New
New
Year 4

The city-state of Athens

I can describe what life was like in the Ancient Greek city-state of Athens.

New
New
Year 4

The city-state of Athens

I can describe what life was like in the Ancient Greek city-state of Athens.

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. The land around Athens was hard to farm. Athenians imported lots of food and built a seafaring trading society.
  2. By 431 BCE the important city state of Athens was a democracy; Athenians debated and voted on laws in the Assembly.
  3. Men had duties; they had to obey the laws, serve in the army, help run the city, pay taxes and serve on juries.
  4. Women were expected to stay at home and do housework; they cleaned, cooked and wove cloth.
  5. About 100,000 enslaved people made up about a third of the population and almost every home had at least one.

Keywords

  • Athens - Athens was one of the largest city-cities in Ancient Greece

  • Democracy - democracy is a form of government where the people hold power

  • Assembly - the Assembly was a gathering of Ancient Greek men who made decisions in Athens

  • Enslaved person - an enslaved person is someone owned by someone else who forces them to work without pay

Common misconception

That a country having a democratic government involves all the people in the country having a say.

In Ancient Greece, only men were allowed to be part of the Assembly and take part in votes. Women were not allowed to vote, the men made the decisions and the women had to abide by them.

Chose an issue for the class to debate, as if they were in the Assembly. This could be a proposal for a change to be made at school or an issue relating to the wider world such as tackling an environmental problem. After the debate, the class can vote to see which argument wins the debate.
Teacher tip

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour

Supervision

Adult supervision recommended

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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6 Questions

Q1.
Which of these was the most important city-state in Ancient Greece?
Sparta
Corinth
Correct answer: Athens
Q2.
Why were there so many city-states in Ancient Greece?
they could not decide which city should be in charge
Correct answer: there were natural barriers preventing growth of settlements
they wanted to build more cities than other civilisations
Ancient Greece was so big it had to have lots of states
Q3.
What word describes places that were ruled by city-states but were far away from them?
outposts
islands
territories
Correct answer: colonies
Q4.
Complete the sentence. Ancient Greece ended when the Empire started growing.
Correct Answer: Roman
Q5.
Match the words to the definitions
Correct Answer:Mediterranean Sea,a body of water around part of the Greek coast

a body of water around part of the Greek coast

Correct Answer:Athens,a city-state in Ancient Greece

a city-state in Ancient Greece

Correct Answer:Mount Olympus,the highest mountain in Greece

the highest mountain in Greece

Correct Answer:Italy,a country where Ancient Greece had colonies

a country where Ancient Greece had colonies

Q6.
Put these civilisations in the order they existed, starting with the earliest.
1 - Indus
2 - Ancient Greek
3 - Roman

6 Questions

Q1.
Which of these best describes the location of Athens?
on a mountainside
Correct answer: beside the coast
on an island
in a forest
Q2.
How did the city-state of Athens make most of its money?
stealing
cloth making
farming
Correct answer: trading by seafaring
Q3.
Match the words to the definitions.
Correct Answer:democracy,a form of government where the people hold power

a form of government where the people hold power

Correct Answer:Assembly,a gathering of men who made decisions in Athens

a gathering of men who made decisions in Athens

Correct Answer:debate,to discuss an issue and consider its good and bad points

to discuss an issue and consider its good and bad points

Correct Answer:vote,to show your choice on something

to show your choice on something

Q4.
Complete the sentence. were considered the most important people in Athenian society.
Correct Answer: men, Men
Q5.
What type of people made up around a third of the population of the city-state of Athens?
school children
adult men
adult women
Correct answer: enslaved people
Q6.
Which of the following could women do in Athenian society?
speak at the Assembly
vote for new laws
Correct answer: weave cloth
join the navy
Correct answer: cook and clean

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