Contextualization

Ancient Greece was a period of human history that significantly impacted Western culture. From there emerged the concepts of democracy, philosophy, theater, and sports competitions that influenced and still directly affect contemporary society.

In this project, we will travel back in time to Ancient Greece, exploring its ideas, culture, economy, and politics. Our goal is to deeply understand what Ancient Greece was, how this civilization influenced the world, and how it reflects on our current time.

Introduction

Ancient Greece, considered the cradle of Western civilization, presents a rich and complex history. Composed of several city-states, the so-called polis, Ancient Greece became known mainly for Athens and Sparta. Each of these cities had its own political, social, and cultural structures.

Classical Athens is recognized as the birthplace of democracy, Western philosophy, written literature, major dramatic arts (comedy and tragedy), political sciences, academia, history (as an academic discipline), law, and mathematics.

On the other hand, Sparta, known for its strong army and education focused on training warriors, offers us a different perspective on Ancient Greece. Sparta was an oligarchic city-state, ruled by a few. Thus, we have an overview of how a single region, although unified in terms of language, religion, and customs, had an incredible cultural and political diversity.

Practical Activity

Activity Title:

"Recreating Ancient Greece: A Journey through History"

Project Objective:

This project aims to provide students with a closer and more detailed observation of Ancient Greece, understanding its cultural, social, political, and economic aspects, as well as the influence of this civilization on our contemporary society.

Detailed Project Description:

The groups will create a model representing one of the city-states of Ancient Greece (Athens or Sparta), showing the architecture, way of life, culture, economy, and political organization of the chosen city. In addition, they must prepare a performance or narrative of a notable event that occurred in the represented city. Finally, the group must present the model, the performance, and a written report on Ancient Greece.

Required Materials:

The materials to be used in this project may vary depending on the students' creativity, but we suggest the following:

• Cardboard, paper, glue, scissors, paint, etc. for building the model.
• Costumes and props for the performance.
• Computer or notebook for writing the report.

Detailed Step-by-Step:

1. Divide the class into groups of 3 to 5 students.
2. Each group must choose a city-state (Athens or Sparta) to research and represent.
3. Students should research the chosen city using the suggested bibliography and other sources.
4. Each group must outline the model and the performance. The outline should detail how the model will represent the architecture, culture, economy, and politics of the city. The performance should narrate a notable event from the chosen city.
5. Students will build the model according to the outlined plan.
6. While building the model, students should start preparing the script and rehearsing the performance.
7. Finally, each group must present the model and the performance to the class.
8. Each group must prepare a written report covering the following topics: Introduction, Development, Conclusions, and Bibliography used.

Project Deliverables and Writing of the Written Document:

In addition to the model and the performance, each group must deliver a written report. The report should have the following topics:

1. Introduction: It should contextualize Ancient Greece, the chosen city, and why that city was chosen. It should also indicate the relevance of studying Ancient Greece for understanding the contemporary world.

2. Development: It should explain the theory behind the chosen theme (Architecture, Culture, Economy, or Politics). It should detail the research methodology, model construction, and performance preparation. It should discuss the challenges encountered during the project and how they were overcome.

3. Conclusions: It should provide a reflection on the learnings obtained throughout the project development and what conclusions about Ancient Greece and its influence on the contemporary world were drawn.

4. Bibliography: It should contain all the research sources used, organized according to the ABNT standard.

By the end of this project, students will have not only explored in-depth the concept of Ancient Greece and its city-states but also developed important socio-emotional skills, such as teamwork, time management, problem-solving, effective communication, and creative thinking.