Ancient Greece – Lesson #7
Simulation - Democracy in Athens
Grade: 6/7
Subject: Social Studies
Time: 53 min
Resources & materials: Overhead of laws in ancient Athens; character cards; slips of paper for drawing names for the council; clay pots; stones; changing & creating laws worksheets
Objective & Purpose
· Understand how the democratic process was used to pass laws and elect officials in ancient Athens
Intro/Hook
· Put a list of laws on the overhead
· Ask the class if there are any laws that they would like to change
· Agree as a class (by taking a vote) on which law we will try to change
o Ask whether this decision making process was democratic
· Explain that today we are learning the process by which laws are changed in ancient Athens
· Tell the students that are all residents of ancient Athens
· Give them a each a character card
o 10 men (green), 8 born in Athens, one born in Delphi, one born in Sparta
o 2 boys (purple)
o 2 girls (yellow)
o 1 criminal (pink)
o 8 women (red)
o 7 slaves (orange)
Learning Activity 1 – Changing Laws Simulation
· Laws were voted on at big meetings called assemblies
· Call up students with pink cards
o Ask student to state what their card says (criminal)
o Explain that criminals were not allowed to go to assembly and were not a part of the democratic process
· Call up students with purple cards
o Explain that boys were not allowed to go to assembly and were not a part of the democratic process until they reached manhood
· Call up students with yellow cards
o Explain that girls were not allowed to go to assembly
· Call up students with orange cards
o Explain that slaves were not allowed to go to assembly
· Call up students with red cards
o Explain that women were not allowed to go to assembly
· Call up students with green cards
o Explain that men were allowed to vote
o Men who were not born in Athens were not allowed to go to assembly
o Men whose a fathers were born outside of Athens were not allowed to go to assembly
· Explain that the first step of changing /creating laws started with the council
o The council was made of 500 men
o Names were drawn at random
o Consisted of both rich and poor men
o Draw three student names from the men eligible to vote
· A citizen would approach the council and tell them that they want to change or create a law
o Have a student act this out
· The council would then decide on a list of laws to discuss at the upcoming assembly
· Before the assembly, women would persuade their husbands as to how they should vote at the assembly
o Give women in the room a chance to persuade their husbands
o Slaves and children can talk amongst themselves about how they would vote if they were allowed to vote
· Assemblies were held every ten days
· Tell the class that we are going to have an assembly and that we need all assembly members at the front of the room
· Find an assembly member who is dawdling or who does not come to the front
o Tell them that a police officer would have whipped them with rope dipped in red paint
· Council begins by having the oldest member speak
o Find out who the oldest is and ask them to voice their opinion about the law
· Then let other assembly members speak
· If anyone is speaking for a long time:
o Other council members can boo them
o They might even be dragged off by slaves
· Assembly members vote
o Have them drop stones into clay pots
· Votes are tallied and the new or changed law is now upheld by the courts of law
Learning Activity 2 – Changing & Creating Laws Worksheet
· Give worksheets to students
· Ask students to put the steps in order (work individually)
· Students find a partner on the other side of the room and compare their orders of events
· Go over answers with the class
Closure – Free Write
· Amount of time given will depend on how much time is left in class (can do this as an oral exit slip)
· Pretend you are a man living in ancient Athens. Your name has just been drawn to be a member of the council. You will have to attend meetings about laws on a regular basis for the next year. This will consume a lot of your free time that could otherwise be spent practicing athletics, studying, or working. How do you feel about being on the council?