Grade 6 Lesson at a Glance: Chapter 11, Lesson 4

Houghton Mifflin Social Studies
A Message of Ancient Days

Lesson at a Glance
Chapter 11, Lesson 4: A Tale of Two City-States (pp. 351-357)

The Big Idea
Framework Concept: Culture Athens society emphasized democracy and culture, while Sparta's emphasized military power and fitness.

Use a chart to compare the government, economies and educational systems of Athens and Sparta. Discuss the ways in which Sparta's emphasis on a strong military shaped its culture, and compare that to the culture of Athens.

Summarize the Persian Wars, and talk about the power of the combined city-states. Use the diagram on pages 356 and 357 to talk about one specific important battle.

Lesson Outline
Use the Lesson Outline to preview the content of the lesson. You may wish to print it for your students as a guide during reading.

Check for Understanding

Have small groups of students write a scene from a Greek play describing the life of some young Spartans or Atheneans. Students may want to set the scene in a Spartan school or an Athenian home and use education or sports as their plot.
Have students look carefully at the diagram of the Battle of Salamis. Then read aloud the passage on page 355 describing the Battle of Thermopylae, and have students create a diagram that shows that battle. Encourage them to use several different frames to show changes in action, and to label their diagrams carefully.

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