Did the Dig - Greece

Be part of the up to 24 lucky NJ & PA students digging at each site. There may be a few spaces left! Come and "do"

Ancient Greece

with "Big Dog" of The Archaeological Perspective (T.A.P) on

April 21 - 24, 2008 in Tewksbury, NJ
- OR -
June 23 - 26, 2008 in Bushkill, PA.

At the dig, children/students will be doing adult stuff in a kid way with a professional archaeologist turned educator from 9 or 10 am each day. 5 - 7 year olds stop at noon and go home after lunch, but older campers stay through the afternoon Tuesday,Wednesday and Thursday for more stories, slides, and games.

Visit T.A.P. website to read more about Camp Activities. Note: The homeschool camps are Tuesday to Friday, with digging on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and an exhibit and themed pot-luck on Friday. For previous comments, see Do the Dig: Middle Kingdom China.

I expect price will remain $170 for full day and $120 for half day. ($50 deposits overdue.)

The Tweksbury dig (starting at 10 am daily), email webmaster@talent-nj.org, or
for the dig in Bushkill, PA, starting at 9 a.m. contact Heather (email runnin43@ptd.net).

March 2009: I moved all of the Friday potluck recipe ideas to a separate Ancient Greek Food entry.
April 2009: There may be a few spaces left. It's OK if you could not do the winter curriculum ($60 for the 3-day series).

Ancient Greek Food

Greek ingredients: olive oil, sugar, butter, sea salt, Greek olives, Greek cheeses, phyllo dough, Greek honey, Greek oregano, lamb, thick strained yogurt, Greek coffee, cucumbers, if a Greek recipe says lettuce it almost always means romaine.

Ancient Greek Recipes: of course this focuses on feasts that the rich had, but it does give a taste of the style of food. A symposium would last hours & hours and start with a glass of wine mixed with honey (oinomelo) and bread. Followed by several appetizers , fresh fruit, meat
phase 2: epidorpion (which now means dessert) several kinds of pies, sweets, dried fruits, nuts, cheese and wine mixed with water.

or, more modern Greek food:
Greek Recipes
More Greek Recipes
Eat Greek Tonight: 180 recipes

Dilled Peas with Peppers - Arakas me Anitho & PiperiesMarinated Bell Pepper Salad or Appetizer
Spanakopita (one recipe or another): Greek Spinach pie (and feta cheese)
Hummus with Tahini - Chickpea & Sesame Dip
Spicy Appetizer Stuffed Peppers with Feta Cheese - Piperies me Tyri
Stuffed Peppers with Bulgur & Basil - Piperies Yemistes me Pligouri

Greek Fisherman's Soup - Kakavia
Greek Lentil Soup

Classic Moussaka with Eggplant
Creamy, Cheesy Baked Pasta with Meat - Pastitsio
Stuffed Cabbage - Lahanodolmathes
Easy Greek Spanakopita (Spanakotyropita) - Spinach Pie with Feta Cheese
Classic Greek Salad
Lamb Burger with olives
Tzatziki (thick yogurt, cucumber, and garlic)
Greek Style - Pork Chops with potatoes in the oven
Chicken with Sweet Red Peppers - Kotopoulo me Kokkines Piperies

Baklava (one recipe, or another): rich, sweet pastry, contains nuts
Greek Jam Tart

Greco-Roman Feast: Roman recipes?

More that may help:
Basics of Traditional Greek Cooking : The basics of cooking the fabulous traditional Greek foods that have become famous around the world are easy to learn and easy to follow.
How to Build a Greek Meal : Although there are certain holiday and/or regional traditions, you can pretty much throw out any preconceived ideas of menu planning.
How Greek Foods are Cooked : The Greek language might make it seem as though dishes are cooked in exotic and unusual ways but cooking methods are actually simple. Learn more.
Ingredients Used in Greek Cooking : What ingredients are used in recipes for the delicious foods of Greece? You may be surprised to find that you already know most of them and either have them in your kitchen pantry or can find them at your local market.

Women in Classical Greece

New exhibit at the Onassis Cultural Center in Manhattan through May 9, 2009: Worshipping Women: Ritual and Reality in Classical Athens. Who's up for a January or February field trip?

Onassis Cultural Center
645 Fifth Avenue, Suite 304
New York, NY 10022

Monday through Saturday 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Admission is free.
Complimentary guided tours every Tuesday and Thursday at 1:00 p.m., open to the public.
For more information, please call 212-486-4448, fax us at 212-486-4744, or email info@onassisusa.org.

Worshipping Women: Ritual and Reality in Classical Athens.
Partial description from their website: "... 155 rare and extraordinary archaeological objects in order to re-examine preconceptions about the exclusion of women from public life in ancient Athens. The story told by these objects, and experienced in the galleries, presents a more nuanced picture than is often seen, showing how women’s participation in cults and festivals contributed not only to personal fulfillment in Classical Greece but also to civic identity. ..."

Worshiping Women tells this story in three main chapters.

1. “Goddesses and Heroines” introduces the principal female deities of Athens and Attica, in whose cults and festivals women were most actively engaged: Athena, Artemis, Aphrodite, and Demeter and her daughter Persephone. This first section also investigates the role of heroines, a special group of women believed to have lived in the distant past, who like Iphigenia became important figures of cult worship after their deaths.
   
   
2. “Women and Ritual,” explores the practice of ritual acts such as dances, libations, sacrifices, processions and festivals in which women were active in classical antiquity. Here the critical role of the priestess comes to light, specifically in her function as key-bearer for the temples of the gods.
   
   
3. “Women and the Cycle of Life,” the exhibition explores how religious rituals defined moments of transition. Because the most important transition in a girl’s life was understood to be marriage, the wedding took on great significance, with its rituals depicted on a variety of vases associated with nuptial rites and wedding banquets. Death was another occasion on which Athenian women took on major responsibilities, such as preparing the deceased for burial and tending the graves of family members.

By presenting this story in the only way it can be properly told—through artworks and the material culture of the time—this important exhibition corrects the common, bleak picture of the lives of Athenian women."

For more, see also review in 12/19/2008, New York Times, The Glory That Was Greece From a Female Perspectiveory. Weekend Arts section.

Winter Curriculum - Greece

At least two groups in the area are working on Ancient Green with professional archaeologist turned educator, "Big Dog" Geof Purcell. Both will have their Dig weeks in the spring.

Premier season of his winter curriculum is 3 days for $60/child and $100/family. Payment due November 7th.

email the site host so we'll have names, but please mail your checks straight to The Archaeological Perspective.

Tewksbury group: Tuesdays.
Craft day: Jan. 6, 2:30 - 4:30
Game day: March 31st, time tbd
Museum field trip (the MET): December 2nd, 2008

Bushkill group: Classes on Thursdays -- perhaps at the Stroudsburg Library or in Bushkill.
Craft day: Jan. 8th, ~12 - 2 pm (talk to the hostess for times)
Game day: March 26th, ~12 - 2 pm (talk to the hostess for times)
Museum field trip (the MET): December 4th, 2008

Those who wish to participate should send the appropriate amount in a cheque (made payable to "TAP") to: G. Purcell, The Archaeological Perspective, PO Box 38161, Albany, NY 12203-8161. This payment should arrive by November 7, 2008.

Please call or write if you have any questions about the curriculum, framework, content or the Spring digs. Deposits go straight to Geof at The Archaeological Perspective -- but please let the site host know when you do.

Tewksbury site coordinator/host: Mary Ann < maryann.orourke@gmail.com >

Bushkill site coordinator/host: Heather < runnin43@ptd.net >

Curriculum link Possibilities (thanks Heather)

These may help you in teaching Ancient Greece:
http://ancienthistory.mrdonn.org/AncientGreece.html
http://cybersleuth-kids.com/sleuth/History/Ancient_Civilizations/Greece/index.htm

Ancient Greek Cities
Ancient Greek Civilizations
Mr. Dowling's Cradel of Western Civilization
Greek Alphabet
Greek Mythology
Greek Pottery
Encyclopedia of Greek Mythology
Map of Ancient Greece
GreekCulture: Greek Mythology
Mythology of the Constellations
Warhorse Simulations: Historical Commentary on the Peloponnesian War
Ancient GREECE: SPARTA
The Statue of Zeus at Olympia
Colossus of Rhodes
Ancient Greesk: storyforkids.org/learn/greeks/

Suggested for 8th grade & up (but adaptable):

Archaeological institute of American Lesson Plans include:
Lesson Plans: Ancient Cultures includes Greek Vase Painting Project, Costume, Feast & Cargo:
Greek Vase Painting Project
A Greco-Roman Feast: Dining and Reclining
Cargoes from Three Continents: Ancient Mediterranean Trade in Modern Archaeology

Links Recommended for Students:
SocialStudiesforkids.com's Ancient Greece
Activityvillage.co.uk: Ancient Greece for kids
PBS on The Greeks
http://www.historyforkids.org/

Homework Links: Ancient/Greece

For Older Students:
http://library.thinkquest.org/10805/greece.html