Viking Gods

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Week 3: Viking Gods

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Read K – 2: The Adventures of Thor the Thunder God by Lise Lunge-Larsen (pgs 1 – 34)

3 – 6: The Adventures of Thor the Thunder God by Lise Lunge-Larsen (entire book)

7 – 8: Odin’s Family: Myths of the Vikings by Neil Philip (entire book; be sure to also read afterward on page 119)

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Discuss:

• T/F The Vikings had many gods. (True)
• T/F The Viking gods never sinned. (False)
• Which god was the Viking’s favorite? (Thor)
• Where does word “Thursday” come from? (Thor’s day)
• What was Thor’s greatest weapon? (his hammer)
• What could Thor’s hammer do in the sky? (make lightning & thunder)
• What pulled Thor’s carriage? (two goats)
• What were the jotuns? (giants)
• Who was chief of the gods? (Odin)
• What trickster caused many problems for Thor and his family? (Loki)
• Why was Loki unusual? (he was a jotun (a giant) but he was small – the size of Odin & Thor; he was also smart and handsome)
• T/F Thor had a bad temper. (true)
• What did Loki do to Thor’s wife? (cut off her beautiful hair)
• How did he get her new hair? (tricked dwarves into making her new hair of spun gold)
• What was the best gift the gods ever received? (Thor’s hammer)
• How did Loki avoid getting his head cut off? (said they couldn’t have his neck)
• From the stories you’ve read about the Viking Gods, what things do you think were important to them as a people? (hammers for working, watching the sky, being clever, strong, tricky)
  Questions for Grades 3 – 8:
• Describe the contest each of the Viking gods had with the giants and who they were really competing against.
• Loki (eating contest, competing with wild fire)
• Tjalvi (running contest, running against a thought)
• Thor (drinking contest, drank part of the ocean)
• Thor (lifting a cat, sea serpent that wraps itself around the earth)
• Thor (old woman, fighting against old age)
• How did Thor get his hammer back after it was stolen? (pretended to be Freya to marry the giant – dressed in a dress & bridal veil)
  Questions for Grades 7 & 8:
• Where does the word “Wednesday” come from? (Woden, or Odin’s day)

Activities: K – 2: Thor coloring page: http://www.coloring-book.info/coloring/coloring.php?id=11788
3 – 6: Viking Mythology Worksheet.  Click here to get worksheet: Viking Mythology worksheet (doc) OR Viking Mythology worksheet (pdf)
7 – 8: Choose one of the following essay topics:

1. Write an essay comparing and contrasting Loki to the devil.
2. The Viking Age ended at about 1066 A.D.  At this time the Vikings became more and more a part of mainland Europe and many converted to Christianity.  Discuss the reasons why a Viking would want to leave his gods and embrace Christianity.
3. How did Thor represent the ideal Viking man? Write a 5 paragraph, 3 proof essay.

Copyright June 27th, 2014 by Gwen Fredette

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The Vikings

Week 2: The Vikings

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Read K – 6:  The Scandinavian Vikings by Louise Park & Timothy Love

7 – 8:  The Real Vikings by Melvin Berger & Gilda Berger

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Discuss:

•  What countries were the Vikings originally from? (Denmark, Sweden, & Norway)
• What lands did they conquer & colonize between 800 and 1066 AD? (Scotland, parts of England & Ireland, Iceland)
• How did people become Viking slaves? (born into slavery or taken prisoner)
• The Vikings were experts at building what? (ships – longboats)
• Did most Vikings go out raiding? (no; farmed, hunted, fished, & craftsman)
• Viking Aristocracy had elaborate burials; what were they buried with? (their ships, possessions, & animals)
• Why did Vikings raid? (land, money, weapons, slaves)
• Why do you think Vikings weren’t content with their current land? (much not suitable to farm, very cold)
• What were prime targets for Viking raids? (monasteries)
• T/F Vikings were skilled metal workers and had fine weapons and jewelry? (true)
• T/F Vikings believed in many gods. (true)
• Where did Vikings gods live? (Asgard)
• Name 2 popular Viking gods? (Oden & Thor)
• What famous Viking discovered America? (Leif Eriksson)
• Name an important king in Viking history who encouraged trade and Christianity? (Canute)
• What battle marked the decline of the Vikings? (battle of Hastings)
• Name one reason why Vikings stopped raiding? (spread of Christianity)
• Describe Viking homes? (longhouses, wooden, thatched roof, fire for cooking, similar to big halls)
• What were Viking letters called? (Runes)
• Describe how other European cultures felt about the Vikings? (afraid of them)
• Where does the word “Thursday” come from? (Thor’s day)

Activities: K – 2: Create a Viking ship using this page: http://www.crayola.co.uk/free-coloring-pages/print/viking-ship-coloring-page/
3 – 4: Use this worksheet to write a sentence using Viking Runes: http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/schools/primaryhistory/worksheets/vikings/rune_stones.pdf
5 – 6:

1.  Create a map of Viking Homelands and Viking Conquered territories using this blank map: http://www.eduplace.com/ss/maps/pdf/eur_countrynl.pdf and this map for help: http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/schools/primaryhistory/images/vikings/who_were_the_vikings/vk_map_whowerethey.jpg
2. Then, create a sentence using Viking Runes from this sheet: http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/schools/primaryhistory/worksheets/vikings/rune_stones.pdf

7 – 8:

1. Create a map of Viking Homelands and Viking settlements using this blank map: http://www.eduplace.com/ss/maps/pdf/eur_countrynl.pdf and this map for help: http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/schools/primaryhistory/images/vikings/who_were_the_vikings/vk_map_whowerethey.jpg
2. Write your name using Viking Runes. You can use this worksheet for help: http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/schools/primaryhistory/worksheets/vikings/rune_stones.pdf
3. Then write a short essay describing the positive and negative characteristics of Viking people.

Copyright June 21st, 2014 by Gwen Fredette

Fall of Rome

Week 1: The Fall of Rome & Beginning of Dark/Middle Ages

K – 3: The fall of Rome and the beginning of the Dark Ages is a concept that may be a bit complicated for this age group. I would recommend skipping this lesson for students in these grade levels, and moving on to next week’s lesson about the Vikings.

View 4 – 8: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tr2oj9hxszY&feature=c4-overview&list=UUgo_JRKFa39Tr3D-fbOqoWw  AND download this chart to fill in while watching the Youtube video: Compare Roman Empire & Dark Ages Worksheet (doc) or Compare Roman Empire & Dark Ages Worksheet (pdf).

Read: NOTE (see below)

Note:  This semester we will be studying the Dark & Middle Ages. It is also sometimes called the Medieval Era. It is called the Middle Ages because this time period lies between two great periods of cultural advancement: the Roman Empire and the Renaissance. (You will learn why it is called the “Dark” Ages from the youtube video above.)

The youtube video listed above gives an excellent, concise history of the fall of the Roman Empire and an overview of the Dark Ages. However, it should be noted that for many, many years Roman citizens worshiped Roman gods and goddesses. When Jesus brought the message of the gospel, he was crucified under the authority of Roman leaders. Later many of his disciples were also persecuted or killed for preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ and promoting Christianity. The Roman Empire began in approximately 30 B.C. with the rule of Augustus Caesar. Christianity didn’t become the official religion of ancient Rome until 312 AD.  This was during the reign of the emperor Constantine, when he himself became a Christian. That means for almost 350 years, Christianity was NOT the official religion of Rome.

The Roman Empire fell in approximately 476 A.D when the Emperor Romulus Augustus was deposed by a Germanic King. The time of the Middle Ages began when the Roman Empire fell and lasted about 1000 years. We will be studying three cultures that prospered during the Middle Ages: the Vikings, the European Feudal society, & the Arab Empire.

Discuss:

• Why is this time period known as “The Dark & Middle Ages”? (Few cultural advancements, time of many invasions, fewer people were educated at this time, fewer historical documents remain from this time period. This age is located in the “middle” of the Roman Empire & the Renaissance.
• Why did the Roman Empire fall? (Overrun by invading outsiders)
• How do the Roman Empire and the Dark Ages compare in terms of culture? (Roman empire had created great works of architecture, poets, writers of great literature; Dark ages had very few of these “cultural advances”.)
• How did the Roman Empire and the Dark Ages compare in terms of education? (Roman Empire: many citizens could read and write; Dark Ages: only very wealthy or certain members of the church could read & write)
• How did these two time periods compare in terms of trade? (Roman Empire: bustling trade, great network of roads; Dark Ages: very little trade)
• How did these two time periods compare in terms of religion? (Roman Empire initially worshiped many, many gods and goddesses. These deities were similar to those of the ancient Greeks. During the latter part of the Roman Empire, Christianity became official religion. Dark Ages: Christianity.)
• Why did the Roman Empire change its official religion? (The emperor Constantine became a Christian and then changed the religion of the empire.)
• Were the Ancient Romans always kind to Christians? (No, Jesus himself was crucified under the authority of Roman rule; many Christians were killed or persecuted for their beliefs in Jesus until the time of Constantine.)
• Who were the protectors of the citizens of Ancient Rome? (Roman Army)
• How did people living in the Dark Ages find protection? (from Feudal Lords)
• About how long did the Middle Ages last? (1000 years)
• Name 3 great cultures of the Middle Ages? (The Vikings, & European Feudal Society, & The Arab Empire.)

Activities – 4 – 8: Complete the attached chart (Compare Roman Empire & Dark Ages worksheet) as you follow along with the Youtube video  (see above): Compare Roman Empire & Dark Ages Worksheet (doc) or Compare Roman Empire & Dark Ages Worksheet (pdf).

Copyright June 12th, 2014 by Gwen Fredette

Outline: Dark & Middle Ages

OUTLINE: Summer & Fall 2014 — Dark & Middle Ages

Greetings Fellow Homeschoolers!

Hope you had a rewarding school year!  It’s almost time for Summer to begin.  Once again I will be posting history lesson plans.  This Summer & Fall I will be posting lessons on the Dark & Middle Ages.  The lessons will be similar in format to lessons you’ve already seen and used from this “U Read Thru History” site.  Each week readings will be suggested for different grade levels, discussion questions will be listed, and activities will be suggested per grade level.  I hope and pray these lessons will be a blessing to you and your family!

Following is the outline for the Dark & Middle Ages Unit Study:

Summer & Fall 2014 (World History)

Dark & Middle Ages

• Week 1: Fall of Rome
  
• Week 2: The Vikings
  
• Week 3: Viking Gods
  
• Week 4: St. Patrick & the Christian Church
  
• Week 5: The Feudal System
  
• Week 6: Castles
  
• Week 7: Knights
  
• Week 8: Great Literature: King Arthur
  
• Week 9: Architecture & Stained Glass
  
• Week 10: Muhammad
  
• Week 11: Islamic Advances in Math & Science
  
• Week 12: Great Literature: 1001 Arabian Nights
  
• Week 13: Saladin, King Richard, & the Crusades
  
• Week 14: Great Literature: Robin Hood
  
• Week 15: Marco Polo
  
• Week 16: The Bubonic Plague
  
• Week 17: Test: Dark & Middle Ages
  

If you have any questions about these History Lesson Plans, please feel free to email me.  My email is gwen.silverliningpress@juno.com.  If you’ve found great resources that might be a help to others using this curriculum, please feel free to write messages on the comments section of each post for others to see.  Thanks!

Copyright June 5th, 2014 by Gwen Fredette