Sample Lesson: History/Social Science

Sixth Grade: Greek Mythology/Tabloid Newspapers

LESSON TOPIC: Greek Mythology

RATIONALE: Through the study of Greek mythology, students will recognize the importance of storytelling as a means to pass on history and to explain and acknowledge natural human characteristics and emotions.

STANDARD: World History and Geography: Ancient Civilizations: 6.4.4: Explain the significance of Greek mythology to the everyday life of people in the region and how Greek literature continues to permeate our literature and language today, drawing from Greek mythology and epics, such as Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, and from Aesop’s Fables.

GOAL: Students will understand that the legacy of Greek mythology has continued for hundreds of years and that these myths are an important piece of oral tradition that connect us to another time.

OBJECTIVES: Students will be able to create an article in the style of a tabloid newspaper based upon an Ancient Greek myth.

STRATEGY: Direct instruction; guided discovery.

PROCEDURES:

            Introduction – Teacher will discuss the concept of tabloid newspapers to the students. Everyone has seen them in the supermarket and has been a witness to the bizarre headlines. Greek myths could provide just as interesting headlines: “Three-headed Dog Guards Portal to Underworld” or “Flying Horse Helps Hero.”

            Teacher will begin the activity with an examination and discussion of actual tabloids. Teacher will present a copy of a current tabloid and ask the class to read the front page. He/she will brainstorm with the class: How does the front page sell the paper? After reading the various headlines, the teacher will hand out copies of one article from the tabloid. Students and teacher will read the article together. When the article is read, students will discuss the differences in what the headline promised and what the article actually offered.

         Once the students are comfortable with the style and format of tabloid journalism, the teacher will ask students how mythology could be incorporated.

            Activity Sequence – Students will brainstorm a list of possible headlines, based upon Greek myths, which will be copied onto the whiteboard. The teacher will ask each student to choose one of the headlines and pre-write for five minutes. This prewriting becomes the source of articles with headlines like “Mysterious Rocks Destroy Ships at Sea” or “Baby Strangles Snake with Bare Hands.”

            Closure – The teacher will tell students that they will have further time to develop their articles during the following days. He/she will remind them of the importance of a “quality” headline in a tabloid newspaper.

            Assessment – At a later date, when the articles are finished, the teacher will review the students’ work for eye-catching headlines (i.e.: the style of a tabloid newspaper) and accurate summaries of Ancient Greek myths.

MATERIALS:

            Whiteboard
            Whiteboard Pen
            A Tabloid Newspaper
            Copies of One Article from the Tabloid Newspaper