The city-state of Athens
I can describe what life was like in the Ancient Greek city-state of Athens.
The city-state of Athens
I can describe what life was like in the Ancient Greek city-state of Athens.
These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.
Lesson details
Key learning points
- The land around Athens was hard to farm. Athenians imported lots of food and built a seafaring trading society.
- By 431 BCE the important city state of Athens was a democracy; Athenians debated and voted on laws in the Assembly.
- Men had duties; they had to obey the laws, serve in the army, help run the city, pay taxes and serve on juries.
- Women were expected to stay at home and do housework; they cleaned, cooked and wove cloth.
- 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.
To help you plan your year 4 history lesson on: The city-state of Athens, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your year 4 history lesson on: The city-state of Athens, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 2 history lessons from the Ancient Greek civilisation: what do we know about ancient Greece? unit, dive into the full secondary history curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.
Content guidance
- Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
Lesson video
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Starter quiz
6 Questions
a body of water around part of the Greek coast
a city-state in Ancient Greece
the highest mountain in Greece
a country where Ancient Greece had colonies
Exit quiz
6 Questions
a form of government where the people hold power
a gathering of men who made decisions in Athens
to discuss an issue and consider its good and bad points
to show your choice on something