Ms. Casassa 6-8 Language Arts: Greek Mythology

Wednesday, May 3, 2017

Greek Mythology

We are going to begin a unit on Greek and Roman Mythology. Before we start consider the question of what is a myth? Why do people and cultures tell stories? How do the gods a culture worship tell us what that culture values and thinks is important? Finally, where do we see these ancient myths and gods in our world today? Ever heard of a brand called Nike? Hermes? Atlas? To start, let's watch this brief overview.

Myths are a way of understanding the world. This lesson has been about Greek mythology, but every culture has myths. Myths define social customs and beliefs, explain natural and psychological phenomena, and provide a way for people to discuss things that cause anxiety. Mythology is all around us.
Create a Greek God Trading Card
What is Mythology? Powerpoint
Famous Greek Myths Class Presentation
Here are just a few examples of places we find myths today.

Days of the week Wednesday (Woden or Odin – Norse god); Thursday (Thor – Norse god); Friday (Freya Norse goddess); Saturday (Saturn – Roman god who ruled before Jove)
Shoes Nike

Cars-Toyota Avalon and Cressida, Cadillac El Dorado, Honda Odyssey, Mercury
Tires Midas
Astronomy Constellations like Orion, the Argo, all of the planets and the Pleiades. The Milky Way itself was supposedly the road over which the stars traveled to Jupiter’s palace.
NASA The first part of U.S. space program was Project Mercury, named after the messenger of the gods because the project’s purpose was to send a message to the Soviets that America was in the space race. The Gemini Project was next; Gemini is Latin for “twins,” and the project was called this because the capsule held two astronauts. Apollo astronauts rode on Saturn rockets.

Myths also make great stories. They come up in literature all over the place, from really serious stuff like Dante to comic strips. Myths inspire music; actually the word music comes from the mythological muses who inspired art of all kinds. Painters such as Michelangelo and Botticelli were inspired by myths. Even children’s movies are a good place to look for myths; you will find them everywhere, including Snow White, Star Wars and The Lord of the Rings. (Taken from http://www.mensaforkids.org/MFK2/assets/File/Teach/LessonPlans/Lesson_GreekMythology.pdf)

Here's another brief video overview