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Upper Key Stage 2 Ancient Greece
Aesop

Research the historical background of Aesop, his fables and their illustrations. Discuss your learning, create your own fables, and round off the block by explaining Aesop to younger children and reading your own story to them.

block outcomes

Session 1 Introduction to Aesop

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Objectives

History

  • Ancient Greece – a study of Greek life and achievements and their influence on the western world.
  • Gain and deploy a historically grounded understanding of abstract terms such as ‘empire’, ‘peasantry’, 'slavery'.
  • Understand how our knowledge of the past is constructed from a range of sources.
  • Discern how and why contrasting arguments and interpretations of the past have been constructed.

English

  • Increase familiarity with myths, legends and traditional stories.

Art

  • Learn about great artists, architects and designers in history.

Lesson Planning

Research the history of Aesop and his fables; discover the history of the illustrations of Aesop's Fables.

Teaching Outcomes:

  • To understand how we know about Aesop and assess the sources.
  • To understand the background to the fables.
  • To explore some of the ways Aesop and the fables have been depicted.

Children will:

  • Explain the history of Aesop.
  • Explain the history of the fables.
  • Explain the history of the illustrations of Aesop's Fables.

You Will Need

  • Notebooks or sketchbooks

Session 2 The Fables

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Objectives

History

  • Study Ancient Greek life and achievements and their influence on the western world.
  • Understand how our knowledge of the past is constructed from a range of sources.

English

  • Increase familiarity with myths, legends and traditional stories.
  • Check that the stories make sense to them, discussing their understanding and exploring the meaning of words in context.
  • Draw inferences such as inferring characters’ feelings, thoughts and motives from their actions, and justifying inferences with evidence.
  • Predict what might happen from details stated and implied.

Lesson Planning

Discuss your understanding of a story; understand the importance of oral story telling; retell from memory a fable they have become familiar with and finally assess what the stories tell us about life in Ancient Greece.

Teaching Outcomes:

  • To assess what the fables tell us about Ancient Greek life and thought.
  • To read and discuss the fables.

Children will:

  • Discuss their understanding of a story.
  • Retell from memory a story they have become familiar with.
  • Assess what the stories tell us about life in Ancient Greece.

Provided Resources

  • Analysing the fables
  • Compare and contrast four different versions of the same fable

You Will Need

  • The Orchard Book of Aesop's Fables by Michael Morpurgo and Emma Chichester Clark
  • Web-enabled devices to be used in groups
  • Sketchbooks
  • Animations of Aesop's Fables by Hoopla Kidz on YouTube (search for Aesop Hooplakidz)

Session 3 Plan a storyboard

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Objectives

History

  • Study Ancient Greek life and achievements and their influence on the western world.
  • Create their own structured accounts, including written narratives and analyses.

English

  • Note and develop initial ideas, drawing on reading and research where necessary.

Art

  • Create sketchbooks to record their observations and use them to review and revisit ideas.

Lesson Planning

Make sketches in a sketchbook based on other artists' work; Plan a story using a storyboard using your knowledge of Aesop and his fables.

Teaching Outcomes:

  • To plan a storyboard of one of the fables.
  • To plan to rewrite a fable using a storyboard.
  • To draw a storyboard.

Children will:

  • Make sketches in a sketchbook based on other artists' work.
  • Plan a story using a storyboard.
  • Apply their knowledge of Aesop and the fables to aspects of the story.

You Will Need

  • Sketchbooks

Session 4 Write a picture book

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Objectives

History

  • Study Ancient Greek life and achievements and their influence on the western world.
  • Create their own structured accounts, including written narratives and analyses.
  • Construct informed responses that involve thoughtful selection and organisation of relevant historical information.

English

  • Identify the audience for and purpose of the writing, select the appropriate form and use other similar writing as models for their own.
  • Note and develop initial ideas, drawing on reading and research where necessary.
  • In narratives, describe settings, characters and atmosphere and integrating dialogue to convey character and advance the action.

Art

  • Improve mastery of art and design techniques, including drawing, painting and sculpture with a range of materials.

Lesson Planning

Rewrite a story in your own words based on previous drafts; Illustrate your story based on previous drafts and sketches.

Teaching Outcomes:

  • To write a foreword to their book about Aesop and Ancient Greece.
  • To rewrite a fable as a picture book for younger children.
  • To illustrate their picture books.

Children will:

  • Arrange historical information into a narrative.
  • Rewrite a story in their own words based on previous drafts.
  • Illustrate a story based on previous drafts and sketches.

You Will Need

  • Storyboards
  • Notebooks
  • Pencils, crayons, felt tips and paint
  • Collage materials

Weblinks

There are no weblinks needed for this session.

Session 5 Reading to others

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Objectives

History

  • Study Ancient Greek life and achievements and their influence on the western world.
  • Create their own structured accounts, including written narratives and analyses.
  • Construct informed responses that involve thoughtful selection and organisation of relevant historical information.

English

  • Extend confidence, enjoyment and mastery of language through public speaking & performance.

Lesson Planning

Give a structured account of Aesop and read your own story to younger children.

Teaching Outcomes:

  • To read their books to younger children and answer questions.
  • To read their story to younger children.

Children will:

  • Give a structured account of Aesop and one of his fables to younger children.
  • Read aloud to an audience.

You Will Need

You do not need any particular resources for this session.

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