What's included
5 live meetings
6 hrs 15 mins in-class hoursClass Experience
We bring the outdoors indoors, with trees and the ever-burning hearth of Hestia in an indoor space. Through hands-on activities, our demi-gods in training will: * Explore the basics of the major Olympian Greek Gods & Goddesses through art, science, music, drama, and games. * Experience theme days based on Earth, Fire, Water & Air. * Learn about simple and safe sword-fighting and archery techniques. * Go on a Mythic Monster Hunt to face Medusa, a Fury, and Cerberus! * Send "Iris Messages" each day so they can be claimed by a "godly parent" or be blessed by one of the Olympians at the end of the week. It will be VERY important for students to have the supplies to participate in various activities. All supplies are items that they should be able to find inexpensively, locally, and with alternatives listed, but they must have supplies if they are going to enjoy the camp. Session One (Earth): 1) Welcome to Camp 2) Earth Experiences 3) Paint Your Pet Rock 4) Greek Gods Family Tree 5) Cabin Decorating 6) Iris Messages Session Two (Fire): 1) Fire Experiences 2) Boom-Chicka-Boom Acting Exercise 3) Hephaestus's Workshop 4) Sword-fighting Demonstration 5) Campfire Songs - Home on the Range, My Own Great, Great Grandpa, Poseidon Lies Inside the Ocean, You Are My Sunshine, Down By the Aegean 6) "The Campfire Song" from "The Lightning Thief" the musical (with puppets) 7) Iris Messages Session Three (Water) 1) Watercolor Pencils 2) Sink or Float - If you were a water nymph 3) Greek Masks - Comedy with "Drive", Tragedy with "Good Kid" and "A Tree on a Hill," Transformational with "Strong." 4) Iris Messages Session Four (Air) 1) Archery Demonstration 2) What's my sign? Guessing Game 3) Percy Jackson character fan art 4) Bubbles 5) Iris Messages Session Five 1) The Mythic Monster Hunt: Students will face simple challenges: - The bat-winged Fury (A Mythology Quiz) - And the Snake-headed Medusa (Percy Jackson and other Rick Riordan-based trivia) Plus as a bonus, they can choose to perform for DOA Records - the 3-headed Cerberus 2) Claiming Ceremony: Based on the "Iris Messages" the students sent to Camp Director Iris Imaginoria, each student will be "claimed" by a godly parent. Some may also receive additional "blessings" if they have shown extraordinary skills throughout the week. 3) Labyrinth Meditation: To close the week, we will end with a guided meditation of the labyrinth, sending the demigods into the world with strength of nectar and ambrosia to "face the real monsters." Please note: A couple of the activities (sword-fighting and archery) are listed as "demonstrations" rather than as activities. I have found it is difficult (though not impossible) to teach these things virtually, so instead we will show how we do them and give students opportunities to practice on their own. For most sessions the students are doing both a hands-on activity and a more mentally engaged discussion or listening activity at the same time. I've learned this works really well to help active kids keep focus.
Learning Goals
Students will learn how Greek mythology and the Percy Jackson books have relevance to their own lives.
Other Details
Parental Guidance
Greek mythology includes violence and sexuality inherent in the stories, though I will be careful to keep these stories as age-appropriate as possible while staying true to the myths themselves. I do not like to change the myths themselves (Zeus was unfaithful to his wife, for example. A lot. There's no getting around that.). But we don't need to go into details that are inappropriate for young kids.
Pre-Requisites
Learners should have read the Percy Jackson books (at least “The Lightning Thief,” and seen the most recent series an available on Disney+. There will be spoilers for other books.
Supply List
Ideally, each student should read their own copy of Rick Riordan's "Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief" and/or any of his other Percy Jackson books. (Don't watch the earlier movies... in this case, the movies are nothing like the books.) Every day, if possible, students should wear an orange shirt... that's just part of the Camp Half-blood experience. Session One (Earth): 1) Printout of Family Tree pdf (in classroom) 3) Printout of Cabins pdf (in classroom) 4) Markers or Colored Pencils 5) A Smooth Rock - should fit in the child's hand 6) Paint and a paint brush (acrylics work well) 7) Something to put the rock on to dry (I like to put it on a paper plate - keeps the mess contained) Session Two (Fire): 1) Air dry clay (could be playdough or salt-dough (https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/how-make-salt-dough-recipe) 2) A variety of small hardware items - nuts, bolts, screws, loose wires, etc. Session Three (Water) 1) Watercolor Pencils (if available - if not, watercolor paints or other type of paints) 2) printout of watercolor pdf and mask pdfs (in classroom) 3) Large bowl or container of water 4) A variety of small household items (smaller than your bowl of water), which could include things like: metal utensils, coins, stones, toys, keys, glass gemstones or marbles, Legos, popsicle sticks, corks, crayons, rubber balls, etc. Session Four (Air) 1) Blank paper 2) Markers and/or colored pencils 3) Bubble solution (dish soap works well. I use dawn dish soap with a small amount of sugar in a small cup) 4) a straw (I like to use a large straw, like the ones used for bubble tea, but most straws will work) 5) a dark plate (or any plate will do if you don't have a dark-colored one). Session Five No materials needed
External Resources
In addition to the Outschool classroom, this class uses:
- Google forms
Sources
All of Rick Riordan's books
Classical Greek mythological studies
The Lightning Thief musical
Percy Jackson miniseries on Disney+
Teacher expertise and credentials
Jessica Gray is the Artistic and Education Director of The Imaginorium, offering immersive "Story-based Theatre Camps with a Side of STEAMM." Her programs focus on weaving pop culture, the arts, and social emotional learning into a hands-on curriculum. She has offered several in-person Percy Jackson programs and is excited to bring this program into the virtual world!
Reviews
Live Group Class
$90
for 5 classes5x per week, 1 week
75 min
Completed by 59 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 8-12
3-9 learners per class