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Discover More About Greece with these Activities and Games
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Time to read 6 min
Never Struggle Planning Activities Again
Easy to use activity booklets for your troop meeting.Never Struggle Planning Activities Again
Easy to use activity booklets for your troop meeting.|
Time to read 6 min
One fun thing to do with your girls is to teach them about another country. Everything from the people of the country, the weather, culture, food, and more. You can center an entire meeting around teaching girls about Greece. I’ve included some general facts about the country, and highlighted a few games, activities, craft suggestion, and other resources to make your meeting fun and educational.
This is the content you can print and use to put together a poster, or share with your girls during a meeting. If you want easy-to-use games and activities to teach your girls these facts, be sure to keep reading.
Did you know? The first Olympic games were held in Athens in 776 BCE.
Athens is known as the oldest capital city in Europe. Athens is the southernmost capital city on Mainland Europe. The city is named after Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom.
Ancient Greece is said to have laid the foundation for Western civilization, having a large influence on the Roman Empire and European culture.
Greek children often used pig bladders for a ball! This involved blowing up the bladder, then shaping it by holding it over a fire and rubbing them into the desired shape. Sometimes they painted the blown-up bladders to make them look better.
Geography in Greece: Greece is slightly smaller in size than the state of Alabama. Mountains cover 80% of the country. Greece’s highest mountain is Mount Olympus. The mountain’s Mytikas peak is the highest peak is 9,570 ft. Greece is located in the Mediterranean Sea. Greece includes an archipelago of about 6,000 islands with Crete being the largest island. Greece has a mild and temperate climate with wet and colder winters and hot and dry summers.
Where are the people in Greece? About one third of the population of Greece live in the capital city Athens. The majority of Greeks (80%) live in urban centers.
Animals in Greece: In the mountain forests of central Greece, brown bears, wolves, wildcats, martens, wild boars, lynx, and deer can be found. In the south and the coastal areas, Mediterranean animals such as the jackal, wild goat, and porcupine are common. The subtropical climate encourages a variety of insects, of which the most harmful are the mosquito, which transmits malaria, and the sandfly, which carries sandfly fever.
Government in Greece: Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a Parliamentary Republic. The President, elected by Parliament every five years, is Head of State. The Prime Minister is Head of Government. The Ministerial Council, consisting of the Prime Minister, Ministers, Deputy Ministers and Ministers without portfolio, is the collective decision-making body that constitutes the Government of Greece. Greece still has a royal family. However, King Constantine II does not have any power in governing the country as the monarchy was abolished in Greece in 1974.
Economy in Greece: Tourism, food and textile manufacturing are among the main business sectors in Greece. One third of the Greek population work in the tourism sector. Greece is the third largest olive oil producer in the world – after Italy and Spain. Greece has one of Europe’s highest unemployment rates with more than one in every four Greeks being unemployed. Most people work in the services sector and were affected strongly by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Armed Forces in Greece: The Hellenic Armed Forces are the combined ground, naval and air forces of Greece. They consist of the Hellenic Army, the Hellenic Navy, and the Hellenic Air Force. Greece currently has universal compulsory military service for males from and over 18 years of age. Under Greek law, all men over 18 years of age must serve in the Armed Forces for a period of 9-12 months.
Language in Greece: Greek is the official language spoken in Greece. The Greek language has the longest history of any of the Indo-European languages and written records date back about 3,500 years.
Many Greek words have been introduced in other languages. Some of the Greek words that we use in the English language are: mathematics, physics, athletics, telephone, politics, academy, democracy and geography.
Religion in Greece: The religion of Greek people is an important aspect of their culture. The population in mainland Greece and the Greek islands is Christian Orthodox per 90%. The religion of the rest of the population is Muslims, Catholic, Jewish and other minorities.
Greek Mythology was part of the religion in Ancient Greece. Greek Mythology is the set of stories about the gods, goddesses, heroes and rituals of Ancient Greeks. The most popular Greek Mythology figures include Greek Gods like Zeus, Poseidon & Apollo, Greek Goddesses like Aphrodite, Hera & Athena and Titans like Atlas.
Education in Greece: In Greece, children go to primary or elementary school for six years. Public school education is free of charge and includes the supply of free textbooks. Schooling is required until Grade 9 or the age of 15. Greek students learn at least one foreign language which usually is English, French or German.
Food in Greece: Greek cuisine is full of aroma! Fresh fruit, vegetables and seafood dominate most dishes. Spices such as oregano, thyme, mint or rosemary are added to most Greek dishes as well. Olive oil is used in most dishes or for dipping bread.
Popular food in Greece:
Recreation in Greece: The Greek enjoy following traditions and customs such as folk music and dances. The Sirtaki is one of the most famous dances around the world and also often performed for tourists. Soccer is the most popular sport in Greece, but many people also enjoy water sports.
There are 18 UNESCO world heritage sites in Greece. UNESCO is the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, which seeks to build peace through international cooperation in education, sciences and culture. Among the most well known monuments of Ancient Greece are the Acropolis in Athens and the Parthenon temple, the Sanctuary of Delphi, the ruins of the Olympic stadium in Olympia and the Shrine and Theatre of Asklepios in Epidaurus.
Morra
In this game, two players made a fist behind their backs, and then, when a signal was given, they extend their hands, showing a certain number of fingers. The first player to call out the correct number of fingers was the winner!
Jackstones
This traditional Greek game uses stones instead of jacks. Find five small, round stones. Throw them on the ground, then pick one up. Throw it in the air and quickly grab one of the others, at the same time catching the falling stone. Keep going until you have picked up all of the stones one by one. Next, pick up two stones at a time, then three, and so on until you’ve picked up all four at one time. If you are playing with more than one person, the player who fails to pick up the stones loses his turn.
Grandmother Sleeping
Grandmother Sleeping, which can be played by two or more children, is an imaginative version of hide and seek, played around a tree. The child pretending to be the grandmother of the other children starts to tell them a story, then dozes off. After a while she wakes up and tries to find the other children, and the first child she finds becomes the grandmother for the next round.
Dive into the heart of ancient Greece with Greek Gods for Kids, an enchanting journey through the myths and legends that have shaped storytelling for millennia.
This beautifully illustrated book series opens the world to new cultures and experiences in a fun and engaging way.
This is a fun travel journal that could be fun for your Troop's World Thinking Day Event.
Checkout my Greece for Kids Pinterest board where I share all kinds of other great ideas people have shared online for country that you can incorporate into your event.
I enjoyed learning more about Greece, I hope you did too.
Here are few other around the world ideas I have shared in the past that may be great for your event as well if you are doing more than learning about one country.
Enjoy every minute being a leader and continue to inspire your girls!
