UNIT TEMPLATE

Unit Title: The Culture of Ancient Greece

Content Area/Grade Level(s): Social Studies/7th
Implementation Time Frame: 14 Days
Stage 1 Desired Results
Established Goals:
RH 6-8.1; 2; 4- 7; 9; and 10
Enduring Understandings

Many of our political beliefs

come from Greece.
Many of our cultural practices
such as Drama, Art, and
Architecture come from Greece.
The spread of Greek Culture.
Students will be given the
opportunity to decide whether
or not Alexander the Great was
a villain or hero.

Essential Questions

How does our understanding of

fables reflect in our daily lives?
What is perspective?
What makes a person a villain or a
hero?
How have I been affected by past
cultures in present day?

Students will be able to.

Students will be able to identify cultural similarities between the Ancient

Greeks and their own lives in the United States.
Students will be able to explain classical mythology, epics, and fables and
compare them to stories that they have heard or phrases that have affected
their lives.
Students will push their own learning through the process of Socratic
seminar. They will establish an opinion of Alexander the Great.
Students will express themselves freely, yet controlled. They will practice
not only speaking informatively to their peers, but paraphrasing and
listening to them as well.

Stage 2 Assessment Evidence

Performance Task(s):
Other Evidence
Greek Prezi Project
Alexander the Great: Villain or Hero

Double Entry Journal

Exit Slap
Heads up
Graphic Organizers
Journal Entries
Reading Guides
See Think Wonder

Micro-lab
Teacher Observation
Prezi presentation

Stage 3 Learning Plan

Learning Activities:
Day 1:

1. 5 minutes. Warm up: What do you know about Gods or

Goddesses? Explain.

2. 11 minutes. 7 wonders of Ancient Greece video: The Palace of

Knossos https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5T2qVX6PU6c give
students Video Question Packet available in supplemental
materials #1.

3. 35 minutes. Student will read pages 155-163 filling out Double

Entry Journal (located in Supplemental materials #2) for note
taking. Students should learn how to take notes on their own
before working with a partner. Their notes should include
important people, places, events, and concepts.

Day 2:

1. 5 minutes. Warm up:

2. 7 minutes. 7 wonders of Ancient Greece video: The Oracle of

Delphi https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5T2qVX6PU6c Have

students take out their Question Packet to answer along with the
video.
3. Students will then be given time to finish their Double Entry
Journals from the previous day to ensure that they have all the
notes and terms that they need.
4. Next, the teacher will put students with a partner for the upcoming
Research Project. Students will also be given an Ancient Greece
Culture Rubric located in supplemental materials #3 for their
Prezi presentation. The teacher will take the time to prepare the
students for the upcoming days in the library so that time is
managed appropriately. The following topics will be designated.
a. Greek Mythology
1. Zeus
2. Apollo
3. Hades
4. Hera
5. Poseidon

6. Hestia
7. Athena
b. Greek Poetry and Fables
1. The Iliad
2. The Odyssey
3. The Fox and the Goat
4. The Boy who cried Wolf
5. The Ant and the Grasshopper
6. The Fox and the Lion
7. The Tortoise and the Hare
c. Greek Drama
1. Aristophanes- Clouds
2. Aristophanes- Knights
3. Aristophanes- Wasp
4. Aristophanes- Birds
5. Aristophanes - Frogs
d. Greek Architecture
e. Greek Sculpture
f. Greek Art
Day 3, 4, and 5:

1. LIBRARY/COMPUTER LAB
2. Prezi Research Project! Students will be given a partner in order to
complete a Prezi presentation. The teacher will select who is to be
their partner, as some students need help staying on task.
Students will be given 2 days in the library in order to complete
this assignment. They will spend the first day researching their
topic, and the second creating their Prezi. Students need to make
sure that they are paired with someone who has internet to ensure
that their project gets completed.
3. Students may need to be guided in making a Prezi account if they
do not already have one.
4. On the third day, students will present their project to the class for
final assessment. At the end of the presentations, students will be
asked one at a time to tell the teacher something that they
learned that day.
Day 6:

1. 10 minutes. Warm up:

2. Olympic Gods and Goddess chart- Students will read about the

Gods and Goddesses in a packet provided for them. After the

finish the reading, they will proceed to fill out the chart provided
for them on the last page.
3. Students will participate in an open discussion in small groups with
the following questions as prompts:

A. In what ways might some people be more powerful than the

others?

B. How might religion affect a community?

C. What might be some reasons for people to create or believe
in certain religions?

Day 7:

1. 10-15 minutes. See Think Wonder

2. Creating a Myth! Students will be given several days to complete

this assignment. They will be given the instructions as well as a

partner to work with. The teacher will have the computer cart
signed out in order to allow students to research Mythology. They
will be given a packet to guide them in their journey. Students will
be given a choice as to what way they would like to present their
myth to the class.
A. Cartoon/Graphic Novel
B. Skit
C. Prezi
D. Story

Day 8:

1. 5 minutes. Warm up: How might you describe that there is an

absolute wrong or right? Meaning something is always and no

matter the situation right or wrong.
2. 5 minutes. 7 wonders of Ancient Greece video: The Theatre of
Epidaurus https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5T2qVX6PU6c
3. 35 minutes. Have students read Chapter 5 section 2 Greek
Philosophy and History. When they finish reading, they will be
asked to make Notecards. On one side they will put the
philosopher/historian, and on the other they will write their
accomplishments. They are as follows.
a. Pythagoras
b. Socrates
c. Plato
d. Aristotle
e. Herodotus
f. Thucydides
4. 5 minutes. Students will then play the heads up review game
with a partner for closure.
Day 9:

1. 5 minutes. Warm up: In what ways is history important?

2. 7 minutes. 7 wonders of Ancient Greece video: The Colossus of
Rhodes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5T2qVX6PU6c

3. 5 minutes. Have a quick review with students using the Question

Response Question method (QRQ). It is important for students to

give majority of the information, and the teacher simply thinks on
their feet by asking questions that reflect their thinking.
4. 15 minutes. Carousel Brainstorming. The teacher will put
students in groups of 4. Each group will receive a piece of chart
paper. Each student will be given a marker that matches no one
else. This way the teacher can tell which student had which
thought. Half of the groups will have one of the two prompts
listed. Students will pass the chart paper around the table twice
so that each has answered twice. No repeats are permitted on the
paper. After this has been completed, they will then be posted at
the front of the room for review.
1. What do you think it means to be a great military leader?
2. What do you think it means to be an effective ruler?
5. 20 minutes. Next, have students read Chapter 5 section 3
Alexander the Great. Have them fill out the Guided Notes
Chapter 5.3 that accompanies this section of the book found in
supplemental materials #4. They may work on this in their
designated tables from the Carousel Brainstorming.
Day 10:

1. 5 minutes. Warm up: Think of a time when you wanted something

2.
3.

4.
5.

someone else had. How did you feel? What did you do about it?
5 minutes. 7 wonders of Ancient Greece video: The Birth of the
Olympics https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5T2qVX6PU6c
30 minutes. Allow students to spend some time finishing their
Guided Notes Chapter 4.3 that they began yesterday. It is likely
that they did not finish. Once they finish, this will be reviewed in
class to ensure that they have the correct answers. These will also
be collected as an assessment.
7 minutes. Students will then add to their Carousel Brainstorm
chart list to see if they are missing any characteristics that they
read about. These changes will be discussed as a class.
3 minutes. They will finish class with an exit slap. They will be
given a post-it note and asked, What was one thing that they
learned? Students will then put their answers on the note and
slap it to the chart paper the teacher provides for the Exit
Slap.

Day 11:

1. 5 minutes. Warm up: Describe what you think your life will look

like when you are 25 years old?

2. 20 minutes. . 7 wonders of Ancient Greece video: The Lost City of
Atlantis and The Parthenon https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=5T2qVX6PU6c

3. Socratic Seminar: Alexander the GreatVillain or Hero?

a. Discussion:
1. Why do we remember certain people? How do we get our
names into History Textbooks?

2. Remind students of Alexander the Great from their reading.

3. Why do we remember him as Great? How do we know he is
Great? (he killed 1000s)

b. 2 minutes. Video Clip from the movie Alexander

1. Ask students how he is portrayed in the video? Does he look

like a hero or a villain?

c. See Think Wonder! Project Mosaic of Alexander.
1. Share student thinking with the entire class.
d. Introduce Hero v. Villain Perspective
1. Ask students how they would feel if the school required
students to have at least 3 hours of homework a night?
How might your reaction be different from your teachers or
parents? Explain that events in history also can have a
different meaning based on perspective and the eye of the
beholder.
Day 12:

1. Project Room: Students will be separated into 4 groups in the

project room. Two groups will be given the perspective of the

Hero, and the other two the historian perspective of the Villain.
They will read the background information for the appropriate
perspective provided in the Alexander the Great: Hero or
Villain Socratic activity packet located in supplemental materials
#5.
a. 15 minutes. First, they will the background information
about Alexander the Great. Some of these portray Alexander
the Great as a Villain and some as a Hero. They will use
the !,?, and lasso technique for this section of reading.
Afterwards they will take notes in the Background
information of the activity packet.
b. 10 minutes. Second, students will learn about 4 events and
take notes on the Hero or Villain perspective on the graphic
organizer in the packet.
c. 20 minutes. Last, student will participate in a Micro-lab.
They will be put into groups of 4 of each perspective, and
each perspective will get 5 minutes to discuss their
perspective of Alexander the Great. They will end with 10
minutes of discussion practicing paraphrasing and listening
as to whether or not they think he was a villain or hero.
d. Class will end with a full discussion of asking students what
they thought about Alexander the Great, hero or villain. As
well as getting feedback on how they felt their discussion
was.

Day 13:

1. 5 minutes. Warm up: Imagine you are a leader in a new town. In

what ways would you make it the best city possible?

2. 10 minutes. Prediction. Have students predict what they think will
happen after the collapse of Alexander the Greats Empire. What
might happen to Greek culture? Have them write this in their
journals.
3. 30 minutes. Students will read Chapter 5 Section 4 The Spread of
Greek Culture. They will fill out the Guided Reading 5.4 to
accompany this reading located in supplemental materials #6.
They may work in tables of 4 in order to complete this.
4. 5 minutes. Students will play the heads up review game with
terms from this chapter.
Day 14 and 15:

1. Students will prepare for the upcoming test. Day one of review

they will be given quiz 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, and 5.4 located in
supplemental materials. These will be check in class as an entire
class discussion. Students will also be guided as to what
worksheets are available to them for study that they have worked
on for the chapter. If they have time, they will each get a partner,
they will make 10 quiz questions. They will then be paired up with
another group in order to quiz each other.
a. 2 guided reading packets
b. Notecards
c. Double Entry Journal
d. Alexander the Great Socratic Packet
2. Day 2 of review will involve heads up, and a competitive game of
Grudgeball! Students will also be permitted at any time of review
to ask the teacher questions that may confuse them.
Day 16:

1. Test Day! Students will be given all the time they need to

complete the test. Some will take the entire class. This will not be
open book/note. If students finish early, the teacher will show the
Empire of Greece film.