Course Length: Full academic year (30 weeks)
This Year's Schedule: Click here to view
Aims of the Course
Otherwise known as "World of Gods and Heroes," this course is being taught by Alison Samuels, a specialist in classics and former lecturer at the Open University.
Students as young as 11 can enjoy this course, in which Classical mythology is the gateway into the fascinating culture of the ancient Greek and Roman world. In the main course, students will use the Charlotte Mason tools of narration and discussion to help them engage and share their learning.
We will use living books from the ancient world, alongside Edith Hamilton's beautiful book Mythology, and a robust textbook by OCR, Myth and Religion (section 1), which is designed to support students studying for a UK 15+ examination in Classical Civilisation but is an excellent resource in general. Texts other than these books are provided as free PDF links, which include selections from Ovid's Metamorphoses and Plutarch's Lives.
Add-On Options
The add-on writing extension for this course focuses on researching and composing extra term papers based around the subjects in the main course.
In addition to the weekly 1/2-hour webinar, students usually spend an average of 2 hours a week on researching and writing, and when combined with the main course, affords any US student an “honors” designation on their completion certificate.
How It Supports Your Child's Education
US students would be able to count this on a high school transcript for Social Studies or an elective, and with the add-on writing, bump up the level to an honors course.
For UK students, this course will create a rich environment covering and going beyond the specification requirements of the Thematic Study for the OCR Classical Civilisation GCSE (Route 1). This course could be studied with Dreaming Spires' new World of Homer course to satisfy the full requirements of the GCSE examination. Students wishing to sit the examination are strongly advised to take the Add-On paper for support with writing skills. Students are not advised to aim for a GCSE in one year unless they begin the course with advanced writing skills.
Who Teaches Mythology and Religion of Greece and Rome?
Alison Samuels is a former home-educating mum and a graduate of St John's College, Cambridge. She was one of the first women admitted to her alma mater, when it stopped being for men only. Her long teaching experience includes more than 20 years as a Classics lecturer with the Open University.See all courses taught by Alison