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Home , 600 BC, Archaic Greece, Demokratia, Greek democracy, Notion (ancient city)

Social Studies Grade 7 Assignment Week of 5-18-20

Directions: Go to studentintranet.bpsma.org Log into Clever using your BPS username and password. Click on Newsela Copy and paste this link into the browser: https://newsela.com/subject/other/2000267022

Overview & Guiding Questions

Democracy and philosophy. and dramatic tragedies. The Olympic Games. Many of the fundamental elements of Western culture first arose more than 2,000 years ago in ancient . This Topic within the Greece & Unit focuses on the key events and developments in Greek history. These resources will help you learn about the historical development of Greece from disparate city-states to the world's first to a military .

· What was life like in ?

· How and why did forms of government change over time in ancient Greece? · How did ancient Greece influence modern Western society?

Comprehension Question

· What are some important characteristics of the culture of ancient Greece? Why is ancient Greece still studied today?

Part I: Read: Ancient Greece: The First

Define the following vocabulary terms: · · democracy · philosopher (philosophy)

Activities

· Activate Prior Knowledge - Write-Pair-Share: What do you already know about the words democracy and ancient Greece? o Consider: Why are so many people still fascinated by Greek culture? What are you curious about? · Close Reading: Highlight 3 to 5 specific details in RED that illustrate the most important elements of culture. Highlight in BLUE at least 2 ways that ancient Greek culture has directly influenced Western culture as we know it today.

Part 2: PAIRED TEXTS - City-States Vs. Democracy

Overview You will understand that city-states preceded the introduction of democracy in . They will compare and contrast city-states with democratic rule.

Key Takeaways

· Ancient Greece was once made up of city-states governed by wealthy nobles or . · City-states were replaced by democracy around 500 BCE. · was based on the ideas of equality and majority rule, though in reality participation was very limited.

Comprehension Question

· What were the main differences between city-states and democratic governments in ancient Greece? What were the pros and cons of each?

Read the following articles:

· Ancient Greece: The Birth of the City-State · Democracy: A New Idea in Ancient Greece Define the following vocabulary terms: · temple · democracy · citizen · city-state · (aristocrats) Complete the following activities:

· Graphic Organizer - Compare and Contrast: Use one of a T-Chart to record important details about city-states in Athens. Then, use the other side to record important details about democratic rule in Athens. Finally, use a Venn Diagram to compare and contrast the two time periods.

· Debate: If you could travel back in time and live in Athens during EITHER the time of city-states or the time of democratic rule, which would you choose and why? Cite evidence from the article to support your position.

Ancient Greece: The first Greeks By USHistory.org on 04.03.17 Word Count 591 Level MAX

A wall painting from a palace at Knossos, a large archaeological site on . The Minoans lived on this Greek island more than 3,500 years ago. Image from: Wikimedia Commons.

Democracy. Philosophy. Sculpture. Dramatic tragedies. The Olympic Games.

Many of the fundamental elements of Western culture first arose more than 2,000 years ago in ancient Greece.

After conquering the Greeks, the ancient Romans spread Greek ideas throughout their empire, which included much of .

After the fall of the , these ideas lost their prominence in European society during most of the Middle Ages (A.D. 500-1500). It was not until the Renaissance (1350-1500) that the ancient Greek and Roman origins of many European institutions and practices were rediscovered.

One prominent element of Greek thought was the concept that humans are the measure of all things. The ancient Greeks wanted to know how the universe works. To probe such questions, the Greeks turned to philosophy, mathematics and science.

All Things Human

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. The glorification of the human form and of human accomplishment defined ancient , philosophy, literature and religion. Even their gods were created in the image of humans. The Greek gods had human emotions, looked like humans, and behaved more like people than infallible gods.

The Greeks' emphasis on the individual is one major cornerstone of Western civilization. Indeed, the spirit of individualism as defined by the Greeks is still alive and well in modern American culture and society.

The Greeks were the first in the West to experiment with the concept of democratic government. Many successful modern democratic governments in the world today are heirs to the Greek model. It must be pointed out that though the Greeks developed the notion of "government by the people," most people were still excluded from the political process.

The First Greeks

Two major groups of people, the Minoans and the Mycenaeans, were the first to populate the Greek peninsula. Not much is known about either of these groups because they did not leave an abundance of written or physical evidence to provide clues about their civilization. However, it is known that by 1650 B.C., the Minoans occupied the island of Crete that is south of the Greek mainland. The Minoans were named for the legendary ruler of Crete, King Minos. Historians believe that the Minoans were seafaring traders who developed a rich, diverse culture.

The Mycenaeans came from a group of people who migrated from India through the Middle East and into Greece around the year 2,000 B.C. These Indo- Europeans mixed with the native population of Greece to become the Mycenaeans. Over time, both the Minoans and Mycenaeans expanded and conquered territory until the two civilizations ran into one another.

Historians suspect that in the ensuing conflict, the Mycenaeans wiped out the Minoans, whose civilization and culture disappeared somewhat mysteriously. By 1,200 B.C., the Mycenaeans were in turn wiped out by another group known as the . This ushered in a Dark Age that lasted from 1,150 to 800 B.C. During this time, economic activity ground to a halt, and literacy disappeared. Not much is known about this period in Greek history.

But a highly developed civilization resurfaced. From and philosophy to art, medicine and science, the ancient Greeks generated thoughts that shaped the record of humankind for the next 2,500 years.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. Ancient Greece: Democracy is born By USHistory.org, adapted by Newsela staff on 04.05.17 Word Count 561 Level MAX

Image 1. An illustration of the of Athens in Ancient Greece. The agora was a large open space in the center of the city. The assembly meetings of early Greek democracy took place here. Photo by DeAgostini/Getty Images

Ancient Greece was made up of several small city-states, including Athens and . Democracy began in Athens around 500 B.C. when democracy began. The citizens of Athens were given the right to vote.

Not everyone in Athens was considered a citizen, however. Only free, adult men enjoyed the rights and responsibility of citizenship. That meant only about 20 percent of the population of Athens were citizens. Women were not citizens and therefore could not vote or have any say in the political process. They were rarely permitted out in public and were even restricted as to where they could be within their own homes. Slaves and foreigners were not citizens, either, and also could not participate in the democracy. In the end, democracy existed only for the free men who were originally from Athens.

A Worthy Contribution

Nevertheless, the idea of democratic government is one of the most significant contributions of the ancient Greeks. The city-state of Athens had one of the largest in terms of population.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. Early in Athens' history (around 594 B.C.), a man named enacted reforms that helped reduce the growing gap between the rich and the poor. Poor citizens gained the right to sit in the assembly and to vote.

Later, expanded the democracy by giving every citizen equal rights. He also created a legislative body whose members were picked randomly from the general population of citizens.

Typically, the citizens of Athens would gather in the agora when there was an assembly meeting. The agora, a fixture of every major Greek city-state, was a large open space in the middle of the city-state that contained a marketplace as well as government buildings. There, citizens would mingle and discuss the issues of the day before gathering for the assembly meeting. During the meeting, citizens were free to express their opinions and cast their votes.

The courts, too, were usually in the agora. The juries in court cases were very large, often numbering in the hundreds and sometimes in the thousands. To be fair, Athenians wanted their juries to reflect the general population. There were no lawyers. Each citizen was expected to make his own case.

In Athens, the people governed, and the majority ruled. All citizens had equal rights and powers. Athenian democracy depended on every citizen fulfilling his role. All citizens were expected to vote, but they were also expected to serve in the government if necessary. Every citizen was required to participate or suffer punishment. This practice stands in stark contrast to modern democratic governments in which citizens can choose whether or not they wish to participate. In Athenian democracy, all citizens pulled their weight.

In a city-state as small as Athens, a pure democracy was possible. As states grew larger, the notion of electing representatives to make decisions for the public became more practical. But the idea that every citizen has a voice important enough to be heard originated in ancient Athens.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. Quiz

1 Read the summary below. Choose the answer that BEST fits into the blank to complete the summary.

The first democracy began 2,500 years ago in Athens, Greece, but not everyone was able to participate in democracy. Early in the history of democracy, Solon tried to help poor citizens get the right to vote and Cleisthenes later gave all citizens in Athens equal rights.

______.

In contrast to the Athenian idea of requiring citizens to participate in government, modern democracies let their citizens choose to vote and many elect representatives to make decisions for them.

Which answer BEST completes the summary?

(A) During that time, people came together in to discuss important ideas and all citizens were expected to vote.

(B) During that time, people were randomly chosen to be lawmakers and the gap between the rich and poor closed.

(C) During that time, people created a legislative group and the members were all chosen because of their importance.

(D) During that time, people got the right to sit on the assembly and the government of Athens became the largest democracy ever.

2 Read the paragraph that follows the introduction [paragraphs 1-2].

Nevertheless, the idea of democratic government is one of the most significant contributions of the ancient Greeks. The city-state of Athens had one of the largest democracies in terms of population.

What is the relationship between the introduction [paragraphs 1-2] and the paragraph that follows the introduction in the article?

(A) The introduction explains how democracy was created in Athens and the following paragraph explains how democracy spread widely throughout the population of the city-state of Athens.

(B) The introduction explains how democracy excluded many people in Athens and the following paragraph explains that the idea of democracy was still important despite being imperfect.

(C) The introduction explains who was not considered a citizen in Athens and the following paragraph explains how they could still participate in the democracy of Greece.

(D) The introduction explains where the idea of the first democracy came from and the following paragraph lists all of the ways ancient Greeks have contributed to the spread of democracy.

3 Which sentence from the article highlights the idea that democracy has changed since it began in Athens 2,500 years ago?

(A) In a city-state as small as Athens, a pure democracy was possible.

(B) All citizens were expected to vote, but they were also expected to serve in the government if necessary.

(C) As states grew larger, the notion of electing representatives to make decisions for the public became more practical.

(D) But the idea that every citizen has a voice important enough to be heard originated in ancient Athens.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 4 Read the sentence below.

In Athenian democracy, all citizens pulled their weight.

Which piece of evidence BEST explains how Athenians pulled their weight in dealing with court cases?

(A) Typically, the citizens of Athens would gather in the agora when there was an assembly meeting.

(B) There, citizens would mingle and discuss the issues of the day before gathering for the assembly meeting.

(C) The courts, too, were usually in the agora.

(D) The juries in court cases were very large, often numbering in the hundreds and sometimes in the thousands.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. Ancient Greece: The Birth of the City-State By History.com, adapted by Newsela staff on 01.19.17 Word Count 761 Level 940L

The ancient temple of the atop the hill is illuminated in Athens, Greece, on April 26, 2016. Photo by: Aris Messinis/AFP/Getty Images

The term , or ancient Greece, refers to the time between 800 and 500 B.C. It was a relatively sophisticated period in world history. There were advances in art, poetry and technology, but most of all it was the age in which the , or city-state, was invented. The polis became the key feature of Greek political life for hundreds of years.

Protected by a god or goddess

During the so-called “Greek Dark Ages” before the archaic period, people lived scattered throughout Greece in small farming villages. As they grew larger, these villages began to develop. Some built walls, and most built a marketplace and a community meeting place. They developed governments and organized their citizens according to some sort of constitution or set of laws. They raised armies and collected taxes. And every one of these city-states was said to be protected by a particular god or goddess. For example, Athens' goddess was Athena.

The citizens of all the city-states had much in common. They shared the same language and had similar customs. Yet, every Greek city-state was different. The largest, Sparta, controlled about

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 300 square miles of territory; the smallest had just a few hundred people. However, by the dawn of the archaic period in the seventh century B.C., the city-states had developed a number of common characteristics. They all principally relied on agriculture, rather than trade. For this reason, land was every city-state’s most valuable possession. Also, most of the city-states had overthrown their kings, and were ruled by a small number of wealthy nobles.

These nobles had all the political power. For example, they refused to let ordinary people serve on the councils that made political decisions. They also controlled the best farmland, and some even claimed to be descended from the gods. According to the fourth century B.C. philosopher and scientist , "the poor with their wives and children were enslaved to the rich and had no political rights.” Because of this, “there was conflict between the nobles and the people for a long time.”

Colonization

Emigration was one way to relieve some of this conflict. Land was the most important source of wealth in the city-states; it was also, obviously, in limited supply. The pressure of population growth pushed many men away from their home city-state and into sparsely populated areas throughout Greece and beyond. Between 750 and 600 B.C., Greek colonies sprang up from the Mediterranean to Asia Minor, from North Africa to the coast of the . By the end of the seventh century B.C., there were more than 1,500 colonial city-states.

Each of these city-states was independent. In this way, the colonies of the archaic period were different from other colonies we are familiar with: The people who lived there were not ruled by or bound to the city-states from which they came. The new city-states were entirely self-governing.

The rise of the tyrants

As time passed and their populations grew, many of these agricultural city-states began to produce items for sale, such as pottery, cloth, wine and metalwork. Trade in these goods made some people — usually not members of the old landowning class — very wealthy. These people resented the unchecked power of the nobles. They banded together, sometimes with the aid of heavily-armed soldiers, to put new leaders in charge.

These leaders were known as tyrants. Some turned out to be every bit as unjust as the nobles they replaced, while others proved to be enlightened leaders. For example, Theagenes of brought running water to his city. However, the rule of the tyrants did not last. The classical period that followed the archaic period brought with it a series of political reforms, and the tyrants were replaced by a system known as demokratia, or “rule by the people.”

Archaic renaissance?

The colonial migrations of the archaic period had an important effect on art and literature: they spread Greek styles far and wide and encouraged people from all over to take part in the period’s artistic revolutions. The poet , from , produced his "" and "Odyssey" during the archaic period. Artists created carefully proportioned statues that served as memorials to the dead. Scientists made progress too: For example, Anaximandros developed a theory of gravity. Xenophanes wrote about his discovery of fossils, which he correctly identified as the remains of ancient animals.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. The archaic period was a time of rapid economic, political, technological and artistic growth for the Greek city-states. It laid the groundwork for the monumental changes of the next few centuries.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.