Famous Men of Greece · Ch. XIV · Unit 5: The Persian Wars

19. Leonidas at Thermopylae

Goal: Your child can retell the stand of Leonidas and the three hundred Spartans at Thermopylae.

⏱ About 30 minutes · 6 steps

Open it at the Internet Archive ↗

You'll need

  • A map or globe (a free online map works well)
  • A notebook or paper and colored pencils
  • Your timeline (a long strip of paper on the wall, or a notebook page)

What's in the book

Xerxes, son of Darius, gathers the largest army ever heard of, bridges the Hellespont with boats, and marches into Greece. Leonidas holds the narrow pass of Thermopylae for two days until a traitor shows the Persians a mountain path. Leonidas, three hundred Spartans and seven hundred Thespians stay and die. Xerxes burns Athens.

The lesson, step by step

  1. Set the scene

    Find the Hellespont again, then Thermopylae, a narrow strip between the mountains and the sea in central Greece. The name means "Gates of the Hot Springs."

  2. Read the chapter together

    Read pages 133–138 aloud, or let your child read and help with the hard names.

  3. Narration

    Close the book. Ask your child to tell the story back in their own words, from the beginning. Don't correct as they go; just listen. If they get stuck, use a prompt:

    - What did Xerxes do when the storm broke his bridges?

    - Why was Thermopylae a good place to stop a huge army?

    - How did the Persians get behind Leonidas?

    - What happened on the Acropolis of Athens?

  4. Talk it over

    Ask:

    1. Why did Leonidas stay when he could have escaped?

    2. What do you think of a king who whips the sea?

    3. The sacred olive tree of Minerva was burned. Why would that have upset the Athenians so much? (Remember Theseus's chapter.)

  5. Remember it

    "So much the better; we shall fight in the shade."

    "Stranger, tell the Spartans that we lie here in obedience to their commands."

  6. Add to your timeline

    The book's table of contents gives 480 B.C. for Thermopylae. Add it to the timeline after Marathon.

Afterwards

Your child copies the monument's words and talks about what "obedience" meant to the Spartans.

Answers to the book's problems

1. Greece had trusted the Pass to them; they would rather die than leave their post. 2. Any answer; most children find it silly and proud. 3. It was the tree that sprang up at Athene's touch when she won the city; it was sacred.

Worked out for this site from the scan. If a number in your copy differs, trust the book.

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