After the 3rd and 4th class spoke about Ancient Greek history in general and got to know Alexander the Great in their school lessons, the teachers of the 2nd Primary school of Vrontados organized an excursion to the Archeological Museum of Chios, at the 29th of April. Fortunately, we volunteers got the chance to join this trip as supporter and assistants.
The stuff members of the local Ancient museum prepared a special program for our students that not only included a guided tour through the halls of the institution and deeper looks at the exhibition objects, but also children-friendly explanations, entertaining stories and anecdotes related to the topic and interactive rounds of talk.
In that way, all pupils were introduced to different antique containers, as e.g. the amphora, and listened to information about their usage in the past. A map of Chios helped to show the boys and girls where the various display items were found. It was really impressive for the young audience how old those exhibits were and how many of them were excavated close to their homes.
Moreover, many antique busts, as well as small Ancient sculptures that were made as kinds of toys for children or as decoration elements, aroused the interest of our children. Therefore, the museum’s guide gave some further details about the persons and goddesses they are representing.
A special highlight was the following crafting lesson which took part in the yard of the building and contained a workshop with salt dough. All pupils created their own figures – simulating those from the exhibition or forming completely new little animals, persons and vases. That was not only a lot of fun for all students, but also for the teachers and us while helping them with tinkering their objects.
To sum up our day, it was a very educative excursion that taught us a lot about Ancient Greek history.
