Saturday, August 30, 2008

Got a question for you...

Click on comments for the answer...

Turn watching 300 into a fun lesson about the Greco-Persian Wars

Here is a link to Historybusters' newest curriculum for the movie 300

http://www.navigatinglife.org/historybusters/id70.html

Have fun...

Ryan asked for some pictures

Thirteen year old, Ryan G. sent a message after going through out 300 movie curriculum. He asked to see more about the types of weapons the Spartans used at the Battle of Thermopylae. Here you go. All these images are from Wikipedia Commons, and Historybusters thanks them for the use.

A map of the city states involved in the Greco-Persian Wars

A Corinthian helmet
The skull of the warrior was actually found inside


A picture of a Greek Phalanx


Bronze swords from the period




Urns depicting Greek Hopilite Warriors



Greek hopilite armour



Corinthian Helmet



There you go Ryan...hope it helps
If anyone else has found great images about either the Persians or the Spartans, please let us know in a comment
Lynn
P. S.
Here are a few excellent websites that feature Thermopylae

A Great Game to help your kids remember the Presidents in order

Have them build an Acronym and see how silly and memorable they can make it...

Here, here is one my group did together...

When a janitor made mold another janitor verbally harrassed two poor tailless filliies piercingly because local Johns grant hazy gardens. Anyway, clearly harassment can make roses taller. Will hard cooling help roses to eventually kill Johns? No, for cars run between climbing bushes.

Why not check it against the list of Presidents.

Washington
Adams
Jefferson
Madison
Monroe
Adam, John Quincey
Jackson
Van Buren
Harrison
Tyler
Polk
Taylor
Fillmore
Pierce
Buchanan
Lincoln
Johnson, Andrew
Grant
Hayes
Garfield
Arthur
Cleveland
Harrison, Benjamin
Cleveland (second term)
McKinley
Roosevelt, Teddy
Taft
Wilson
Harding
Coolidge
Hoover
Roosevelt
Truman
Eisenhower
Kennedy
Johnson, Lydon B.
Nixson
Ford
Carter
Reagan
Bush, George
Clinton
Bush, George W.

Try making your own Acronym or improving this one and add it to the comments.

Have fun...

Monday, August 4, 2008

How Accurate was Alexander, the recent Oliver Stone movie?

Hey Eric,

Regarding your question about the accuracy of Alexander. I finally got around to seeing it, and I here is my review.

Alexander, Oliver Stone’s 150 million dollar epic, is actually pretty accurate. Not perfect, no retelling ever is, however Oliver Stone does faithfully recreates what little we know about the look and feel of the period. His battle scenes are pretty dead on. He even manages to provide a clear picture of Alexander’s upbringing, including his conniving, murdering, snake-charming mother, although I sincerely doubt that Olympias really had snakes with her all the time even though she was a practitioner of the old religions. That being said, I feel compelled to add that Stone’s epic seemed high in gloss and low on humanity. We never really understand what made Alexander great. We are shown a lot of the “what happened,” but never the “why.” This movie is a fine introduction into the world of Alexander, but if you want to learn more about Alexander and enjoy historical fiction, I recommend reading The Persian Boy and Funeral Games by Mary Renault. They are an easy read, and both are wonderful. If you prefer a biography, Alan Fildes and Joann Fletcher's Alexander the Great is excellent. If you are allergic to reading, you can check out the documentary, In The Footsteps of Alexander. We have a link to it in our Store of Knowledge. Now, about the gay question…Alexander, like many men of his times, did have liaisons with both sexes. He lived in a society that considered intimate relationships between men natural; he also lived in a society that believed world conquest was a good thing. It’s foolish to judge him by “modern” standards. This film contains mature content.

Hope my review helps...Lynn