text: When I was in the sixth grade we moved twice, and in all three of the schools from New Jersey to Connecticut to Japan I got to study Ancient Greece in the history part of the class.  I also got a lot of mileage out of having read Edith Hamilton's "Mythology" (I still have my mythology report with my versions of all of the illustrations).  But in all the times I got to study Ancient Greece before, during, and after the sixth grade I never got to do any of the fun stuff that Avery Hart & Paul Mantell come up with for "Ancient Greece!: 40 Hands-On Activities to Experience This Wondrous Age."  
  
  This Kaleidoscope Kids volume for kids ages 7-12 not only offers activities but also a variety of information about the Ancient Greeks.  So this is not simply a book of activities that teachers can pick and choose from to give their students hands-on experiences, it is also a source of facts and stories that will supplement what exists in whatever textbook is being used.  Throughout the book there are "Great Greeks!" and things to "Think About."  After reminding young readers of the gifts that have come down to us from Ancient Greece, Hart and Mantell get students acclimated to the idea of looking at the past from the perspective of those who lived way back when.  Then the book looks at key periods of Greek history.
  
  "Meet the Minoans: The Pre-Greeks of Crete" looks at the culture that gave rise to the greatness of Greece with activities to make a Greek yo-yo, a Great Mother figure, a Hamster Labyrinth (without the Minotaur), and a fantastic fresco.  That gives you an indication of the sort of activities to be found in this book before we even get to Greece itself.  Other chapters are devoted to "The Age of Heroes," where you get a super-short version of "The Iliad" and can build a Trojan Horse, "Language Unites!" (including speaking "Pig Greek"), "The Dawn of a Golden Age," where you can organize a pentathlon and make a victory wreath, and "Ye Gods! Greek Religion and Mythology," where you can design your own constellation.
  
  In the last part of the book chapters cover "Classical Athens: The Flower of Ancient Civilization," where you get to build a Greek Temple with Ionic columns (or even build the entire Parthenon), "Think For Yourself: Philosophy," where students can make a monochord or hold a symposium, and "The Amazing Arts," which covers create sculptures and painting pots in the first part and making masks to make up a Greek play in the second part.  The final chapter covers "A Wider World: Alexander the Great and the Hellenistic Age," where you can start a library.  At the end, students can appreciate how being a Greek meant standing in the center of the world (as least, as far as the Ancient Greeks were concerned).  
  
  Again, there are some key issues to be discussed to go along with the activities.  Students can debate what is the difference between a hero and a celebrity, understand why every vote counts in a democracy, and decide what makes somebody beautiful.  Learning how to press olives or how huge blocks of marble were transported across the sea, gives students an appreciation for how things were different way back when.  Throughout the book Hart and Mantell show how ancient ideas live on in modern traditions, which remains the biggest legacy of the Ancient Greeks.  
  
  I teach Classical Greek & Roman Mythology (not to be confused with Modern Greek & Roman Mythology apparently) but I teach it online so I do not really have any opportunities to have my students engage in hands-on activities.  But that does not mean I cannot do them in the privacy of my own home or that elementary school teachers will not find these extremely useful for their unit on Ancient Greece.  Although I am suddenly reminded of coming up with the "Sparthens" (a.k.a. the warriors with the brains) in elementary school.  But that is another story
  