Theseus and the Minotaur

Classroom teachers' notes Theseus and the Minotaur teachers notes (156 KB)

Notes from a returners' course based on this Theseus and the Minotaur returners course (98 KB)

The year 5/6 lessons were planned around interpretations of history, incorporating myths and legends for a cross-curricular approach.

The story of Theseus and the Minotaur formed an excellent starting point for an investigation of the Knossos palace, with a focus on the archaeologist Sir Arthur Evans’ interpretation of the palace he uncovered at Knossos in Crete.

We chose to concentrate on Knossos because the varying interpretations of this building would provide a good basis for developing the children’s skills of interpretation. (Ofsted has highlighted interpretations as a weakness in the teaching of history at KS2.) The children could adopt the role of archaeologists, and so discover something about their working methods and the ways in which they interpret the past.

by Ray Verrier and Jacqui Dean