us. So, let's have a look. Now, Greek art in the form of portraits and statues also heavily influenced Roman artists. Greek statues, above all else, were among the most popular designs incorporated by the Romans. And Hellenic statues, Greek statues could often be seen within public buildings and even within private homes. True or false, the Romans copied many Greek ideas in their buildings and homes. Is that true or is that false? What do you think? Again, pause the video and complete that task. Okay, let's have a look. Ready? It is, of course, the Romans copied many Greek ideas in their buildings and homes. It is, of course, true. The Romans were heavily influenced by Greek architecture and they incorporated their designs into their own buildings. Now, in addition to literature, architecture, and art, the Romans, they were also really heavily influenced by Ancient Greek ideas in regards to religion. And early Roman religious beliefs implemented a polytheistic system of worship based around the belief in gods and goddesses. So both the Ancient Romans and the Ancient Greeks were polytheistic. That means they believed in more than one God. And some Roman gods shared many characteristics with Greek gods. For example, the Roman god Neptune, which you can see on the left, which is the God of the sea shared a direct correlation with the Greek god, Poseidon. You can see that they're quite similar looking. Now, the head god, Jupiter, who was a Roman god resembled the Greek god, Zeus. Some Greek gods like the god Apollo were adopted outright by the Romans as their own without making any changes to them. And Apollo was actually, he became a deity, a god of healing, medicine, and light. Finally, one of Greece's most important contributions to the Roman empire can be seen with their ideas of military formations and tactics. Greek military thinking became an intricate part of Roman military strategy and success. And the Greek idea of the phalanx, which was a military formation, coupled with the concepts of teamwork and unity became the basis for the Roman legions. And the phalanx was a rectangular military formation with soldiers packed really closely together as you can see on the left-hand side. The Romans, they adopted the formation of the phalanx and they changed it to better suit their army. That allowed them to establish a really large empire. So here's my last task and it's probably the most challenging task because in this one, you've got to summarise some of the information that I've just given you. But I know that you can do it. So, let's have a look. How did the Ancient Greeks influence the Romans in regards to religion and the army? And I have some key key tips for you. So in your answer, you should talk about how some Greek and Roman gods were similar, and in the last bit, you should talk about how the Romans, they copied Greek military formations. So what was similar about ancient Greek religion and ancient Roman religion? So what did the Romans copy from the ancient Greeks and then in terms of the military, what did the Romans copy from Greek military formations? So again, at this point, have a go. Pause the video and complete this task. Okay, let's have a look and see what answers you've given. So, here you had to summarise how did the Ancient Greeks influence the Romans in regards to religion and the army? So a great answer would be, early Roman beliefs were polytheistic just like the Ancient Greeks. Remember polytheism is the belief in more than one God, good job. Many Roman gods, such as Neptune and Jupiter share similar characteristics to Greek gods. In terms of the military, the Romans used the Greek phalanx formation, adapting it later on to better suit their army. So the Romans, they learned from the Greeks about military formations, but then they adapted those formations to better suit their own army. So those would be some great answers to that question. So at this point, I'm going to pause the video and you can change your answers or you can tick it as you see fit. And that my friends, is the end of the lesson. Great work today, I'm so proud of you. It's now time to complete your end of lesson quiz. And as always, if you'd like to, please ask your parent or carer to share your work on Instagram, they can do it on Facebook, they can do it on Twitter. They're going to tag @OakNational and use the hashtag #LearnwithOak. But please ask your parents or carers to do that for you. I would love to see some of your work. Guys, thank you so much for joining me today. I hope you had a lovely lesson, I hope you learned lots, and we shall see you in our next lesson. Goodbye my friends.

In this lesson, we will learn about the most important cultural contributions of the Ancient Greeks, some of which are influential to this day.

What was the Golden Age of Greece?

﻿Hello. Hey there my friends, and welcome to the third lesson on this unit on Ancient Greece. My name is Mr. Pedroza and this lesson, we're going to tackle the following question. So question is, what was the Golden Age of Greece? So far we learnt a little bit about the beginnings of Ancient Greece, in this lesson, we're going to have a look at some of the achievements that the Ancient Greeks achieved during the Golden Age. So let's have a look at the lesson structure. So we'll begin with the Star Words and then we'll have a look at the very first Olympic Games. Then we'll have look at a Athenian Democracy and have a look at the Persian Invasions, and then we'll have a look at the Ancient Greek cultural achievements. And then at the very end is our end of lesson quiz. Things that you're going to need in this lesson. You're going to need your exercise book, or paper. You're going to need a pencil or a pen, and then you going to need your ruler. So if you haven't got those things, go and get them now. Okay, let's begin with the Star Words. This is the key vocabulary for the lesson, so we've got, invasion, truce, democracy, you've got statesman, trireme and architecture. And invasion is an act or instance of invading by an enemy or hostile army. And we've got a truce, and a truce is to stop or end the war, that is agreed upon by all groups. The next one we got democracy and democracy is a form of government in which power rests with the people. Next, we've got a statesman and a statesman is a man who shows skill and wisdom in government. Next one, we've got trireme and a trireme is an Ancient Greek or Roman galley. It was used as a warship and it tended to have three tiers of oars on each side. Last one is architecture and architecture is the act or the process of designing and building. So let's have a look at the timeline and this timeline we're going to use to lead up to the Ancient Greeks Golden Age. So, in this lesson, we're going to be studying the Ancient Greece's Golden Age. And the Ancient Greece's Golden Age began roughly in 490 BCE, but let's have a look at what happened before then. So in around 2,200 BCE, we had the beginnings of the Minoan civilization, which emerged on the island of Crete. And they were considered to be the first great Greek civilization. After the Minoans came to Mycenaean civilization who's centre of power was the city of Mycenae on the mainland. After the climb of the Myceneans there was a period of time known as the Dark Age, and the reason why it was known as the Dark Age was because nobody knows about what happened and all written language and art disappeared. And that was between 1,100 BCE and 800 BCE. So that period of the time when we don't really know what happened is known as the Dark Age. So let's complete the sentence next, so, After the decline of the Mycenaean civilization, Ancient Greece entered the period of time known as the what? What is that period of time known as? So at this point, pause the video, and then complete that sentence. Okay. Let's see if you got that one right. So after the decline of the Mycenaean civilization, Ancient Greece entered the period of time known as the Dark Age. Great start my friends. Now, let's continue, so Ancient Greece, it emerged from its Dark Age in around 800 BCE and the Greeks, they started trading more with the outside world. And they held the very first Olympic Games in 776 BCE in the city of Olympia. In the sixth century, democracy began to be developed in Athens. And Ancient Greece's Golden Age came following the remarkable and unlikely triumphs over the Persian Empire, which unsuccessfully tried to subjugate the region over the course of two invasions. So there were two invasions by the Persian Empire. And the first invasion was led by King Darius with the second one led by his son around 10 years later. Right, let's answer this question. So after the end of the Dark Age, Ancient Greece held its very first Olympic Games. When and where were they held? So you got to tell me when they were held and where they were held. So in what city, were the Olympic Games held? And you can use this sentence starter to have a go. So you can say the first Olympic Games were held in... Remember you got to tell me when it was and then where it happened. So at this point pause the video and complete that task. Okay. Let's see if you got that one right. So you needed the date, you needed the year and you needed a place. So after the end of the Dark Age, Ancient Greece held its first Olympic Games, when and where were they held? So the first Olympic Games were held in 776 BCE in the city of Olympia. Awesome job. Okay, I'm going to leave it up so that you can take it against your own. Awesome job. Remember to keep checking your work. If you make a mistake, that's totally fine. I'm going to give you a chance to correct it. So let's move on to the very first Olympic Games. Now the Ancient Greeks, they love sports and they held the first recorded Olympic Games in the city-state of Olympia. And every four years around 50,000 people came from all over the Greek world to watch and take part. And the ancient games were also a religious festival held in honour of Zeus, who was the King of the Gods. And a truce was called between any warring state, any warring city-states during the Olympics so that everyone could take part. So if any city-states were at war with each other, a truce would be called and for that time, for the time being during the Olympics, they would not be at war and that allowed them to send athletes to the games. So let's have a look at this question. The Olympic Games were held in honour of which God? Was it in honour of Athena? Was it in honour of Hades? Was it in honour of Poseidon, the King of the sea, the God of the sea? Or was it held in honour of Zeus the King of the Gods. So the Olympic Games were held in honour of which God? Is it A, B, C, or D? Have a think, and have a go. Pause the video and complete that task. Okay. Let's have a look and see if you got the answer right. The Olympic Games were held in honour of Zeus. Awesome job, my friends. Well done. And remember they were held in the city of Olympia around every four years, just like the modern Olympics. So let's go, let's continue. So we know about the Dark Age, it ended around 800 BCE. Then we had the very first Olympics in 776 BCE. So let's continue on to democracy in Athens. Leading up to Ancient Greece's Golden Age, Athens began to develop a new model of government known as democracy. And derived from the Greek word, demos, meaning people and Kratos, meaning power, this form of government gave power to the people. And the very first democratic government was headed by a man named Pericles. And Pericles was a statesman, he was an orator and he was a general. Under Athenian democracy, citizens could vote on important issues and a lottery would decide who would sit each year on a council. And a council of people deliberated the laws. However, not all people had a say, women, slaves and foreigners, people who were not born in Athens, were not considered citizens, and they could not vote. Who could not vote in Athenian democracy? I literally just told you, so if you were paying attention you're going to get this one right. So have a look at the answer. You can say in Athenian democracy only citizens could vote. This meant that who could not vote in a Athenian democracy? Have a think, pause the video and complete that task. Okay. Let's see, who couldn't vote in Athenian democracy? The answer was, in Athenian democracy, only citizens could vote. This meant that women, slaves and foreigners were not allowed to vote. So again at this point, I'm going to leave it up so that you can compare it against your own answer. Awesome job my friends. Let's continue. Now. Let's have a look at the next part and it's the Persian invasions. So the Persian Empire led by King Darius the First invaded the Greek mainland in around 492 BCE. And at the time the Persian Empire was the largest and most powerful empire in the entire world, controlling land all the way from Egypt and all the way to India. So this is the Persian Empire and you can see how big it was. It was a really powerful empire. Now the Greeks that were under the control, were known as the Ionians and they revolted against the Persian rule. And they asked for help from the Greek city-states, including Athens. And Athens and other city-states, they sent ships and weapons, but the revolt was quickly subdued. The Persians defeated the Ionians. Now to punish the Greeks for assisting the Ionians Darius decided to invade the mainland. This is the mainland here. Was that a good choice? Well, Darius gathered a huge army, which vastly outnumbered the Greeks. But the Persians underestimated the fighting capability of the Greeks and at the Battle of Marathon, the army of Athens defeated the Greeks. The army of Athens defeated the Persians, my apologies. And after the battle, the Athenian army ran the 25 miles back to Athens in order to prevent the Persians from attacking the city. And this is said to be the origin of the marathon running race, and a marathon is around 26 miles long. So let's have a look at this one. So for each sentence here, what you got to do is you've got to write the missing words, and the missing words could be Athens, it could be Darius, or it could be Ionians. So have a think, where are all those words going to go? Once you think you've got it, write them down and then read them back to see if it makes sense. So at this point, pause the video and complete this task. Okay, let's check. Are you ready? So, A, the Persian Empire led by King Darius invaded the Greek mainland in 492 BCE. B, the Ionians revolted against Persian rule and asked the Greek city-states, including Athens for help. Awesome job my friends. I'm going to leave it up so that you can check the answer. Okay, let's move on. Now. That was the first invasion by the Persians. They came back for more. So 10 years later in 480 BCE, the son of Darius I, King Xerxes decided to get his revenge on the Greeks. And he amassed another huge army of over 200,000 soldiers. And around 1000 warships and the Persians defeated the King Leonidas and the Spartans at the battle of Thermopylae before marching onto Athens. Now, when they got to Athens, the Persians they found, the city deserted, everybody had left and they had burnt it to the ground. They then met the Athenian fleet off the coast by the island of Salamis And the Athenians defeated the Persians again by ramming their triremes, their ships, into the much larger Persian ships, sinking many of them. The Athenians they sounded defeat of the Persians causing Xerxes to retreat back to Persia. And there was never a threat from them again. These are the triremes that the Greeks rammed into the Persian ships. So let's look at this task. So in this task we've got to write whether these statements are true or they are false. So I'm going to read them to you and you need to decide whether they're true or false. So A, in 480 BCE King Darius I returned to invade the Greek mainland. Is that true? Or is that false? B, King Leonidas and the Spartans defeated the Persians at the battle of Thermopylae. And C, at the Battle of Salamis, the Athenians defeated the Persian fleet by ramming their triremes into the much larger Persian ships. So are those statements true or false? Have a go and complete that task. So pause the video. Okay, let's see which of those statements are true or false. Okay, So in 480 BCE, King Darius I returned to invade the Greek mainland, that is false. Remember that it was Xerxes, King Darius' son, who invaded Greece in 480 BCE. B, King Leonidas and the Spartans defeated the Persians at the Battle of Thermopylae, that is false. The Spartans, led by King Leonidas, they were defeated by the Persians at the Battle of Thermopylae. And C, at the Battle of Salamis, the Athenians defeated the Persian fleet by ramming the triremes into the larger Persian ships. That is true. Despite boasting a much larger fleet, the Persians, they were defeated at the Battle of Salamis, forcing Xerxes to retreat all the way back to Persia. Okay, at this point I'm going to leave the answers up so that you can check your own. Okay, let's continue. Let's move on from the Persian invasions now. So let's move on to Greece's culture achievements. Now following the defeat of the Persians Ancient Greece underwent a time of remarkable cultural growth. Important advances were made in maths, in science and art. And we still use some of the ideas developed by the Ancient Greeks during this time. And one of the greatest inventions of the Ancient Greeks was drama. It evolved out of religious ritual and it probably proved to be really popular. And it was a really enduring creation because we still use drama to this day. Greeks would flock to the theatres carved into hillsides, to watch the latest plays, comedies, tragedies, and satires. And satires are plays that challenge the way we think. Only men could perform in these plays. And they played both women and men. Today's TV and films have their origins in Greek culture, in Greek theatre, with plays written by dramatists such as Aeschylus, Aristophanes and Euripides are still performed to this day. Now the ancient Greeks, they also made great advances in architecture, and they used math in their architecture, carefully measuring angles, shapes, and sizes to create really grand stone buildings. Many of which have survived to the present day, just like the Parthenon on the Acropolis in Athens. Now, the Greeks, they built great temples to honour their many gods. Marble sculptures of brave heroes decorated everything with brightly coloured paints. Now, the Parthenon, which as I told you was dedicated to the Goddess Athena was built during the Golden Age. At the peak of Athens' power. Construction of the Parthenon began in 447 BCE finishing in 432 BCE. And the Parthenon is regarded as an endurance symbol of Ancient Greece, and a reminder of their power, of their great achievements during the Greek Golden Age. So let's have a look at this sentence. You've got to complete the sentence and you've got three words that you got to put in. So the three words are Athens, Parthenon and Athena So where do you think those words might go? Have a think, write them down, complete that task, Okay, let's have a look, are you ready? Where do those words go? So we got the Parthenon dedicated to the Goddess Athena, was built in the city-state of Athens. So you've got Parthenon, you've got Athena and then you've got Athens Awesome job my friends. I'm going to put it up so that you can check your own answer. Okay let's continue. Now, during the Ancient Greece's Golden Age, the Greeks developed and refined their alphabet. So this is an example of the Greek alphabet. Now the English alphabet is based on the Greek alphabet and much of the English language is rooted in this ancient language. Lastly, the Golden Age gave us the philosopher, Socrates, who steered philosophy in the direction of morals, logic, and ethics. And his lines of inquiry are influential to the present day. So when did Ancient Greece's Golden Age end? Well, the end of Greece's Golden Age came, began after the conclusion of the Peloponnesian wars between Athens and Sparta, which happened between 431 BCE to 404 BCE. Sparta emerged victorious from this war. And they became the most powerful city-state in the whole of Greece. Athens was also ravaged by plague between 430 and 427 BCE. And as chronicled by the Athenian historian and general Thucydides, this event killed around a third of the city's population. Greece's Golden Age ended in around 323 BCE after the death of Alexander the Great who was the King of Macedon. Having conquered much of the known world a new era known as the Hellenistic period began. And guys that is the end of the lesson. So great work today, it's now time to complete your end of lesson quiz. And if you'd like to please ask your parent or carer to show your work. They can do it on Instagram, they can do it on Facebook, they can do it on Twitter. They've got to tag @OakNational with the hashtag, #LearnwithOak. So if there's any work that you'd like to be shared, you can ask your parent or carer to do it for you. Awesome job guys. Well done. I'm really proud of all of your efforts today and I hope I shall see you in our next lesson. Goodbye.

In this lesson, we will learn about the development of democracy in Athens, exploring the impact this had on the city's development, and how it became an enduring legacy of Ancient Greece to the rest of the world.

What was Athenian democracy?

﻿Hello there, my friends, and welcome to the fourth lesson, as you know, of Ancient Greece. My name is Mr. Pedroza and in this lesson, we're going to have a look at the following question. So the question is, what was Athenian democracy? Let's have a look at the lesson structure for today. So we're going to begin with the star words, we're going to try some key vocabulary, and then we're going to have a look at the Solonian Constitution which was the beginnings of Athenian democracy. Then we'll have a look at how is Athenian democracy structured, how did it work. We'll have a look at the very end, the legacy of Athenian democracy. And then we have your end of lesson quiz as always. Things that you're going to need in this lesson, you're going to need your exercise book or paper, you need a pencil or a pen, and then you're going to need a ruler. So if you haven't got those things, go and get them now. Okay, let's begin with the key vocabulary. Let's have a look at the star words. We've got five, we've got constitution, debt, assembly, council, and vote. And the constitution is a set of basic laws by which a nation, a state, or another organisation is governed. Then we've got debt. And debt is something owed to another person. Something owed to another person is called debt. Then we've got an assembly. An assembly is a group of people gathered together, usually for a specific purpose. Next, we've got a council. And a council is a group of persons gathered together to discuss or to make decisions about public matters. Next, we've got votes. And a vote is a formal expression of choice in an election or of a group decision. So let's begin with the Solonian Constitution. So in this lesson, we're going to be studying the origins of democracy in the city of Athens, which happened around 508 BCE. But let's recap what happened before that. So remember that the first Greek civilization, the first great Greek civilization, the Minoans, they emerged on the island of Crete in around 2200 BCE. And after the Minoans came the Mycenaean civilization, whose centre of power was the city of Mycenae on the mainland. And then after the decline of the Mycenaeans, there was a period of time known as the Dark Age. Remember that this period of time was known as the Dark Age because nobody knows about what happened and all written language and art seemed to have disappeared. After Ancient Greece emerged from this Dark Age, then we had the very first Olympics in the city of Olympia in 776 BCE. And then between 594 BCE and 593 BCE, in Athens, the ruler Solon laid the foundation for democracy. And then finally coinciding with the beginning of Ancient Greece's Golden Age, democracy was established in the city of Athens in around 508 BCE. So that's when democracy really came to be in Athens. And then of course after that, we have the first invasion of Greece by the King Darius the First of Persia. Now let's complete the sentence. Democracy was established in the city of Athens in around what dates? In which year was democracy established in the city of Athens? So at this point, pause the video and complete that task. Okay, let's have a look. First question, democracy was established in the city of Athens in around 508 BCE. Awesome job, my friends! Great start. So let's have a look at the Solonian Constitution. So, let's learn about the years prior to the establishment of democracy in 508 BCE. So this Solon was an Athenian statesman, lawmaker, and he was a poet. And he is credited with restructuring the social and political organisation of Athens, and thereby laying the foundations for Athenian democracy. And Solon, he was appointed ruler of Athens in around 594 BCE, following his success as a commander of Athens' army against the war against the city state of Megara. And during Solon's time in power, the city of Athens faced economic problems as well as growing discontent of their ownership of farmland which had become the precept of a small number of wealthy and powerful people. Now, when was Solon appointed ruler of Athens? Was it, A, was it 594 BCE? Was it, B, was it 549 BCE? Was it, C, 59 BCE? Or was it, D, 54 BCE? When was Solon appointed ruler of Athens? Is it A, B, C, or D? Have a go, pause the video and compete that task. Okay, let's check the answer. When was he appointed ruler of Athens? It was, A, it was 594 BCE. So Solon was appointed the ruler of Athens in 594 BCE. Awesome job, my friends. Well done. Now during this time, during Solon's time in power, people were forced to work for landowners paying them 1/6th of all of their crops or even becoming their slaves if they couldn't pay their debts. So Solon proposed to cancel everybody's debt, where those people who owed to somebody else they would be given the right to earn the land which they worked. Solon also reformed the Athenian class system, creating four different social groups according to their agricultural production. So the more crops that you produce, the more power you had under his reforms. And what this did was this helped to reduce the influence and the power of the elites, the tiny group of people who had controlled the city up to then. Solon's reforms became known as the Solonian Constitution, and along with some judicial reforms, which in theory made everybody equal in the eyes of the law, these became the first steps towards the development of democracy. Now, let's have a look at this question. So what did Solon propose to cancel as part of his reforms? So in the Solonian Constitution, Solon proposed to cancel something. What did he propose to cancel? So in your answer you could say, "As part of his reforms, Solon proposed to cancel..." What did he propose to cancel? Pause the video and complete that task. Okay, let's have a look. Are you ready? What did he propose to cancel? So, what Solon proposed to cancel as part of his reforms? It was, of course, debts. So as part of his reforms, Solon proposed to cancel all debts, as well as allowing people to earn the land they worked. So that would be the perfect answer to that question. Okay, I'm going to put it up so that you can check it against your own. Great job, my friends. Okay, so. The Solonian Constitution was the beginning of democracy in Athens. Now in his work titled, "The Constitution of the Athenians," Aristotle, the philosopher, criticised Solon's reforms as being too vague. Aristotle's work is the basis for much of what we know about Athenian democracy. And the rich elite who had been in power in Athens, were not supportive of Solon's reforms either. And this allowed the tyrant, Peisistratos, to seize power on three different occasions. Nevertheless, Solon did reduce the dominance of the Athenian aristocracy, and he improved the participation of ordinary citizens in the political arena. Before Solon, power had just rested on the elite. After Solon's constitution, as reforms, that power was extended to more and more of Athens' citizens. So let's have a look at the next one. How was Athenian democracy structured? So, we move on from the rule of Solon, who laid the foundation for democracy, and we're going to move up to 508 BCE, which was when democracy was really established in Athens. So the next step in Athens' development of democracy came in 508 BCE. And the tyrant, we just mentioned him, the tyrant Peisistratos' son, Cleisthenes, he championed a radical political reform in 508 and 507 BCE which ushered in the Athenian democratic constitution. And Cleisthenes' reforms, known as demokratia or rule by the people, was comprised of three separate institutions. So this is Athenian democracy, and it was made up of three bodies. So you've got the Ekklesia, which is the assembly, which was in charge of writing the laws. Then we've got the Boule, which is the council. And the council was in charge of everyday running of government. And then we have the Dikasteria, which were the courts. And the courts, they handled lawsuits and trials. So in Athenian democracy, there were three bodies. There was the Ekklesia, the Boule, and the Dikasteria. So who could could vote in Athenian democracy? Well, citizens could vote for the law. And democracy in Athens was very direct. What this meant is that all citizens voted on all the laws rather than vote for representatives. Each citizen was expected to vote for each law that was passed. And Athenians, they did have officials to run the government but most of them were chosen by a lottery. So every citizen had the chance, regardless of their popularity or wealth to become a member of the government. A few key positions were voted on such as the treasurer, who was in control of taxation, and the 10 generals who ran the army. So you might say, who could vote? Well, in order to vote, you had to be a citizen. However, not everybody who lived in Athens was a citizen. Only men who had completed their military training counted as citizens. Therefore, Athenian democracy excluded women, excluded slaves, and excluded the poor. So, who was considered a citizen in Athenian democracy? So in Athenian democracy, who was considered a citizen? Who was the only people, who was the only group of people who were allowed to vote? Have a think, have a go. Pause the video and complete this task. Okay, let's have a look. Do you remember who were the only group of people who were considered citizens and therefore given the right to vote in Athenian democracy? Now, who was considered a citizen in Athenian democracy? The answer was, of course, only men who have completed their military training were counted as citizens. Therefore women, slaves, and the poor, they weren't citizens and they weren't allowed to vote. Not very fair. Again, I'm going to leave the answer up so that you can check it against your own. Okay, let's move on. So we know that there were three institutions which made up Athenian democracy. Do you remember all three of them? We had, the first one was the Ekklesia, good job! The Ekklesia was the assembly. Then we have the Boule, and then we have the Dikasteria, the courts. So let's learn about each one beginning with the Ekklesia. So the Ekklesia or assembly, was the sovereign governing body of Athens and anyone considered a citizen could attend the meetings of the Ekklesia. And there were around 40 times, there were around 40 meetings each year, and they met on a hillside auditorium called the Pnyx. Now at these meetings, the Ekklesia made decisions about war and foreign policy. So how Athens treated, how Athens dealt with other city states and empires. Now decisions were also made about different laws and they could check, the Ekklesia could also check the behaviour of government officials. Now the Ekklesia made decisions by a majority vote. So the laws that were passed had to have a certain number of votes. The Ekklesia was also really powerful and they had the power to ostracise. This meant that the Ekklesia could expel a citizen from Athens for 10 years if it was deemed necessary. So the Ekklesia had the power to say to any citizen, you can't be in Athens for 10 years on the penalty of death. So let's write these statements. Let's write whether these statements are true or false. So, A, "Anybody, including women and slaves, could attend the meetings of the Ekklesia." Is that true or is that false? And then, B, "The Ekklesia met around 40 times a year." Is that true or is that false? Have a think, have a go. Pause the video and then complete this task. Okay, let's check and see whether those answers are true or false. So, "Anybody including women and slaves could attend the meetings of the Ekklesia," that is false. Remember, only citizens could attend the meetings of the Ekklesia. Remember that only men who have completed their military training were considered to be citizens. Therefor women, slaves and the poor, they cannot attend the meetings. And then, B, "The Ekklesia met around 40 times a year," that is true. So again, I'm going to leave the answers up so that you can check them against your own. Okay, let's move on to the next body, the next institution of Athenian democracy, which is the Boule. So we've got the Ekklesia, now we've got the Boule. The second important institution was the Boule, which is also known as the Council of 500. You might think, oh why is it known as the Council of 500? Well, the Boule was a group of 500 men. That's the reason why it's called the Council of 500. So, the Boule was a group of 500 men, and 50 were chosen from each of the 10 Athenian tribes. And these were chosen by lottery. And these men served on the council for just one year. And unlike the Ekklesia, the Boule, they met every single day. And they did most of the hands-on work of governance. The Boule's main function was to decide what matters would come before the Ekklesia. And so in this way, the 500 members of the Boule dictated how the entire democracy would work. They decided what laws were important to be discussed by the Ekklesia. So let's answer this question. So in terms of how often they met, what was different about the Boule compared to the Ekklesia? So you know that the Boule met every single day, why is that different to the Ekklesia? How often did the Ekklesia meet? Do you remember that? Okay, you could use this sentence to answer. So, the Boule was different to the Ekklesia as... What was different about how often those two bodies met? So yeah, at this point, pause the video and complete this task. Okay, let's have a look and see what the answer was. So in terms of how often they met, what was different about the Boule compared to the Ekklesia? The perfect answer would be, the Boule was different to the Ekklesia as they met every day, unlike the Ekklesia which only met around 40 times a year. So that would be a really good answer to that question. Again, I'm going to leave it up so that you can check it against your own. Okay, let's move on. So we've got the Ekklesia, we've got the Boule, let's have a look at the third institution which was the Dikasteria. And the Dikasteria was known as the popular courts. And every day, around 500 men were appointed and they were paid for their work on the Dikasteria. And anybody elected to the Dikasteria had to be older than 30. That means, oh I could have served. I'm over 30. Now, there were no police in Athens. So it was the demos themselves, it was the people, who brought court cases, argued for the prosecution and the defence. And they delivered verdicts and sentences by majority rule. And Athenians often used the Dikasteria to settle scores against their enemies. They often used the Dikasteria to punish or to embarrass those people who they didn't like. Hmm, sounds very scary. Now let's have a look at this task. In this task, I've got some sentences. They are missing some key words. The key words or numbers or figures could be 30, you've got courts, and then you've got 500. So where do you think those key words or numbers go? Have a think, write the sentences out, and then once you're done, read them to see if they makes sense. So at this point, pause the video and complete this task. Okay, let's have a look and see what the answers were. Ready? So the Dikasteria were known as the popular courts and they were made up around 500 men. So everybody, every day, 500 men were elected to the Dikasteria. Anybody elected to the Dikasteria had to be over the age of 30. Awesome job, my friends. Well done. I'm going to leave it up so you can check your answer. Okay, let's move on. So what's the legacy of Athenian democracy? Well, Athenian ideas about democracy soon began to spread to other city states. And today, most governments around the world claim to practise some form of democracy. They claim to practise some form of government in which power rests with the people. And Athenian democracy, however, began to wane as the Macedonian kingdom gained control of the Greek mainland under King Phillip the Second, and later under his son, Alexander the Great. So the Athenian experiment with democracy didn't last very long but it certainly became very influential even to the present day. And guys, that is the end of lesson. So, great work today. Awesome job. It's now time as always, you know what I'm going to say to you, it's time to complete your end of lesson quiz. And if you'd like to, please ask your parent or carer to share your work. They can do it on Instagram, they can do it on Facebook, they can do it on Twitter. They could tag @OakNational, and they could use the #LearnWithOak. So if there's anything that you would like to be shared, then please ask your parent or carers to do that for you. And that is the end of the lesson. Thank you so much for everything. And I hope to see you in our next one. Goodbye, my friends.

In this lesson, we will explore the religious beliefs of the Ancient Greeks.

What did the Ancient Greeks believe in?

﻿Hello my friends, and welcome to the fifth lesson on the history of Ancient Greece. My name is Mr. Pedroza and in this lesson, we're going to tackle the following question. So the question is, what do the Ancient Greeks believe in? In this lesson, we're going to talk about Ancient Greek religion and we're going to talk about the Ancient Greek gods and goddesses. How exciting? Let's have a look at the lesson structure. So we going to begin with the star words. I'll share some key vocabulary, then we're going to talk about myths and what they were and why they were useful? And then we'll talk about who are the Olympians. The next question would be, what were Greek temples like? At the very end, we're going to talk about what did the Ancient Greeks believe about the afterlife? And then we'll do an of lesson quiz as always. Things you're going to need in this lesson, you're going to need an exercise book or paper, need a pencil or pen and you need a ruler. So if you haven't got those things, go and get them now. Awesome job guys, very speedy. Now, let's come back at key star words. We've got five. We got myth, god, goddess, underworld and afterlife. And a myth is a story or a group of stories that form part of the traditional knowledge of a society. Next, we've got god and a god is a being that is worshipped and believed to have special powers of a nature or life. A goddess it's just a female god. The underworld is an imaginary world beneath the earth surface. where dead people and spirits live. And the afterlife is life after death. Now, let's begin with myths. What are myths? Well, mess were created by early civilizations to make sense of things happening in the natural world around them. These early civilizations, did not have the scientific knowledge that we have today. Therefore myths were a way of explaining the unexplainable. And the Ancient Greeks often use myths as a way of understanding their world. It could be faced from lightning, to rain, to flooding, could be love, war and death. Myths were shared through storytelling and they could be myths about heroes and heroines. It could be myths about missing mythical creatures and monsters to gods and goddesses. There was also an astronomical element to these myths because Ancient Greeks believed that the stories were sometimes written in the stars. Now complete the sentence. So the Ancient Greeks use myths in order to understand the. What did the Ancient Greeks use myths to better understand? At this point, pause the video and complete the sentence. Okay, let's look at the answer, the first task. So the Ancient Greeks use myths in order to understand the world. Remember that they didn't have the scientific knowledge that we have now. So therefore they use myths in order to better understand the world. The Greeks believe that god's just like god Zeus and goddesses watch over them. And these gods were a bit like humans, but they let forever, they were immortal and they were much more powerful. And these gods were set to have human emotions. It could be, they could feel love, they could feel anger, they could also feel jealousy. And these gods the not always behave themselves. The Greeks thought the gods live high above Mount Olympus in a palace in the clouds. And from here, the gods could keep an eye on life below. From time to time, they would interfere in what was going on. They could send storms if they were angry or they could decide who would be victorious in a war. Sometimes they even play tricks on humans. Now let's look at this question. So why did Ancient Greeks believe that the gods lived? So the Ancient Greeks believed that the gods lived. Where did they think they lived? Pause the video and complete that task. Okay, let's have the answer to this question. The Ancient Greeks believed that the gods lived high above Mount Olympus in a palace and the clouds. Awesome job my friends. Well done. Let's now were the Olympians? In the Ancient Greek world, the 12 great gods and goddesses of the Greeks were referred to as the 12 Olympians. We've got the 12 Olympians there, let's go through them. So we got Dionysus. My apologies. we got Dionysus, we got Hermes, we have Apollo, we have Zeus, we have Ares, we have Artemis, we have Poseidon, we have Demeter, we have of Hades, we have Athena, we have Hera and we have Aphrodite. So all those 12, were known as the Olympians. and all 12 Olympians had a home on Mount Olympus. And that was where that were most commonly found. The name of this part of a group of gods and goddesses comes from Mount Olympus where they always met to discuss matters. So, how many Olympians were there? Were there two Olympians? Were they 12 Olympians? Were they 22 Olympians? Or there were 122 Olympians? My goodness, that would be a lot of Ancient Greek gods and goddesses. So, which is the right answer? A, B, C or D. Have a think. Pause the video and complete that task. K. Let's look at the right answer. How many Olympians were there? It was of course 12. There were 12 Ancient Greek gods and goddesses known as the Olympians. Remember that they live in a palace above Mount Olympus, and that's where they met and that's where they lived. So let's now look at the next one. There are 12 Olympians, but we're going to focus on just four of them. And we're going to begin with Zeus. And Zeus had two brothers called Poseidon and Hades. And he was considered to be the most powerful of all of the gods. He was known as the god of the sky and he was the king of Olympus which is the home of the gods. And as a child, Zeus had to escape from his father who had eaten his other children as he had been warned that one of them would take his friend and later on Zeus defeated his dad and he became a god. Now, Zeus's temper affected the weather and he threw thunderbolts when he was unhappy. Zeus was the god of all gods and he had the power to change the shape and form. And Ancient Greece thought of Zeus as powerful, strong but unpredictable. And he had many children and he was married to Hera who was another goddess. All right, let's look at this one. So what did Zeus do when he was unhappy? So in answer you can say, when he was unhappy, Zeus. What did he do? Pause the video and complete that task. Okay, let's look at the answer to that. What did Zeus do when he was unhappy? When he was unhappy, Zeus threw thunderbolts. As the god of the sky, Zeus temper affected the weather. So remember whenever he was angry, whenever Zeus was double crossed, he would throw thunderbolts. What an awesome power to have? At this point, I want to make it really big so that you can compare your answers against mine. Okay, let's continue onto the next one. So, now let's read about Zeus now. Let's move on to Poseidon. Poseidon was the god of the sea. He was ruler of the waves and he was the brother of Zeus and Hades. Now Poseidon was also the god of earthquakes. He was said to have blue hair and a long beard. And he lived in a beautiful palace under the sea. Poseidon carried a trident, which is a three folk. And he used this in order to create earthquakes and control the sea. Poseidon also rode on a golden chariot. So let's have a look at these statements and we're going to decide whether they're true or false. So the first one is, Poseidon was the god of the sky and the king Olympus. Is that true or false? B, Poseidon lived in a beautiful palace under the seas. And C, Poseidon carried a trident which he used to stop earthquakes and control the seas. Is that true or is that false? So at this point pause the video, decides which one of those that's true or false. Have a go. Okay, let's check. Which of these statements is true or false. So number one, Poseidon was the god of the sky and the king Olympus. That's false. Remember that Poseidon's brother Zeus was the god of the sky and he was the king of Olympus. Poseidon was the god of the sea and earthquakes. B, Poseidon lived in a beautiful palace under the seas. That is true. And then C, Poseidon carried a trident, which he used to start earth quakes and control the seas. That is also true. So, I am going to leave the answer so that you can check your own. Okay, let's move on to the next brother. So we got Zeus, we got his brother Poseidon, next one, we going to look at Hades . So we've got the brothers Zeus, Poseidon and Hades were then considered to be the most important gods of all. Zeus, he was the strongest and he was the wisest of three and he ruled over the earth. Poseidon ruled the seas. Hades, he ruled the underworld which was the world of the dead, scary. Now Hades was not particularly liked by the other gods. And he was really feared by humans because his duty was to make sure that the dead stayed in the underworld forever. Hades was married to Persephone who was the queen of the dead. And he had dark hair and he had the dark beard and he drove a chariot drawn by four dark horses. Hades was guarded by a three-headed dog named Cerberus, whoa! Lets look at this one. True or false. Hades was protected by a three-headed tiger named Cerberus. Is that true? Or is that false? Have a think, pause the video and complete that task. Okay, let's have a look and answer to this one. He's definitely protected by three heads of something, but wasn't a three-headed tiger? Hades was protected by a three-headed tiger named Cerberus. Is that true or is that false? That is false. Cerberus was a three-headed dog, not a tiger. Now let's move on to Athena. And Athena was the daughter of Zeus. And she had a really unusual birth. She was born fully grown out of his head and she was wearing her full armour. That is a strange birth. Now, Athena was seen as the goddess wisdom and strategy and has symbol was an owl which is the wisest of all the birds. Now Athena is usually picture wearing a bracelet, wearing a helmet and holding a shield. And Athena was the protector of the city of Athens and the great Parthenon, which is built on top of the Acropolis in Athens, was built in her honour. Latin says that the city got its name after Athena won a contest against Poseidon by offering the city citizens and olive tree, which they could use a source of food and firewood. Let's answer the question. So what was unusual... What's a little bit strange about Athens's birth? So you could say, Athens's birth was unusual because. she'd had a really strange birth. What was unusual about it? So at this point, pause the video and complete that task. Okay, let's not look at the answer to this question. I find it very unusual the way she was born. What was unusual about Athena's birth? Well, Athena's birth was unusual because as said, she was born straight after her father Zeus head. Sh was born fully grown. wearing her full armour. That is a strange birth. I'm going to leave the answer out so that you can compare it against your own. Okay. Let's move on. What were Ancient Greek temples like? Now the Greeks built temples to the gods and goddesses. Sometimes posts were small while others were grand and beautiful, and had amazing decorations. Every city in Greek, every city in Ancient Greece had the patron god or goddess. People believe that patron gods protect them from harm. And when people needed the help from the gods, they went to the temple to pray. They went if they were feeling sick, maybe they were going on a journey and they were feeling worried or to pray for a good harvest. So that's where some of the reasons why Ancient Greece prayed to that gods. And to please the gods, to keep them happy, people often brought gifts of money, flowers, food and drink. And they offer these gifts as sacrifices. Animals like cattle were sometimes killed as sacrifices too. And the people would often feast on the rest of the meat. Let's complete the sentence. Every city had a mh god or goddess. People to their gods when they need the help and then made to please them. So, which words go where? Have a thing, where do you think offerings, patron or prayed go. Once you think you've got that, write it out, complete the sentence, and then read it back to see if it makes sense. So at this point what I want you to do, is we need to pause the video and complete that task. Okay, let's have a look and see how we completed our sentence. So every city have a patron god or goddess. People pray to their god when they need help and they made offerings to please them. So we've got patron, prayed and offerings. I'll leave the answer up for you to check against your own. Okay, let's have look at the next part now. So, what did the Ancient Greeks believe about the afterlife? The Greeks believed that when he died, your soul travelled to a place called the underworld which was an underground kingdom ruled by the god of death, Hades. And Hades lived in the underworld rather than on Mount Olympus with the other gods. Remember that Hades was the brother of Zeus and Poseidon. And to reach the underworld, that souls will have to cross the river known as the River Styx and a really grumpy ferry man called Charon would take them across, but only if they paid him. And Ancient Greeks would place a coin in the mouth of that debt to pay Charon for his crossing. And once the soul had made the crossing across the River Styx, three judges will decide on your fate. If you had lived a good life, you could live in a tonne of happiness in the Elysian Fields. If you had led a bad life, you were sent to Tartarus, a horrible pit where the souls will be tortured for eternity. How scary. Now, let's two questions to finish up. So we have, which river did dead have to cross in order to each the underworld? And B, why did the Ancient Greeks put a coin in the mouth of their dead? That's a strange practise, but there was a reason as to why they did that. And that you have my two sentence prompts. You could have for A you can say, in order to reach the underworld. What the people have to cross? And B, you can say Ancient Greeks put a coin in the mouth of the that. why did they do that? So at this point, pause the video and complete this task. Make sure you're writing in full sentences. Okay, let's start like the answer to those questions already. So, which river did the dead have to cross in order to reach the underworld? In order to reach the underworld, the dead had to cross River Styx. Remember River Styx has to be in capital letters because is the name of a place. Is a name of a river. B, why did Ancient Greeks put a coin in the mouth of their dead? Again that seems really weird, but there was a reason. The Ancient Greeks put a coin in the mouth of their dead, so that they could pay the ferryman Charon to transport them across the River Styx. If you didn't pay him, he will not transport you to the other side. Sad times. Now, I'm going to leave it up so that you can check your answers. My friends, that is the end of another great lesson. So great work today. Well done. It's now time to complete your end of lesson quiz. And if you'd like to, as always, please ask your parent or carer to share your work. They can do on Instagram, they can do on Facebook they can do on Twitter. They're got to tag @OakNational, and they're going to use #LearnwithOak. But, remember if there is any anyone that you want to share, you have to ask your parent or carer to do it for you. Awesome job guys. Well done. I can't wait until we see each other in our next lesson. Goodbye for now.

In this lesson, we will learn about Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, three Ancient Greek philosophers whose thinking remains influential to this day.

Who were the Ancient Greek philosophers?

﻿Hello there, my friends and welcome to the sixth lesson in this unit on ancient Greece. My name is Mr. Pedroza, and in this lesson, we're going to have a look at the following question. So the question is who were the Ancient Greek philosophers? Now let's look at the lesson structure. We'll begin with the star words, and then we're going to have look at what is philosophy? And we're going to have a look at who was Socrates? Who was Plato? Followed by who was Aristotle? And all of those philosophers are connected to each other. And then, at the very end is your end of lesson quiz. Things that you're going to need in this lesson. You'll need your exercise book or paper. You're going to need your pencil or your pen, and you're going to need a ruler. If you haven't got those things, go and get them now. Okay, let's take a look at the key star words for today. So we've got six of them. We've got philosophy, philosopher, debate, dialogue, academy and geometry. Let's begin with philosophy. So philosophy is the study of the nature of life, truth, knowledge, and other important human matters. A philosopher is somebody who studies philosophy, and the word philosopher comes from an Ancient Greek word that means a lover of wisdom. Next one, we got debate, and a debate is a discussion between two people or groups who disagree on an important subject. And a debate usually takes place in a formal meeting or gathering. Next one, we got dialogue, and a dialogue is a conversation that is written for a book, a play, or a film. Next one, we got academy. An academy is a school that offers special training. Last, we got geometry, and geometry is an area of mathematics concerned with the study of shapes and objects. So let's begin with what is philosophy? Now the Ancient Greeks thought deeply about the world and about people, and they asked big questions like, what is a good life? And how can we know anything for sure? Their ideas shaped the way that we think and learn today. Asking big questions about the world like this is known as philosophy, and we can define philosophy as the study of nature of life, truth, knowledge and other important matters. Now let's complete the sentence. So the study of nature, life, truth, knowledge and other important matters is known as? What is that known as? What is that word that encompasses the study of all of those things? So at this point, what I want you to do is pause the video and complete that task. Okay, let's have a look. Easy peasy to start one with. The study of nature, life, truth, knowledge and other important matters is known as philosophy. Awesome job, my friends. Well done. Let's move on. So who was Socrates? Now, known as the father of Western philosophy, Socrates was one of Ancient Greece's greatest philosophers. He studied politics and morality by asking lots and lots of questions, and his style became known as the Socratic Method. Socrates believed that questions should lead to more questions rather than answers. And using this approach, he thought would result in deep thinking. Socrates believed that discussion, debate, and argument could help people to understand really difficult issues, and he believed that knowledge came from asking questions such as who, what, where, when, why and how? But let's answer this question. What is Socrates known as? In your answer, you can say Socrates is known as... What is Socrates known as? Have a think, pause the video, and complete that sentence there. Repeat that question there. Okay, let's have a look. Let's see if you answered my question. So what is Socrates known as? You could say Socrates is known as the father of Western philosophy. Awesome job, my friends. Now let's learn a little bit more about Socrates. So Socrates, he had a belief in the importance of discussion, debate, and argument, and those ideas were really radical ideas when he was alive. Greek city-states tended to be ruled by kings, oligarchs and tyrants, and you were not supposed to question these people, and certainly not the gods. Now Socrates was also a critic of democracy, because he believed that citizens had to be well-educated in order to make rational voting decisions. Some of the powerful people in Ancient Greece did not like Socrates' ideas. They thought he was corrupting the minds of young Athenians, people from Athens. And as a result, he was arrested, he was put on trial, and when found guilty, he was sentenced to death by his enemies. And there, in this picture, Socrates is drinking poison because that was his punishment. He was sentenced to death, and he had to kill himself by drinking poison. Now let's answer this question. So what was Socrates accused of? So Socrates was accused of... Have a think, pause the video, and complete that task. Okay, let's have a look. What was Socrates accused of? Socrates was accused of corrupting the minds of young Athenians, and as a result, he was tried, he was sentenced, and he was sentenced to poison himself by hemlock, which is a special plant, a poisonous plant. Now let's move on. So we had Socrates. Let's move on to Plato, who's another philosopher. So who was Plato? Now another very important classical Greek philosopher was Plato, and Plato was actually a student of Socrates. Now Plato was interested in justice and happiness, and many of his ideas are still used today. Plato wrote books in the form of a dialogue. Remember, it's a conversation about an idea, and these dialogues were often between himself and Socrates. And much of what we know about Socrates' work comes from Plato's writings, and that's because Socrates didn't actually write anything. So much of what we know about Socrates comes from Plato himself. Now true or false, Plato was Socrates' teacher. Is that true? Or is that false? Have a think. Was Plato Socrates' teacher? True or false? Have a think, have a go. Pause the video and complete that task. Okay, let's see if I managed to trick you. I'm going to be honest, I tried to trick you there. Okay, Plato was Socrates' teacher, is that true or is that false? It's false. Plato was a student of the philosopher Socrates, not the other way around. Now, let's keep learning about Plato. Now Plato, he established an academy, which is sometimes referred to as the world's first university. And Plato's academy was not a school or college like we have today. They didn't have classes on specific subjects taught by teachers. What they did have was they challenged each other with questions and debate. And above the door of Plato's academy, he placed a sign that said, "Let no one untrained in geometry enter." Now geometry is the branch of mathematics concerned with questions of shape and size, and Plato was convinced that both mathematically and philosophically, understanding geometry was the key to learning more about the universe. Now let's look at this question. So what type of mathematics did Plato consider as being key to learning about the universe? So in your answer you can say, Plato considered that... So which type of mathematics did Plato consider as being key to learning about the universe? Have a think, pause the video, and complete that task. Okay, which type of mathematics did Plato consider as being key to learning about the universe? The answer is, of course, geometry. So Plato considered that geometry, a branch of mathematics was key to learning about the universe. Now let's move on to another one. So we had Socrates, we had Plato, and now we have Aristotle. Hmm. So Aristotle was another great philosopher and writer, and Aristotle was famously the student of Plato, and he lived with Plato and he worked by his side for more than 20 years. So we had Socrates, who's the father of Western philosophy. Then we had Plato, who was the student of Socrates, and now we have Aristotle, who was the student of Plato. That's the connection between all three of them. And now when Plato died, Aristotle actually travelled for many years in the east, and in 343 BC, Philip II of Macedonia, he asked Aristotle to tutor his son, Alexander, and Aristotle spent the next several years teaching Alexander a wide range of subjects including philosophy, logic, and mathematics. Alexander, who's on the screen now, went on to conquer much of the civilised world, and he became known as Alexander the Great. Let's have a look at this question. So who was Aristotle a student of? So Aristotle was a student of whom? Hmm. Now pause the video and complete that task. Okay, let's have a look at the answer to this question. So we had Socrates at the beginning. He is the father of Western philosophy. Plato was a student of Socrates. But who was Aristotle a student of? Aristotle was a student of Plato, good job. And he lived and worked by his side for over 20 years. Awesome job, my friends. Well done. Let's continue. Now after tutoring Alexander, who became Alexander the Great, Aristotle, he returned to Athens and he opened his own school, and it was called the peripatetic school. And in this school, he taught his students subjects such as logic, physics, public speaking, politics, and philosophy. Now Aristotle had new ideas on how the world should be studied, and he liked to make really detailed observations of the world around him. He took notes and he took records of what he saw. And he went so far as to dissect animals to learn more about their anatomy. And Aristotle's style of thinking and teaching was very different from the other Greek philosophers and educators of the day. They did all of their work in their mind, thinking about the world, but not really observing it. Now, not all of Aristotle's observations were accurate. He actually thought that the heart was the centre of intelligence rather than the brain. He also thought that goats could be male or female depending on which way the wind was blowing. We of course know those observations are not true. Despite this, Aristotle's more hands-on approach laid the foundations for modern science today. Now let's have a look at these two quotes that are often attributed to Aristotle. I'm going to read them to you, and then I'm going to introduce a related activity. So we got Aristotle there in the middle, and this quote is often attributed to Aristotle. It says "The roots of education are bitter, but the fruits are sweet." Hmm. Let's have a look at this other quote. "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." Now, what I want you to do is I want you to choose either of these quotes, and I want you to write what you think they mean. What do you think Aristotle meant when he said these two quotes? So to recap, what I want you to do is you got to choose a quote. So you can either choose the one on the left, "The roots of education are bitter, but the fruits are sweet." You can choose the one on the right, "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." And then what I want you to do is I want you to write what you think Aristotle meant. You can start your explanation by writing, "I think what this quote means..." Or you could say, "I think what Aristotle meant was..." You're going to tell me what you think he meant. So that's what you got to do, that's the task. At this point I want you to pause the video and then complete this task. If you want to challenge yourself, and you want to tell me what both quotes mean, then go for it. I'll be really impressed if you do. Okay, let's review. So I'm going to tell you what I think each of these quotes mean. So let's start with this one. So "The roots of education are bitter, but the fruits are sweet." Hmm. So I think that Aristotle meant that when we begin learning something new, we must likely find it very difficult, and we sometimes feel like giving it up, giving up. However, once you get past the initial struggle, then we learn new things, and that allows us to be successful. This is what he means when he says the fruits are sweet. So at the beginning, when we start a brand new subject, we tend to find that a little bit difficult, because we don't have enough knowledge. However, once we get past that initial part of learning, we begin to enjoy it more, we begin to learn more, and the more things that we learn, the more successful we can become. So I think that's what that quote meant. But what do you guys think? And do you agree with him? So at this point, what I'm going to do, I'm going to pause the video and then I'm going to give you a chance to compare your own answer against my own. Okay, let's take a look at the next quote. So the next quote is as follows. So, "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." So in my opinion, I think that Aristotle meant that the more we practise a particular skill, the better we become at it. We cannot become excellent at something without practising . Therefore, I think what he said there is that excellence, therefore, cannot be achieved by chance. You have to make a conscious effort to practise to become excellent at something. I also think that he meant that people should devise routines and stick to these so that they can become as productive as possible. So a routine that would help you to become excellent at something could be, maybe you go to the park and you practise shooting, you practise your football for an hour and you do that every single day for an hour. You'll become really great at it. But you've got to put in the effort. So what I think Aristotle meant with this quote is that if you want to become really good at something, you have to put the practise in. You can't just become excellent at something without practising . But again, what do you guys think? Do you think that's true? Do you think you can become excellent at something with no practise? Maybe you can. Again, at this point, what I'm going to do is I'm going to leave my answer up and now we need to compare it against your own. Now let's have a look and see how they marry up. So to summarise, Socrates, Plato and Aristotle, were three of the most influential Ancient Greek philosophers. Socrates, who is known as the father of Western philosophy, he taught Plato, who in turn taught Aristotle. And Socrates' ideas were so radical for that time that he was perceived as a threat by the elite, by the ruling powerful elite, who sentenced him to death. Now Plato documented much of Socrates' teachings, as well as developing his own line of inquiry based around geometry, and Aristotle built on both of them, establishing a school of thought around debate and dialogue, as well as furthering the study of science through careful observation. So why are all these men so important? Well, the influence of these philosophers was amplified by the conquest of Alexander the Great, a student of Aristotle, who conquered much of the known world from his home in Macedonia. And Alexander's conquest helped to expand Greek culture, ideas, and influence, including the teachings of Plato, Socrates, and Aristotle. And as a result, the ideas of these Greek philosophers have remained relevant to the present day. And there on the left, you can see Alexander the Great, and on the right, you can see the massive empire that he managed to build from his home in Macedonia. So this is the Greek mainland here, and this is the region of Macedonia, and look at what a huge empire he managed to carve out. And one of the reasons why he was so successful was due to the teachings of Aristotle himself. Guys, that is the end of our lesson. So great work today. Awesome job. It's now time to complete your end of lesson quiz. And again, if you'd like to, you can ask your parents or carers to share your work on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter. They're going to tag @OakNational and they're going to use the hashtag #LearnwithOak. One of the things that I would love to see would be what you thought about the quotes from Socrates. So what did the Socrates, sorry, what did Aristotle mean with those quotes? I would love to see your explanations, but if you want to share them, you could ask your parent or carer to do that for you. Guys, thanks so much for all of your help. I hope you had a lovely lesson, and I shall see you in our next lesson. Goodbye, my friends.

In this lesson, we will learn about the conflict between the city states of Athens and Sparta, known as the Peloponnesian wars.

Who won the Peloponnesian wars?

﻿Hello there my wonderful friends, and welcome to the seventh lesson on this unit on Ancient Greece. My name is Mr. Pedroza, and in this lesson, we're going to have a look at the following question. So question is, who won the Peloponnesian wars? Let's have a look at the lesson structure for today. So we're going to begin with the star words, which has some key vocabulary review. Then we're going to have a look at what were Athens and Sparta like? We'll do a little comparison between those two city-states and then we're going to have a look at how were children treated in Athens and Sparta. Then we'll look at the first Peloponnesian war. Then we'll have a look at the second Peloponnesian war and then we'll do our end of lesson quiz. Now, things that you're going to need, you're going to need your exercise book or paper. You're going to need a pencil or a pen, and then you're going to need a ruler. So, if you haven't got those things, go and get them now. Okay. Let's have a look at the key vocabulary. So we got six words. You've got peninsula, you've got democracy, you've got oligarchy. You have an ally, you have truce and you have tyranny. So, the first one is a peninsula and a peninsula is a piece of land, which is surrounded on nearly all sides by water. And it tends to be connected to a larger body of land by usually a narrow strip of land. Then you've got democracy, and democracy is a form of government in which power rests with people. Next one is oligarchy, which is a different type of government, in which a few people or a family rule. Then you've got an ally, and ally is a person, a group or a country that has joined with another, for a particular purpose. Then you have a truce, and a truce, so stop, or the end of war that is agreed upon by all groups. Then you've got a tyranny, and a tyranny is another type of government in which a single person rules absolutely and in a cruel way. Now, let's have a look at the first one. So what were Athens and Sparta like? Now the Peloponnesian war was fought between the Greek city-states of Athens and Sparta. And it lasted from 431 BC to 404 BC. Athens ended up losing the war, bringing to an end, the golden age of ancient Greece. So on my map, I can show you, so this is Athens, and this is Sparta. And those two city-states fought a war known as the Peloponnesian war. In which Athens ended up losing. And that brought to an end, the golden age of ancient Greece. So let's have a look at this one. So the Peloponnesian war was fought between the Greek city-states of... which two Greek city-states fought in the Peloponnesian wars? As a point, pause the video, and then fill the sentences. Okay, let's have a look. So, the Peloponnesian war was fought between the Greek city states of.. Athens and Sparta. Great start my friends now, what were Athens and Sparta like? Well, the word Peloponnesian comes from the name of the peninsula in Southern Greece called the Peloponnese. And this peninsula was time to many of the great Greek city states include the Sparta, Argos current, and Messina. Athens and Sparta were probably the two most famous power and most powerful city states in all of Ancient Greece. Now, however, they were really different. Athens was ruled by a democracy and they were the first people to ever have such a system of government. Sparta, on the other hand was ruled by a king, and they also had a small group of powerful men in council making it an oligarchy. So on the one hand you have Athens, which is a democracy against Sparta, which is an oligarchy. So there were two very distinct cities. All right, lets complete the sentence. Athens and Sparta were two very different city-states. Athens was a, and Sparta was an Hm, but the key terms that you can use, you can use oligarchy or democracy. So which city state was a democracy, which city state was an oligarchy. All right, pause the video and complete those sentences. Complete that sentence. I kind of sound like so I can read the sentence. So Athens and Sparta with two very different city states, Athens was a democracy good and Sparta was an oligarchy. Awesome job. Let's move on. So let's continue. What happens before the war? So after the Persian war, Athens and Sparta had agreed to a peace of 30 years, and the reason why they agreed to a peace was because they didn't want to fight each other while they were trying to recover from the Persian wars against King Cyrus The first, and his son Cyrus. During the war against the Persian empire, Athens and Sparta had for a long time being enemies, they became allies and they had fought alongside other city states against the Persian frap, following the unexpected victory against the Persians. Athens became powerful and wealthy and the Athenian empire grew under the leadership of the leader, Pericles. So Athens and Sparta agreed to a 30 year. What, what did they agree to? So in the sentence, you've got three missing words. The key terms are Persian, recover and peace. Where do you think those words go to complete that sentence? So at this point, pause the video and complete the task. Okay. Let's have a look and see where those key words go. Athens and Sparta agreed to a 30 year peace to allow them to recover following the wars against the Persian empire. Awesome job my friends, well done. So let's have a look. The geography of each city, gave them a distinctive character. Athens is built all around the base of a big hill where the Acropolis sets overlooking. Athens is fairly close to the sea and has good access to the surrounding islands and many trading routes. In contrast, Sparta is surrounded by mountains. So this is Athens then, and this is Sparta. but Sparta is surrounded by mountains, which makes it really difficult for enemies to invade and gave the Spartans, lots of mountain areas for soldiers to train them on. Athens, it's really close to the sea. Sparta is surrounded by mountains. Those are the key geographical differences between the two different cities. So how were children treated and Athens and Sparta? Hmm. Well, the way in which children were both up in Athens and Sparta was noticeably very different. Athenians were orientated towards being really creative believe in educating their boys, not the girls though, and boys could choose to go into the army or navy if they wanted to Sparta, on the other hand, was very focused on obedience and being prepared for war and the people did not have luxuries to enjoy. Spartan boys did not have to go to school or to work my fine, but actually what they had to go to was they had to go into the army and Spartan boys were trained from a very young age, some of them as young as seven years old to be trained as soldiers, and this was compulsory, meaning they had no choice. So they would leave their families and they will leave. They would live with the other training soldiers and they had no choice in this. They just had to do seems very strange. In which city state were boys, forced to train as soldiers from an early age. Was there a, was it an Athens or was it B in Sparta? So in what city state were boys forced to train as soldiers from an early age? I think, and choose the correct option. Okay. In which city state were boys forced to train as soldiers from a very early age, it was of course be, in Sparta. So in Sparta, boys were trying from a very young age to be soldiers. And this was compulsory. Remember boys, as young as seven years old were trained as soldiers in the city state of Sparta. I would not want to be a soldier at the age of 7. Now, what were Athens and Sparta like for girls, girls in Athens were not seen as very important. They had no say in anything to do a war, business or education. There could be taught at home if they had rich parents. In Sparta though, girls were seen as the future mothers of Spartan soldiers. And although they were not allowed to fight in battle, the girls did take part in some of the training because healthy strong girls were believed to give birth to healthy, strong babies who could then become strong fighting soldiers in Sparta week, babies were left to die on hillsides. And this was because Spartans only wanted strong children who would become strong soldiers. How very scary? Now, lets have a look. Why were weak babies weak babies left to die in Sparta? So to answer you can say in Sparta week babies were left to die because what was the reason why Spartans left weak babies to die? Have a think, and then write a full sentence to the answer, to that questions sorry. Okay, let's look like what is the answer to this question? So, why would weak babies be left to die Sparta? This is very cruel. And of course it was. So in Sparta, weak babies were left to die because only strong and healthy children were desired as they could be trained as soldiers. So I'm going to leave this answer up so that you can check it against your own. Okay, let's talk, let's continue and move on to the first Peloponnesian war. So this, by agreeing to keep the peace between them, remember they were meant to be in peace. A peaceful 30 years, Sparta's and its allies became increasingly jealous and distrustful of Athens. And finally in 431 BC when Sparta and Athens ended up on different sides in a conflict over the city of Corinth, Sparta declared war on Athens. And the first Peloponnesian war lasted for 10 years. And during this time the Spartans, they dominated the land and Athenians dominated the sea Athens built really long walls all the way from the city to the Seaport in Perez. And this enabled them to stay inside the city and still have access to trade and supplies from the ships. And although the Spartans never breached the walls of Athens during this fast war, many Athenians died in the city due to plague. This included the great leader and general of Athens Pericles. But Hey, you have some sentences that have some missing words. There are six key words that are missing. the key words are Sparta, Pericles, plague, you got walls, you've got the date of 431 BC and you have Athens. So where do you find those words? Once you figure that out right than that, and read the sentence back to see if it makes sense. So pause to think, and then complete that task. So, Sparta declared war on Athens in 431 BC. The war lasted 10 years with Athens dominating the seas and Sparta dominating on land. Athens built walls, which kept the Spartans at bay However many people, including the great leader and general Pericles, died due to plague. That is the answer to those sentences. So that's done. I'm going to leave it up so that you can check it against your own. Awesome job my friends, excellent. All right, so lets have a look, after the Peloponnesian war in 421, BC Athens and Sparta, they agreed to a truce. They agreed to stop fighting. And it was called the peace of Nicias named after the general or the Athenian army. And after this Sparta and Athens, they lived happily ever after. actually they didn't because they went to war for a second time. And in 451 BCE Athens decided to help one of the, one of their allies on the island of Sicily, as you can see with the yellow circle there. and they sent a large force that to attack the city of Syracuse, Athens lost the battle horribly and Sparta decided to retaliate starting the second Peloponnesian war. The Spartans began to gather allies to conquer Athens, and they even enlisted the help of the Persians who lent them money to build a fleet of warships. However, Athens recovered and won a series of battles between 410 and 406 BC. How about in 405 BCE? The Sparta's in general, Lysander defeated the Athenian fleet in battle. With the fleet defeated, The people in the city of Athens began to stop. They began to run out of food and they did not have the army to take on the Spartans on land. And in 404 BCE, the city of Athens surrendered to Sparta the city states of Corinth and Thebes, which are, here, I'm going to point them to you. So this is Athens. This is Sparta the citizens of Corinth and thebes they wanted to punish Athens and they wanted the city destroyed and the people enslaved, however, Sparta disagreed. They made the city tear down its walls so that it would be easier to conquer in a next war, but they refused to destroy the city or enslave the people. So in this one you need to write whether these statements are true or false, okay? So I'm going to read these to you and then I want you to decide whether they're true or whether they're false. In 405 BC, the Athenians defeated the Spartan fleet. Once they surrendered, the city states of Corinth and Thebes wanted the city state of Athens destroyed, and its people enslaved. And C Sparta forced Athens to tear down its walls. So which of those statements are true? Which ones are false? I don't know. Now you're going to tell me, so pause the video and complete that task. Okay. Let's see. Let me see what you learned from me. Okay. And 405 BCE the Athenians, defeated the Spartan fleet. That is false. Remember that in 405 BCE, the Spartan general, Lysander defeated the Athenian fleet in battle. Now B, once it surrendered, that the city state of Corinth and Thebes wanted the city of Athens destroyed and its people enslaved. That that is true. They wanted to punish Athenians, and C, Sparta force Athens to tear down its walls. That is also true. Remember the Sparta disagreed with Thebes and Corinth, and they did not destroy Athens. So those are the answers to those questions. I'm going to leave them up for you just to check against your own. Let's try that and see what happens after the end of the second Peloponnesian war. So after Sparta's, the defeat of Athens, they ended democracy and they set up a new government in Athens ruled by the 30 tyrants. And so Athens saw a period of tyranny, but the Athenians didn't like this. And therefore this only lasted for one year as the local Athenians they overthrew the tyrants that had been brought by the Spartans and they restored democracy. And Sparta, instead of becoming a great power themselves, they were defeated the defeated by thieves in 371 BCE at the battle of I And guys that is the end of the lesson. Great work today. Awesome job. It's now time to complete your end of lesson quiz. And if you'd like to, as always, please ask your parent or carer to show your work. They can do it on Instagram, they can do it on Facebook, they can do it on Twitter. They're going to tag up Oak national, and they're going to use the hashtag LeanwithOak, so if there's anything that you want to share, please ask your parents or carers to do it for you guys. Thanks so much for all of your hard work today. I hope to see you in our next lesson. Goodbye my friends!

In this lesson, we will learn about Alexander the Great, the king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon, who conquered much of the known world.

Why was Alexander so great?

﻿Hello, my wonderful friends and welcome to the eighth lesson on this unit of ancient Greece. My name is Mr. Pedroza and in this lesson, we're going to have a look at the final question. So the question is, why was Alexander so great? Oh my goodness, you might think who is Alexander? Well, we're going to find out. Let's have a look at the lesson structure. So we're going to to begin with the star words. Then we'll have a look at how did Alexander become king? Then we'll have a look at Alexander's conquests. Then we'll have a look at why was Alexander so successful? And then we'll have a look at Alexander's death and legacy. And then we'll finish up with our end of lesson quiz. Things that you're going to need in this lesson, you need your exercise book or paper, where you can write some notes. You need a pencil or a pen and then you're also going to need a ruler to underline key facts. So at this point, if you want to go and get this things go and get them now. Right, let's begin, shall we? Now, we have six words, we got despot, conquest, battle, customs, legacy and reliable. So let's begin with despot. A despot is a ruler who has complete power and authority. Next one we got conquest and conquest is the act or the process of conquering. Next, we've got battle and a battle is a fight between two armed persons or forces during a war. Then we got customs and customs is their way of acting that is usual or accepted for a person or a social group. Next one we've got legacy and legacy is anything that is passed down from ancestors, or someone who came before. And the last one we got reliable and reliable, is capable of be trusted or relied upon and another word for level is dependable. Now, let's have a look, how did Alexander become king? So who was Alexander? Now, Alexander III of Macedon, better known as Alexander the Great, single handedly changed the nature of the ancient world in little more than a decade, in 10 years. Alexander the Great is sometimes known as the ruler of the world and he was one of the greatest military leaders of all time. But was he himself really so great? Or what was the legacy that he left behind? So let's find out a little bit more about him. Alexander III of Macedon is better known as what? What is Alexander III of Macedon better known as what? Have a think, have ago, complete that sentence now. Okay, let's have a look. What is Alexander III of Macedon better known as? He is better known as Alexander the Great, awesome job my friends. So how did Alexander become king? Well, Alexander was a prince born in Pella in Macedonia, which was a Greek city state on the mainland. His parents were Philip II of Macedon and his wife Olympias. And Alexander was supposedly related to the Greek heroes, Hercules from his father's side, and Achilles from his mother's side. Now Alexander's father King Philip, he employed the great philosopher Aristotle to tutor the young prince. Aristotle, who was a student of the philosopher Plato, encouraged Alexander to be a great king to Greeks, but a despot against barbarians, against non Greeks. And historians believe that his teachings influenced Alexander's decision to fight against the Persian Empire. What famous Greek philosopher, tutored Alexander the Great? Was it A, was it Aristotle? Was it B, was it Plato? Was it C, Pythagoras? Or was it the Socrates? Which of those famous Greek philosophers tutored Alexander the Great, A, B, C, or D? Have a think, pause the video and complete that task. Okay, let's see. Which famous Greek philosopher tutored Alexander the Great? The answer was called Aristotle. So the famous Greek philosopher Aristotle tutored Alexander the Great. Awesome job my friends, well done. Now let's move on. When his father King Philip II was assassinated in 336 BCE, Alexander became king at a young age of 20. Alexander had to fight to claim his father's throne. And another of Prince Philip's wives and her daughter were murdered, along with two Macedon princess in the struggle to claim the throne. Alexander was also forced to put down several rebellions against his rule. Once he had gained power, he continued his father's work and he brought all of the Greek city states under his control after many years of fighting. After controlling all of the Greek city states, he then decided to look east towards the Persian Empire for further conquest. So let's have a look in here. We've got a sentence to complete. We've got four major words. The key words could be Alexander, it could be 20, it could be 336 BCE, or it could be Philip II. Remember that for Alexander and Philip II, you have to use capital letters at the beginning because their names of people. So at this point, what I want you to do is complete the sentence, pause the video and have a go. Okay, let's have a look and see if you got those right. So when his father, King Philip II, was assassinated in 336 BCE, Alexander became king at the age of 20. That's a very young age to become king, isn't it? Now, let's look at Alexander's conquests. So once he had established himself as king, Alexander began a decade long campaign of conquest, and upon his crossing into Asia Minor in 334 BCE, Alexander was soon confronted by a Persian army that was waiting for him on the other side of the Granicus River in modern day Turkey, and that you can see is highlighted by the yellow circle. Now, Alexander was almost killed in the attack that followed. However, after much heavy fighting, Alexander's army emerged victorious and routed the Persian force. Alexander went to conquer parts of the Persian Empire, including Egypt, his people were grateful to be freed from Persian rule. And in Egypt, he founded the city of Alexandria, which still bears his name today. And let's answer this question, in which year did the Battle of Granicus take place? So the the Battle of Granicus took place in? In which year did it take place? Have a think, pause the video and complete that task. Okay, let's see. In which year did the Battle of Granicus River take place? It was of course, in 334 BCE. So the full sentence answer would be the the Battle of Granicus took place in 334 BCE. Awesome job my friends, excellent job. Now, let's move on. Alexander, in 333 BC, so the next year, Alexander fought the Persian king, Darius III of Issus, which is the modern day Syria. Now, Alexander's army was possibly only half the size of the Darius's army, but the narrow battle side ensured that Darius's larger numbers, the larger number of troops, it counted for very little. And a Macedonian victory soon followed, and Darius fled eastwards towards Persia. Alexander due to capture Darius's abandoned baggage train including the Persian kings lavish royal tent, his mother and his wife. Two years later, Alexander defeated Darius again in 331 BCE, at the Battle of Gaugamela, which is highlighted that in pink. And as a result, the Persian king was overthrown and he was murdered. With Darius's death, Alexander became the king of Persia, as well as Macedon. We've got true or false. So the Persian king, Darius III, was murdered after his loss against Alexander at the Battle of Issus in 333 BCE, is that true or is that false? What do you think? At this point, pause the video and complete that task. Okay, let's see. Was he murdered after the Battle of Issus? No, he wasn't, that is false. So King Darius III was killed after his defeat against Alexander at the Battle of Gaugamela in 331 BCE. Awesome job my friends, well done. I'm going to leave the answer up so that you can copy it, you can check it again as your own. Let's have a look. So why was Alexander so successful? Why did he win so many wars and conquered so many places? Well, Alexander's success, I'd match to his own management strategy, as to the military reforms introduced by his father. King Phillip II made military service a full time occupation in Macedon. And in a remarkably short space of time, this led to the creation of one of the finest military machines of the ancient world. Alexander developed his own style of battle based on using a very large army of soldiers who marched and fought in tight formations. And Alexander's army comprised of archers, carries, hypaspist, which is on the left, and the phalanx, who were famous for using four to six metre long pike known as the sarissa. Let's complete the sentence. So Alexander the Great benefited from his father's military reforms, which made being a soldier a job. So here you got two sentences. There are four missing words. The missing words could be phalanx, it could be tight, it could be sarissa and it could be full time. Where do you think those words go? Once you think you know, write them down, write the sentence out, read them back to see if it makes sense and then when we come back, we will check them. So at this point pause the video and complete your task, good luck. Okay, let's have a look. So the keywords, phalanx, tight, sarissa and full time. So Alexander the Great benefited from his father's military reforms, which made being a soldier a full time job. Alexander's army marched and fought in tight formations and included the phalanx, who use a long pipe known as a sarissa. Remember, phalanx were a type of army unit and they had a long, long pipe, it was four to six metres long, and it was known as a sarissa. Awesome job my friends. I'm going to leave it up so that you can check your work against my own. Great job guys. Now, let's continue. So Alexander was also successful because he was an expert at diplomacy. He made many alliances with his enemies, and that allowed him to keep control of the lands he conquered. For example, he encouraged his soldiers to marry local women when conquering a new territory, and this allowed them to integrate better into their new conquered lands. Now Alexander is also said to have followed the local customs and laws of the lands he conquered. And this was seen as a sign of respect by the people that he conquered, increasing his popularity and loyalty to him. Increasing their popularity and loyalty to him, my mistake. Now, Alexander is supposed to have wept when he won his final battle, because he said, "There are no more worlds to conquer." I wonder why he cried and said that. Let's have a look at Alexander's death and his legacy. So not satisfied with conquering Persia, Alexander had the desire to conquer all of the known world, which was widely believed to be surrounded by an ocean that surrounded India. And he crossed into the Hindu Kush into ancient India in 327 BCE. Now this would be the bloodiest part of his 10 year long campaigns. Alexander's forces fought against King Porus. Now, he was the king of the Pauravas in 326 BC. And again, Alexander, he was victorious, he won, but this battle was costly. He attempted to take his army across the Hyphasis River to fight against the Nanda Empire. However, tired of 10 years on nonstop war, and frightened of the Nanda Empire's elephant units, his army refused, and they demanded to turn back and go home. Alexander tried to change their minds, but reluctantly, he agreed to call off the war, and he sent his army back to Macedon. So here is Alexander's Empire and he tried to conquer the Nanda Empire. But after 10 years of war, his soldiers were so tired, they were so exhausted, and they were also afraid of the Nanda Empire's elephant units that they decided they had enough and they decided to go back home. Let's have a look at the next part. So why did Alexander's army refuse to fight against the Nanda Empire? Now, there are two reasons. Challenge yourself and think about what the two reasons were for that. In your answer you could say, Alexander's army refused to fight against the Nanda Empire because, what were those two reasons? So at this point, pause the video and complete that task. Okay, let's see if you got my two reasons, did you try and resolve? So why did Alexander's army refused to fight against the Nanda Empire? Well, Alexander's army refused to fight against the Nanda Empire because they were exhausted after 10 years of war. They were all also afraid of the Nanda Empire's elephant units. I think that's a sensible reason not to go to war against the Nanda Empire. So at this point, pause the video and check your answer against mine. Now let's have a look, let's continue to talk about his death and his legacy. Now Alexander passed away in 323 BCE at the tender age of 32, that was quite young, because rich people and rich and powerful people at that time, were meant to live between 50 to 70 years. So he died really, really young. Now, there is a lack of reliable evidence on what really happened to him. In one story, Alexander drank alcohol all day and all night, and then he died from a fever. In another story, he drank a big bottle of wine to honour the god Hercules after the battle and then he died. Some historians believe that he may have been poisoned by one of his soldiers who was tired of the nonstop wars. Now following his death, Alexander's body was taken to Egypt, where is eventually placed in Alexandria, the city that he founded. Mystery now surrounds what happened to Alexander's tomb. Some even believe it is no longer in Alexandria. We just don't know where he's buried. We also don't know how he really died. Now we have such an array of coaches and different peoples within his empire and with Alexander not naming a clear successor, Alexander's vast empire quickly fragmented into warring parties. And the wars of the successors that followed would last around 40 years in which many would rise and fall in their attempts for dominance. And eventually, Alexander's Empire became essentially divided into three parts. You had the Seleucids in Asia, you had the Antinoids in Macedonia, and you had the Ptolemies in Egypt. So let's look at this one. So you're going to write whether these statements are true or false. So Alexander died in 332 BCE, is that true or is that false? Historians are sure of how, of exactly how the Alexander the Great died, is that true or is that false? And then C, after Alexander the Great passed away, his empire divided into different kingdoms, is that true or is that false? Again, I don't know, you're going to tell me. So at this point, pause the video and complete that task. So let's see which of these statements was true or false. So A, Alexander died in 332 BCE, that was false, he passed away in 323 BCE. B, historians are sure of exactly how Alexander the Great died, that is false. Historians disagree on how he died, some think he died from drinking too much alcohol, others think he was poisoned, others think he became sick. So there's disagreement as to how he died. And then C, after Alexander the Great passed away his empire divided into different kingdoms, is that true or is that false? That is true. So after his death, Alexander's Empire became essentially divided into three parts, the Seleucids, who ruled in Asia, the Antinoids in Macedonia, and the Ptolemies in Egypt. So those are the answers to those statements. I'm going to leave them up so that you can check your own answers. Awesome job, my friends, well done. So, let's have a look at his legacy. Well, Alexander the Great was one of the most influential people in history. Having never lost a single battle, zero battles lost, Alexander's military tactics are still studied to this day. And his Empire allowed for the spread of Greek culture and ideas as far east as modern day Afghanistan and Pakistan. Alexander founded more than 20 cities bearing his name, and the Egyptian city of Alexandria, which was a key Mediterranean port in antiquity and now a metropolis of over 5 million people was founded by Alexander the Great. Look how large his empire became. And guys, that is the end of our lesson, awesome job today, well done. It's now time to complete your end of lesson quiz, don't skip it. If you'd like to, please ask your parent or carer to share your work. They can do it on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, they're going to tag Oak National and they could use the hashtag learn with Oak. So if there's anything that you would like to share, then please do share it but ask your parent or carer to do that for you. Awesome job my friends, well done. I shall see you in our next lesson. Goodbye friends.

In this lesson, we will review why the Ancient Greeks were so influential, analyzing their great achievements and how these are influential to this day.

What were the great achievements of the Ancient Greeks?

﻿Hello there my wonderful friends. And welcome to this, the 9th lesson on the unit of Ancient Greece. My name is Mr. Pedroza. And in this lesson, we're going to have look at the following question. So the question is, what were the great achievements of the Greeks? Let's now look at how the lesson is going to be structured today. So we'll begin with the star words. Then we going to have at democracy and philosophy and how the Ancient Greeks had an impact on the development of both. Then we'll look at maths, architecture and science, drama, literature and sports, Ancient Greek inventions and then at the very end is our end of lesson quiz. Things that you're going to need in this lesson, you need your exercise book or paper, you need a pencil or a pen, and then you're also going to need a ruler. So if you haven't got those things, go and get them now. Now let's have look and see what star words we have. We've got six star words again. So you got influential, legacy, democracy, research, architecture and drama. Influential means having power or influence. Legacy is anything that is passed down from ancestors or someone who came before. Democracy is a form of government in which power rests with the people. Research is the careful study of something in order to find that information about it. Architecture is the act or process of designing buildings. And drama is a story written so that it can be acted out for an audience. So let's have look at what were the achievements of the Ancient Greeks. And let's begin with democracy and philosophy. Now the Ancient Greeks are considered to be one of the most influential civilizations in human history. From democracy to philosophy, drama and mathematics, their ideas remain influential to this day. Spread by trade and the conquest of Alexander the Great, as well as the abduction of their ideas by the Roman Empire. Greek cultures spread throughout much of the known world, and it's influence survives to the present day. Let's learn about the greatest achievements by the Ancient the Greeks. Now the Ancient Greeks are credited for developing democracy. A system of government where power rests with the people. Much commonly associated with the city state of Athens, democracy was a really radical idea at the time, with most city states being ruled by kings, oligarchies or tyrants. Now, definitions for democracy in Athens were first led by Solon, a ruler whose reforms codify in the Solonian constitution, reduced the power of the aristocracy and laid the foundations for democracy. Now let's complete this first sentence. So, Solon's reforms laid the foundations for what? What did his reforms lay the foundation for? I'm going to give you a clue. It's a type of government. So that's the point. Pause the video and complete that task. Let's see. Did you use my clue to find it out, to find out the answer? So, Solon's reforms laid the foundations for democracy in Athens. Good job, my friends. Well done. Now, let's continue. The next step in Athens development of democracy came in 508 BCE, were the reforms by Cleisthenes. And Cleisthenes reforms, known as demokratia or rule by the people was comprised of three separate institutions. So in Athenian democracy, we had the Ekklesia which was the assembly, which was in charge of writing the laws. Then we had the Boule, which was the council, which was in charge of running government from day to day. And then we had the Dikasteria which were the courts, which handled lawsuits and trials. And the Athenian idea of democratic governments spread to other city states. And over time, it's a prior to the entire world. And today, most of the world's governments claim to be democratic. And on this map that you can see, the countries in green claim to have a democratic form of government, where power rests with the people. This map shows the influence of Ancient Greece in regards to politics and government. Because it is an Athens where democracy was first founded. But true or false, the most countries claim to have democratic forms of government. Is that true or is that false? What do you think? So again, at this point, pause the video and complete that task. So let's have a look. What was the answer to the question. Is it true or false? It is of course true. So today, most countries around the world claim to have a democratic form of government. In the present day, only Vatican City, Amman, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Fiji and Brunei, acknowledge to not have democratic forms of government. And that shows you the power of Ancient Greek ideas about how to run governments. Now let's move on, onto philosophies here. Ancient Greek philosophy opened the doors to a particular way of thinking, that provided the risk, for the Western intellectual tradition. Socrates, who is often referred to as the father of Western philosophy, he developed a style of inquiry, which followed constant questioning as the means to obtain deeper thinking. And this became known as that Socratic method, Socrates, Socratic method. That's a good way to remember. Now, Plato was a student of Socrates developed a line of thinking around dialogue and debate. Traditions which are valued within democratic forms of government. If you go to parliament, you will often see politicians having debates. And Plato is also really important, because his recollections of Socrates work, forms the basis for much of what we know about his teacher's ideas. Remember that Socrates didn't write anything, and so much of what we know about him, comes from Plato himself. Lastly Aristotle, who was a student of Plato, was influential for having tutored Alexander the Great. He conquered much of the known world and he spread Greek culture and ideas as a result of his conquest. Which famous Greek philosopher developed a style of inquiry known as the Socratic method? Is it A, is it Aristotle? Is it B, Plato? Is it C, Pythagoras or is it D, Socrates? I gave you good tips, for how to remember, how to link a philosopher to the Socratic method. What was that? So, which famous Greek philosopher developed a style of inquiry known as the Socratic method? A, B, C or D? Have a think and then have a go. Ready, is it B is it one? The famous Ancient Greek philosopher developed the Socratic method, it was D. It was Socrates. Socrates, Socratic method. Easy way to remember. So the famous ancient Greek philosopher, Socrates developed the Socratic method. Awesome job my friends. Why would the Ancient Greeks so influential? Let's continue. Greek philosophers were seekers and lovers of wisdom. And they studied and analysed the world around them using logic and reason. And the work of Socrates, Plato and Aristotle, amongst many others was vital, as it began to move away, the quest for knowledge, away from myths and superstitions to that of inquiry based on research and carefully detailed observations. Something that is valued in the present day. So let's now look at what the achievements of the Ancient Greeks were, in the fields of maths, architecture and science. Now for Greek thinkers like Plato, maths simply, wasn't a means of calculating amounts, but a way of testing reality and understanding the true nature of the world around them. Plato exemplified this belief in mathematics by having a message above the door to his Academy that said, do you remember what the message above Plato's Academy was? Yes, you're right. It was let no one untrained in geometry enter. And geometry remember, is a branch of mathematics concerned with questions of shape and size. Now Plato was convinced that understanding geometry, both mathematically and philosophically, was the key to learning about the universe. Pythagoras is another famous philosopher, is most known for the Pythagorean theorem which is used today to find the length of sides of right angles, right triangles. He also believed that the world was based in mathematics. Well, let's complete the sentence. So the philosopher Plato, believed that the study of, hmm, was the key to better understand the universe. So what field, I'm going to give you a clue. What field of mathematics that you think was really important to understanding the universe. So that's the point. I'd like you to pause the video and complete that task. Let's see. So the philosopher Plato believed that the study of geometry was the key to better understanding the universe. Awesome job my friend, well done. Let's move on to architecture now. So the Ancient Greeks, they have a unique style of architecture that is still copied in government buildings and major monuments throughout the world. Now on the left, you have the Parthenon, which is in Greece in Athens, and it was dedicated to whom?. Yes, it was dedicated to goddess Athena. Now, here on the right, you have the US Supreme court. And you can see that the US Supreme court, is very similar in looks to the Parthenon which was built 2,500 years ago. Now Greek architecture is known for tall columns, intricate detail, symmetry, harmony and balance. And the Greeks built all sorts of buildings, but the main example of Greek architecture that survives today are their large temples, such as the Parthenon in Athens, that they built to their goddess Athena. Which former temple, link question here, which former temple dedicated to the goddess Athena, is a surviving example of ancient Greek architecture? So in your answer you can say that hmm, in Athens is an example of surviving Greek architecture. So at this point, pause the video and complete that question. Answer the question. Let's have a look. Which former of temple dedicated to the goddess Athena is a surviving example of ancient Greek architecture. The answer's of course the Parthenon. So the Parthenon in Athens is an example of Ancient Greek architecture. It was built in honour of the goddess Athena. Awesome job my friends. I'm going to leave the answers up, so that you can check it against your own. Now let's move on to the field of science. The Ancient Greeks made many advancements in science and technology. And Greek philosophers began to look at the world in different ways. And they came up with theories on how the world work. And for that the natural world, obeyed certain laws that could be observed and learned through study. And the Greeks were one of the first civilizations to study medicine as a scientific way to cure illnesses and disease. They had doctors who studied sick people, observed the sentence and then came up with some practical treatments. And one of the most famous Greek doctors was Hippocrates. Hippocrates taught that diseases had natural causes and that they could sometimes be cured by natural means. The Hippocratic oath is used today to uphold medical ethics. And they're still taken by medical students today. The Greeks also love to study the world around them. And this included living organisms. Aristotle studied animals in great detail. And he wrote down his observations in a book called, The History of Animals. He heavily influenced zoologists for years by classifying animals, according to the different characteristics. And later on, Greek scientists continued Aristotle's work by studying and classifying plants. So Aristotle is famous for classifying animals, later, Greek scientists, they began to classify plants. Let's answer the question. This question here. What did Hippocrates teach about medicine? So Hippocrates taught that, what did he teach about medicine? Can have a think. If you need to rewind to watch that part of the video, you can do that. That's totally fine. So at this point, pause the video and complete that task. Let's see and find out what the answer is. What did Hippocrates teach about medicine? Hippocrates taught that disease had natural causes and they could sometimes be cured by natural means. Before that, people used to think, in times of being punished by their gods, that would be a cause for disease. But Hippocrates thought actually diseases caused by natural causes and we can sometimes cure it by natural means. So he moved away the field of medicine away from mere superstition to actually studying the human body. So at this point, pause the video and check that your answer matches my own. Now, let's move on to the next section. And this next section is going to tell you about the great achievements of the Ancient Greeks, in the fields of drama, literature and sport. Now the answer Greeks developed drama, and it's been a cultural gift to the world ever since. It began as part of the festival to the Greek god Dionysus, but eventually became a major part of Greek culture. There were two main types of plays that the Greeks performed. These were tragedies and comedies, styles which are still used in the present day. And the best playwrights of the day, became famous celebrities. And some of the most famous ones include Sophocles, Euripides and Aristophanes. And the first actor was set up being a man named Thespis. What was he called, Thespis. Good job. And today actors are sometimes referred to as Thespians. Thespis and Thespians. I can see the influence of Greek culture there. The Ancient Greeks also developed an alphabet for writing and the common language was one of the things that brought Greeks together. The Greek alphabet is still used today, and it's been a part, it's been a source for many other alphabets around the world. The Ancient Greeks also left us, some of the most famous works in literature, which is still read and analysed to this present day. Examples include the Odyssey and the Iliad, which were epic poems written by Homer, who was a poet himself in the eighth century, BCE. The Odyssey tells us about the many adventures of the Greek God, the Greek hero, Odysseus while the Iliad telling us the story of the last share of the Trojan war, which was fought between the city of Troy and the Greeks. At the integration was also important in the development of how we recorded history, which is what we're studying now. With more emphasis being put on research and detail. And examples include Herodotus who is a historian who chronicled the wars against the Persian Empire. And Herodotus is often called the father of history. Another important figure is Thucydides, who wrote about the Peloponnesian wars between Athens and Sparta. Now let's complete the sentence here. This summarises the last slide, which was about the famous historians who developed the field of history. So at this point, what I want you to do, is pause the video and complete that task. So let's all look and see if you got it right. The Greek historians, Herodotus often referred to as the father of history and Thucydides are known for their attention to detail and the amount of research put into their work. Awesome job my friends. Now let's have a look at the field of sport. Now, the Greek started the Olympic games almost 3000 years ago. That's a long time ago in 776 BCE. That was when they formed the first ancient Olympics. And they were held nearly every four years for over a thousand years until they were stopped in 393 A.D. And the Olympic games were held in Olympia, hence the name Olympics. They were held there because the gods lived on mount Olympus. And their games were held in honour of the King of the gods Zeus. Athletes would travel to Olympia from many different Greek city states and sometimes from far away Greek colonies in order to compete. And after there they would stop, there where the spirit of around 5,000 years when there were no Olympics, but Baron Pierre de Coubertin found the international Olympic committee in 1894. And that led to the very first modern Olympic games in 1896. And it was held in the city of Athens. The games are now held every four years. And there were another visible sign of the Ancient Greek influence on the modern world. So, let's have a look at this one. In this task, what I want you to do, is I want to tell me, whether these statements are true or whether they are false. So I'm going to read the statements to you, and then you're going to decide, is that true or is that false? So A, the Ancient Olympic games were held in the city state of Sparta, true or false? B, the Ancient Olympics were held in honour of the God Zeus, again, true or false? And last one, you really covered this one. The first modern Olympics were held in 1896 AD in the city of Athens, is that true or is that false? So at this point, pause the video and complete that task. Let's see. Did you think, which ones did you think were true which ones did you think were false? So, A, the Ancient Olympic games were held in the city of Sparta, guys that is false. They were held in the city state of Olympia. Hence the name, the Olympics, B, the Ancient Olympics were held in honour of the God Zeus, that is true. And then the first modern Olympics were held in 1896 AD, in the city of Athens. That is also true. Awesome job my friends, I'm going to leave it up, so that you can check your answers against my own. Let's move on to the last section. And this one is all about Ancient Greek inventions. The Ancient Greeks can also be credited with many inventions and discoveries that we still use to the present day. And many of these have been developed and adapted by subsequent generations. The Ancient Greeks findings in the areas of astronomy, geography and mathematics made them pioneers in the field of science and engineering. And the military successes of Alexander the Great were also down to ingenious military tactics, which are still studied today. The Ancient Greeks are credited for developing things, such as the watermill, the alarm clock and the cartography, which is the study and practise of making maps. And you might think, how can that be an alarm clock? Well, Plato, the philosopher, he invented a clock which used water as a way of telling time, how ingenious? And from that we developed the alarm clock. So in conclusion, what were the great achievements of the Ancient Greeks? Well, there are so many to list. The Ancient Greeks are considered to be one of the most influential civilizations in history. Because from democracy to philosophy, drama, and mathematics, their ideas remain influential to this day. Their approach to medicine, history and science impacts the way we approach our subjects today. Their military successes, primarily under Alexander the Great, are still studied to this day. And just like in Ancient Greece, now we celebrate the Olympic games every four years. Where the best athletes compete to be the best in the world. And finally, we still use some things developed by the Ancient Greeks, including water mills, alarm clocks, maps, and even writing. And remember that much of the English alphabet has Greek origins. So now, if anybody asked you, why were the Ancient Greeks so great? Then you are now an expert on the subject and you can say exactly why. And guys that is the end of our lesson. Great work today, awesome job. It's now time to complete your end of lesson quiz. And if you'd like to, please ask your parent or carer to share your work. They can do on Instagram, they can do on Facebook, they can do on Twitter. They're going to tag @Oaknational, and they're going to the hashtag #LearnWithOak. If there's anything you want to share, please ask your parents or carer to do that for you. Thank you so much for all of your hard work today. I know there was a lot to cover, but there was so many achievements made by the Ancient Greeks that it was difficult to make it short. But thank you so much for persevering and for showing lot's of patience. Thank you so much for all of your hard work. And I shall see you in our next lesson. Goodbye my friends.

In today's lesson, we will be writing an essay about the Ancient Greeks. We will write about their greatest achievements and how these have an impact to the present day. This lessons will give you a chance to apply everything that you have learnt in this unit!

Extended Writing: What were the achievements of the Ancient Greeks?

What does an archaeologist do?

Who became known as the 'Father of History'?

The Olympics were held in honour of which Ancient Greek god?

In which city-state did democracy first develop?

What did Solon propose in his new constitution?

Who was considered a citizen in Ancient Athens? Tick one.

Which philosopher is referred to as the 'Father of Western philosophy'?

Which philosopher tutored Alexander the Great?

In 327 BCE, Alexander's army refused to fight against the Nanda Empire as they were tired of war and frightened of their enemy's elephant units. True or false?

Unit Overview: Ancient Greece

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