Coupon code: RAPOPBACK2SCHOOL9

Students who are already taking World History, Ancient History, or Ancient Greek History or Mythology can enroll for additional support and practice. Homeschooled students can enroll for a complete Ancient Greek history curriculum. Students are charged weekly and can enroll or unenroll at any time. 

This course will cover Ancient Greek history and culture in a hands-on and engaging way!  Students will meet for a live meeting once a week for instruction and discussion.  Let's learn about Pericles, the Parthians, and the epic war between Athens and Sparta. And so much more. This is a fun, interesting, and comprehensive trip back to ancient Greece.

This hit class has been running for more than 2 years. Some favorite prior topics are listed below for reference.

Upcoming topics (updated monthly; please note: class topics may be added pursuant to student requests and interests):

Week of August 19, 2024: Ancient Olympics! Are you still pumped up after the Summer Games? Bring that energy and let's learn where the games originated and what they were like in the ancient world.

Week of August 26, 2024: Tales of Aphrodite. Goddess of Love and Beauty. Let's learn about her origin story. One of the oldest of the Greek Goddesses. Her mythology of jealousy and vengeance (among other awesome things)!

Week of September 2, 2024: Greek Inventions and Weapons of War. One of the most creative societies, Greeks were not afraid to implement their observations of science and physics.  They applied ingenuity to their bellicose civilization and we will dissect some of their amazing developments as well as the exciting inclusion of some of these into their battle plans.

Week of September 9, 2024: Mythology and Archaeology of Amazon Warriors. These mythologized daughters of Ares were feared warriors of the ancient world.  Were they real or just a story-telling device? Perhaps Archaeology holds the answer. We investigate together.


Students will meet once a week for a live lesson.

It is not required to have taken any of the previous classes to participate. Students may join the class during any week, because each week we will be exploring a completely different topic from Ancient Greece, it is not required to have participated in any previous class in order to join in the current week's discussion. 

1:  Let's meet the Greeks! First they make war, then they spread influence. We will look at the rise of culture of Ancient Greece and why its art, culture, architecture, and government has been so influential even still today. 

2:  Homer's Iliad, and the Trojan War, and its history of archaeological study. Did the Trojan War really happen? We will look at the archaeological evidence of the epic ten year long war between Ancient Greece and Troy. Was this site the real inspiration for Homer's epic tale of gods and heroes? 

3:  Greek religion, mythology, and the Greek gods and goddesses. The Ancient Greeks have a fascinating collection of myths of the exploits of their gods and heroes. We will get to know the pantheon of the twelve Olympian gods and a few of the myths associated with them. Finally, we will visit a few of the extant temples built by the Greeks for their gods. 

4: Rise of Athenian democracy. How did it work? Was it effective? Who were the most popular leaders and how did they gain power? Let's examine this new type of government and see how long it lasted and why future governments have chosen to use a version of this ancient style of government. 

5: Did the 300 really exist? Is it possible for 300 Spartans to hold off the entire Persian invading force? Let's learn the true story of the epic tale of courage and skill that is the Battle of Thermopylae. Additionally we will get to meet Themistocles, the Greek naval commander that beat the Persians back in the following Battle of Salamis. How did he manage that?

6: Let's get to know the great leader of the Athenians- Pericles. He rebuilt the Acropolis, brought Athens to its height of power, wore an impressive helmet, and established a legacy that still impresses to this day. We will examine this leader, his reforms, and his skills as a governmental and military leader. 

7:  Athens vs Sparta in an ultimate showdown! Its the Peloponnesian War like you have never seen it before! The surprising tactics, the epic battles, and the plague that ended it all.

8:  Alexander the Great. He is on a quest to conquer the world- or at least as much of it as he possibly can. How did he become such an impressive general and how has his and Greece's legacy lasted over the years? Do we still see Greek influence in our cities and government? How does this great ancient civilization still remain a part of modern culture? 

9: The Odyssey. We will explore the epic tale of Homer and the adventures of the hero Odysseus

10: Ancient Festival of Kronia and it's influence on modern Christmas. How has an ancient Greek holiday managed to still be a part of our modern celebrations? We will also learn how to make an ancient treat served during Kronia

11: Meet the Titans! We will be learning about Prometheus and his brother, Atlas, Cronos, and a few others. Were they all banished to Tartarus? What happened during the epic war between the Olympians and the Titans?  

12: Battle of Marathon. What led up to the this epic battle? Who were the heroes and what weaponry was used?

13: Daily life in Sparta. What was it like to grow up in Ancient Sparta? How was is different for boys than from girls? Why are they such a war-based culture?

14: Greek literature can be hilarious! Let's learn about Aristophanes The Frogs

15: Greek myth time! 

16: Greek Philosophers and thinkers. What have we gained from this tradition and how did Socrates

17: Amazons! History and myth

18: The Greeks overseas: colonies, explorations, discoveries, and adventure.

19: Atlantis explained. Let's examine the myths, theories, and archaeological and historical evidence in order to decide for ourselves if there is any truth to this legend. 

20: Everything Achilles. His adventures and legend and its effect on Greek culture.

21: You know them. You love them. But how to build them?? Let's build a Greek temple. How did they accomplish such impressive artistic and architectural feats? Plus, we will learn the secret behind the optical illusion of the Parthenon. Also, the Colossus of Rhodes!

22: Romans in Greece! What happens when the Romans invade?

23: Greek navy and it's awesome secrets.  Archimedes and his burning mirror

24: Trial of Orestes. Ever wondered what it would be like to have Apollo as your lawyer?

25: Let's learn some Ancient Greek! We will go through the upper and lower case alphabets, write our own names and learn a colorful phrase or two in this ancient language. I will be using fun examples from ancient writers and telling a few stories of famous ancient arguments. 

26: Alexander the Great

27:  Let's get to know Dionysus. He's fun, he's got grapes, and he isn't afraid to use them! We will learn his history, birth, adventures, and more. 

28: Ptolemaic Egypt. Who are the Ptolemies and how did they come to rule Egypt after Alexander the Great?

29: Archaeology and Ancient Greece

30: Electra. The Drama continues...

31: Jason and the Argonauts- everyone join in... It's an adventure!

32: Close up on Hera Queen of the Greek gods

33: Greek gods and their temples. Let's examine the archaeology and the mythology

34: Egyptian and Greek mythology. How do they influence each other and what happens when they meet?

35:  Everyone loves it- let's learn about the awesomeness of ancient Greek art!

36: Titans and the Titanomachy- the Olympian Gods versus the Titans!

37: Ancient Olympics!

38: Hestia and mythology of some of the lesser known gods

39: The Greek Soldier. Lifestyle, training, armor, tactics, and awesome inventions!

40: Summer festival time! Let's celebrate the summer Ancient Greek style! We will learn about the different gods and their festivals. What kind of excitement and entertainment lies in store?!

41: Greek medicine and Asclepios. How do Zeus and Apollo get involved in this topic too? Let's find out!

42: Monsters and creatures in Greek myth

43: A day in Ancient Athens. Let's explore the ancient city

Let's have fun exploring ancient Greece together! Please send me suggestions for what interests you and I will include it in future classes!

(It is not required to have taken any of the previous classes to participate. Students may join in during any week, as each week we will be exploring a completely different topic from ancient Greece.)

Optional resources will also be provided to students who want extra practice in this area.