Greek Goddess Diaries: Teaching resources Greek Goddess Diaries is a collection of tales introducing readers aged 6-9 to the heroines of Greek mythology – in their own words. Each of the eight chapters retells a famous myth from the perspective of a female character. With the narrative-content of the traditional stories preserved, but reframed through firstperson secret-diary entries, the book provides young readers with a fresh, accessible, and inclusive introduction to tales which have been re-told for nearly three-millennia, shaping Western culture in the process.
Chapter summaries In Pandora’s Diary we meet the first mortal woman. Unaware that she had been designed by the gods as part of a plan to wreak revenge on mankind, Pandora tells us how her curiosity and questioning nature leads her to open the sealed jar she was gifted by Zeus, unwittingly unleashing great suffering… but also discovering hope. In Medusa’s Diary we see how unjust the gods can be: turning Medusa’s beautiful hair into hissing snakes, just because she dared to stand up for herself. At first she’s distraught but slowly she begins to discover that there could be power in her difference. Not just the doubleedged and dangerous power to turn man to stone, but also the power to fly with her new golden wings. She’ll have to cross the whole world to do it but finally, at last, she finds the joy, love, and acceptance of her new sisters the Gorgons. In Medea’s Diary we discover that one of the most celebrated Greek heroes, Jason, would have been nothing without the aid of a knowledgeable and ingenious young witch. It is only with Medea’s clever strategising and powerful potions that Jason is able to win the Golden Fleece and escape with his life. There’s something in it for Medea too: Jason is her ticket out of Colchis, the Kingdom ruled by her cruel father, and away to a new life in Greece. In Atalanta’s Diary, we meet the greatest female athlete in the whole of Greece. Shaped by a wild childhood in the forests, Atalanta grows up to be fierce, strong, fast, and brave, and when she hears that a monstrous boar is terrorising the people of Calydon she wastes no time in traveling there to join the hunt, beating Greece’s greatest heroes and winning the sought-after prize for herself. Men are desperate to marry her, but she declares she will refuse anyone who can’t beat her in a race. And no man could have beaten fleet-footed Atalanta – not even Hippomenes – were it not for the meddling of Aphrodite. In Ariadne’s Diary, we travel to Crete, where a terrible monster, the Minotaur, lives in a terrifying labyrinth below the palace of the rich king Minos. Although the twisted maze is meant to imprison the monster, the Cretans are forced to offer him a human sacrifice every seven years. Horrified, the princess Ariadne vows to do anything she can to save the innocent sacrifices and free her people from the monster. And she has a plan – one which requires bravery, intelligence, a simple spool of red thread, and a little help from the hero Theseus.
In Helen’s Diary, we meet the most beautiful woman in the world: Queen of Sparta and the demi-god daughter of Zeus, hatched from a swan’s egg. As a young girl, Helen was married off to a man chosen for her, Menelaus, who, she fears, has never seen her as anything more than a shining object to be displayed. Desperate to be seen for who she truly is, she falls hopelessly in love with Paris, a prince from the far-off land of Troy, who suggests she runs away with him back to his homeland. Soon, Helen is on a ship, bound for a future she has chosen for herself.
Theme 1: Perspective
In Penthesilea’s Diary we meet the Queen of the Amazons, an all-female community of warrior women. The Trojan war is waging and Penthesilea – daughter of Ares, the god of war, leader of her people, and one of the greatest warriors in Greece – is called upon for help by Priam, king of Troy. Many years before, the fair and generous king had showed her kindness at the saddest time in her life: now is Penthesilea’s chance to repay him.
Introduce the idea that Greek myths are stories which have been retold for thousands of years by many different people. Who tells a story – and the perspective from which they tell it – can have a huge impact.
Ultimately, things will end in disaster for Penthesilea and for Troy, but when the Queen and her Amazons enter the battlefield, their skill and bravery very nearly turn the tide of the war – and of mythic history – against the Greeks. In Circe’s Diary, we meet the most powerful sorceress in Greek mythology. Oh, and she’s also the daughter of the sun god, Helios, and ruler of the idyllic island of Aeaea. When a ship full of rowdy, rude, and potentially dangerous men turn up on her shores, Circe decides to do everything she can to protect her island, as well as all the nymphs and animals that call it home.
Activity 1: Who gets to tell a story?
This could be a good opportunity to introduce or reinforce the concept of ‘perspective’. Have students (either individually or as a group) come up with a scenario that might happen in a classroom. This could be as normal (e.g. a student arrives without their homework) or as creative as they choose. Then invite them to write two short accounts of the same event: From the POV of the teacher
Circe’s everything might just include transforming the men into pigs; but she’s not unreasonable – she’s willing to make them human again once she has struck a binding treaty of goodbehaviour with their leader Odysseus.
Learning objectives Working with the text is intended to help students: Understand how changing perspective can transform our understanding of a story Identify the features and narrative-impact of first-person versus third-person writing
And become more confident using each of these voices in their writing
Distinguish between:
A character’s internal thoughts and motivations
Their actions
The way that other characters interpret them
Lesson suggestions
From the POV of a student Ask: What stayed the same? What changed? Where there are conflicts between the stories, how can we work out who is giving us a more accurate account? Can both versions be true? Introduce the fact that mythological stories, like those of ancient Greece, have often been told by lots of different people from lots of different perspectives over thousands of years.
Activity 2: Everyone has a story to tell Read one of the stories (or an extract) and have students write a new diary entry retelling it from the perspective of a different character. For example, how might Ariadne’s story be told differently from the perspective of: King Minos
Learn some of the key stories and characters from Greek mythology
Theseus
Understand how mythology develops and changes over time
One of the other Athenian sacrifices A member of the Cretan court The minotaur himself
They can use the following Diary Writing Checklist
Activity 3: Coming to your own conclusions
Have I:
Have students compare the story they have just read with a traditional version of the same myth and complete the following perspective worksheet:
Written in the first person? Made the character’s personality clear? Included thoughts that they would not say aloud?
What everyone agrees happened
What the heroine says happened
What [author/title of the second version] says happened
What I think happened
Explained the day’s events? Used time words to organise events throughout the day? Included specific details from the myth? Included details specific to ancient Greece and given a vivid sense of place? Described how an event made the character feel? Explained why the character made a decision? Explained what other people misunderstand? Ended with a decision, hope or question? This Diary language Phrase Bank might also help: I confess… I discovered… That’s when I saw… At that moment, I realised… I’m the only one… What nobody understands is… Everyone else… At first… Without warning… I’m starting to think… To my relief… Tomorrow is the day… I refuse to… They may call me… I know the truth… My mind is made up…
Nb. It might be useful to discuss the fact that “I’m not sure” is often a legitimate answer for the fourth question, so long as a student can explain the reasons for their uncertainty.
Theme 2: Motivation, misunderstanding and reputation
For older students, it might also be interesting to talk about how different ancient Greek plays (even by the same author) can offer very different interpretations of the same myth
Activity 1: finding the motive
E.g. in Euripides’ Trojan Women Helen is accused of coming to Troy with Paris out of greed and desire, whilst in his Helen, Helen never goes to Troy at all: Paris abducted a sort-of hologram (eidolon) created by the gods whilst the real Helen was spirited away to Egypt until the war was over and she could be reunited with her husband.
Read through one of the myths and fill out the following table
The situation/ problem she faces
How she feels
Her motivation
Her action
Activity 3: The Olympus Times Have students create two headlines about the same event.
Ask students to cover the first three columns and come up with a list of other possible situations, feelings, or motivations that could explain the actions listed in the final column: Medusa turned people to stone because she wanted more statues for her collection Medusa turned people to stone because they kept trying to kill her and that made her scared and angry Medusa turned people to stone because she was guarding a secret entrance to Olympus at the back of the cave Discuss: How changing the motive we ascribe to an action alters our perception of the character, even to the extent of transforming them from a hero to a villain How this relates to the way in which we interact with people in real life – are there ways to work out why someone did something before we react negatively?
Activity 2: Drama Queens Have students write a fragment of script based around one of the possible motives they listed in the last activity. Discuss how motive can be expressed through dialogue, stage-directions, characterisation, and interaction – i.e. without the character explicitly describing their thought-process to the reader as they would in their private diary. A history element could also be brought in here, by discussing: How drama was key to the development and dissemination of the Greek myths The development of tragedy vs. comedy The role that theatrical productions played in Athenian democracy How ancient dramatists competed for the favour of the gods
E.g. PANDORA RELEASES TROUBLE INTO WORLD And: CURIOUS GIRL DISCOVERS HOPE INSIDE FORBIDDEN JAR Discuss how word choice shapes the reader’s judgement even in genres, like newspaper writing, that are nominally factual. Ask: How can a character’s motivation be expressed in writing? How do methods of expressing motivation change across different genres of writing? How can a writer convey a character’s motivations without describing them explicitly? Why might a character not be open or honest about their motivations?
Project Ideas Project 1: The Museum of Misunderstood Heroines Split the class into groups and assign each one a different heroine. Have them create a museum display about her. This should include:
Chapter specific activities PanDora Central theme: theme overcoming adversity
A portrait of her – they could be e.g. drawn, collaged, painted etc. depending on resources
Activity 1: Refilling Pandora’s jar
A quotation from her diary
Discuss the bad things that come out of Pandora’s jar in the original myth:
A “curator’s note” giving a brief description of her story and explaining how she has been misunderstood An image (again, drawn, collaged etc.) and brief explanatory note of one object either mentioned in her story (e.g. Pandora’s jar) or which the students imagine for her (e.g. a special quiver for Atalanta’s arrows)
War Hunger Sickness Hardship
One question for museum visitors to think about
Project 2: A world of myth
These things still affect humanity today, but it might also be good to add some less serious, more everyday difficulties that students might encounter e.g.: Sadness
Have students choose a character from another culture’s mythology – ideally one who they feel has been misunderstood – and produce an illustrated diary entry from their point of view.
Jealousy
It must include:
Fear
A recognisable event from the myth Descriptions of setting, objects, dress etc. which are specific to the culture from which the myth is drawn Insight into the character’s private thoughts and motivations An explanation of something the traditional story gets wrong or leaves out A climactic moment when the character has to make a decision They can use the diary checklist and phrase banks above. They might also add a short note explaining: How the character is usually seen How and why their version of the character is different These diary entries could then be compiled into a class book e.g. THE MYTH DIARIES (As told by Class 6B)
Anger
Now have the class refill ‘Pandora’s Jar’ by writing out things that make them happy, give them hope, or help them through difficulties and adding them into a container, creating a class ‘Hope Jar’. Nb. In the original Greek versions of the myth, the thing Pandora opens is a large jar (pithos) not a box, as it is often referred to in modern retellings. Discussing this with the class could be a good moment to reflect on how myths (and other stories) can change – or be distorted – over time.
Activity 2: Painted stories Ancient Greek vases were often highly decorated with paintings depicting moments from the myths. Sometimes the artists included labels providing character names or speech bubbles with the characters’ words or thoughts. The same vase often included many different scenes, creating a sort of ancient comic book. Have students design an ancient Greek-style vase with drawings that tell a story – this could be historical, mythological, modern, or even from their own life (depending either on their own preference or the direction of the lesson). Discuss how not only words but also images (in paintings, sculptures, but also graphic novels, etc.) can be used to tell a story.
Medusa Central theme: understanding difference
Activity 2: Penthesilea’s training camp Design a training camp for the Amazons. This will include all the necessary physical activities e.g.: Running
This story offers a great opportunity for PSHE discussion around themes like:
Horseback riding
The difference between noticing someone is different and treating them differently because of it How can we talk about difference in a way that acknowledges and celebrates it without making anyone feel uncomfortable or excluded How a lack of knowledge about people who are different to us can create: misunderstanding fear prejudice
Archery But students will have to think more carefully about what sorts of activities, routines, or challenges will teach the Amazons to live by the Code they came up with in the last activity.
Activity 3: It’s hard being a leader Put students into groups and have them come up with solutions to fictional dilemmas that a leader like Penthesilea might encounter E.g.:
How we can learn about people who are different to us whilst being respectful
There is a dispute in the camp over whether someone took more than their fair share of rations
Penthesilea
The fastest route that you and your group could take through a pass is also the most dangerous
Central theme: theme hardwork and leadership
You think that one of the warriors is frightened but they don’t want to admit it, making it hard for the group to support them
Activity 1: The Amazon Code
Bonus drama activity:
Have students write a list of rules and principles for Amazons (or any other group of noble heroes) to abide by.
Groups of students could act out a scene, depicting either:
E.g.: We, [the Amazons], vow to: Never leave a fellow Amazon behind Always share supplies Protect the injured or helpless – whether they are our allies or our enemies Always try our hardest Remember that being brave doesn’t mean you have to be fearless
One of the dilemmas and the solution they have come up with. OR: A discussion between Penthesilea and a new recruit, in which she explains the Amazon Code and how to live by it.
Circe Central theme: fairness
Think about what additional rules a leader might need to follow.
Activity 1: Circe’s transformation court
E.g.:
Circe – and the people she transformed into animals – have the chance to make their cases to the class. Always listen to other opinions before giving an order
Necessary roles:
Admit when a strategy is not working
Circe
Don’t be afraid to ask for help
The transformed visitor
Additional roles: Judge to preside over the court
Comprehension questions for each chapter
Witness(es)
Pandora’s Diary
Expert animal witness(es)
A)
Why is Zeus angry with Prometheus?
B)
Pandora’s name is described as meaning “All-Gifted” or “All-Giving”. Why would the gods think that was a good name for their new creation and what do you think about the difference between the two meanings?
C)
Athena is the goddess of wisdom and skills such as weaving and battle-strategy. Can you find out what Hermes is the god of and why he might be described as having wings growing out of his boots?
Give each of the actors a scenario, explaining what animal Circe transformed her visitor into and why. Then have each make a case for the fairness/unfairness of that decision to the rest of the class. The class act as jury, voting on whether Circe’s decision was fair or unfair. You could also offer additional options e.g.: Necessary for protection
Some time later…
Understandable, but too harsh
D)
This could be a good opportunity to get students to practice skills including:
What does Pandora call her baby girl?
Medusa’s Diary
How to construct an argument
A)
Why was Athena so angry with Medusa that she turned her hair into snakes?
Public speaking
B)
Why does Medusa think that growing wings might be more of a blessing than a curse?
Weighing up different claims and making judgements between them
C)
Where do the Gorgons - Sthenno and Euryale - live?
Some time later… D)
How does Perseus manage to avoid being turned to stone by Medusa?
Medea’s Diary A)
Why does Jason want the Golden Fleece?
B)
What is special about the seeds that King Aeetes gives Jason to sow?
C)
How does Medea deal with the problem of the Great Serpent?
Some time later… D)
How does Medea flee from Corinth?
Atalanta’s Diary A)
Why did King Iasos abandon baby Atalanta?
B)
Why did Meleager award Atalanta the tusks and skin of the Calydonian bear?
C)
What help did Aphrodite give Hippomenes to win the hand of Atalanta?
Some time later… D)
What did Zeus do to Hippomenes and Atalanta?
Ariadne’s Diary A)
Who is Daedulus and what does he do for King Minos?
B)
How many Athenians are sacrificed to the bull?
C)
Can you find a synonym for maze that is used in the story?
Some time later… D)
What wedding gift does Bacchus give Ariadne?
Helen’s Diary A)
What is very surprising about the birth of Helen?
B)
What was the pact sworn between King Tyndareus and the men who wanted to marry Helen?
C)
List at least three things that you learn about Troy from this story.
Some time later… D)
Who won the Trojan war?
Penthesilea’s Diary A)
What does the story tell you about the Amazons?
B)
How does King Priam help Penthesilea and what is the one condition on which he grants that help?
C)
Why is Troy in danger?
Some time later… D)
Who killed Penthesilea?
Circe’s Diary A)
List at least three things that you learn about Circe’s island, Aeaea.
b)
Why do the men who invade the island make Circe angry?
c)
How does Circe transform the men into pigs?
Some time later… D)
Where does Odysseus go after he leaves Aeaea?