Year 4 History Ancient Greeks Unit

This unit is designed for year 4 but could be adapted to fit into other year groups. The unit focuses on the classical period of Ancient Greece. Throughout this unit, children will spend time learning what an archaeologist does. They will also learn how to carry out different types of historical research; develop their understanding of triremes and hoplites; Use Google Apps to become more familiar with the region; Better understand leadership by understanding Pericles and use historical artefacts to make inferences about the time. It develops the following skills and knowledge from the National Curriculum:

1. To know and understand significant aspects of the history of the wider world: the nature of ancient civilisations; the expansion and dissolution of empires; achievements and follies of mankind
2. To gain and deploy a historically grounded understanding of abstract terms such as ‘empire’ and ‘civilisation’
3. Understand historical concepts such as continuity and change, cause and consequence, similarity, difference and significance, and use them to make connections, draw contrasts, analyse trends, frame historically-valid questions and create their own structured accounts, including written narratives and analyses.
4. Understand the methods of historical enquiry, including how evidence is used rigorously to make historical claims, and discern how and why contrasting arguments and interpretations of the past have been constructed.
5. Gain historical perspective by placing their growing knowledge into different contexts, understanding the connections between local, regional, national and international history; between cultural, economic, military, political, religious and social history; and between short- and long-term timescales.

Lesson 1: A Chronology lesson which uses photographic evidence to give the children a deeper understanding of how and why different periods/peoples in time were so different. Children make links between different time periods as they start to use the language of chronology.

Lesson 2: Children learn why the Ancient Greek gods were so important to the Ancient Greeks.
Lesson 3: Children use a Google App to better explore the physical geography of Greece and Ancient Greek city states.

Lesson 4/5: Children take the role of an Archaeologist to better understand the Ancient Greeks.

Lesson 6: A research activity where the children are given the opportunity to discover more about Ancient Greek warfare and its importance to the Greeks.

Lesson 7. A practical activity where the children make choices about which Greek city state they would prefer to be a part of.

Lesson 8: Children work in teams to compete in a game which helps them better understand the importance of Pericles, democracy and leadership.

Within this unit plan there are hyperlinks to other resources associated with the plan.