The lessons below engage your students in the investigation of ancient Greek and Roman mythology in Western art and literature.

Lessons 1–5 of 5

A Story on a Vase
Grades/Level: Lower Elementary (K–2), Upper Elementary (3–5)
Subjects: Visual Arts, English—Language Arts, History—Social Science
Lesson Overview: Students will examine a scene depicting Herakles (known as Hercules to the Romans) and the Hydra on the face of a black-figure hydria. They will then read Greek myths and choose one to depict in the style of the vase painter, known as the Eagle Painter.

Sculpting a Modern Hero
Grades/Level: Middle School (6–8)
Subjects: Visual Arts, History—Social Science
Lesson Overview: Students will examine the sculpture of the Greek hero Herakles (Hercules to the Romans) and discuss what it means to be a hero in ancient Greece and today. They will then choose a modern hero and create a sculpture that expresses the hero's identity and attributes.

Contemporizing Myths
Grades/Level: Middle School (6–8)
Subjects: Visual Arts, English—Language Arts
Lesson Overview: Students will examine Rembrandt's Abduction of Europa and discuss how the artist has taken an ancient Greek myth and contemporized it for a 17th-century Dutch audience. They will then read origin myths and choose a scene to illustrate in a contemporary setting.

Writing from Mythological Narratives
Grades/Level: Upper Elementary (3–5), Middle School (6–8)
Subjects: Visual Arts, English—Language Arts
Lesson Overview: Students collaborate to compose a short piece of creative writing based on a painting depicting a mythological narrative. They then learn more about the mythological scene in the painting and adapt their original stories into tales from the life of the Greek hero Perseus.

Referencing the Classical Past
Grades/Level: Middle School (6–8), High School (9–12)
Subjects: Visual Arts, History—Social Science
Lesson Overview: Students discuss the sculptural group Three Goddesses by Joseph Nollekens. They then discuss the 18th-century tradition of the Grand Tour and consider why wealthy 18th-century Europeans and people today seek associations with the classical past.

Lessons 1–5 of 5