songsparrow Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 What resources would you recommend to me to read / listen to / watch as I prepare to lesson plan a unit on Ancient Rome? I've never studied Ancient Rome myself, and would like to get an overview of the history and mythology / literature. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IrishMum Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 We loved History of Ancient Rome, and Classical Mythology from The Great Courses when we did Rome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Missouri Okie Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 Definitely read Vergil's Aeneid. It tells the legendary history of Rome and was commissioned by Caesar Augustus. I found Sarah Ruden's translation very readable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bocky Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 How about Tools of the Ancient Romans http://www.amazon.com/Tools-Ancient-Romans-History-Discovery/dp/0974934453/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1364946193&sr=8-1&keywords=tools+of+the+romans for a quick intro with hands-on project ideas? I just used the companion volume Tools of the Ancient Greeks for our Greece Unit for my dd11 and dd8. It made a great spine. This will give you a quick overview including science and technology, which can be underserved in similiar books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alte Veste Academy Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 The Ancient Roman World is one in a wonderful set, The World in Ancient Times, put out by OUP. Also take a look at the sections on Rome in SOTW and in SWB's adult ancient history volume. If you are not conservative with TV, the miniseries Rome was riveting (but extremely inappropriate for children, to put it mildly :tongue_smilie:). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mama2two Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 Look at Famous Men of Ancient Rome by Memoria Press. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 I just ordered the Heritage History Rome ebooks and study guide. I really like that the books are color coded by difficulty. You can read the books online, but I like the ebooks and printable books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shawthorne44 Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 As a Rome-phile, I would higly recommend the book "Empire of Trust". I forget the author's name. He is known for the Crusades. He put together several things that I knew but I'd never connected together because my study was independent and leisurely. As a fun book I'd recommend the title that is something like "Rome on 10 denarii a day" The woman that wrote Thornbirds did a series that might be OK for older kids. As an adult I found it amusing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
songsparrow Posted April 3, 2013 Author Share Posted April 3, 2013 Many thanks for all of the recommendations! I've been able to request nearly everything through the library - even the Rome series on DVD. The Ancient Roman World is one in a wonderful set, The World in Ancient Times, put out by OUP. Also take a look at the sections on Rome in SOTW and in SWB's adult ancient history volume. This is exactly the combo we'll use as our spine when we do the unit (and what we used for Ancient Greece, which we are finishing up) - I love all 3 books! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiberia Posted April 4, 2013 Share Posted April 4, 2013 You might also try "The Roman Mysteries" series by Caroline Lawrence. They are an entertaining way to absorb the history and culture of first century Rome. The story lines contain some violence/real life problems, so you might want to pre-read before you read with kids. Our library carried many of the books in the series. Just read the first book or two and see if it's something you like. My dd enjoys the series. She's nine now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shawthorne44 Posted April 5, 2013 Share Posted April 5, 2013 I have no clue what age this would be appropriate for, but Livy is an entertaining read. Unfortunately, the two best stories are the ones too mature for very small kids. But, I will summarize so you can judge. I read this maybe 20 years ago, so details are fuzzy. In the first story, the barbarians are the gate. Romans are huddled inside. The teenage boys (young men?) get together and draw lots to see who will go outside the gate. One young man was captured. It might have been two, but only one was captured. Young man talks to the barbarian leader. Young man sticks his right hand in the fire and leaves it there without flinching. He tells the leader he is just an ordinary Roman, and that he was chosen by lot out of X others. Barbarian leader decides to run away. Rape of Lucretia. (No icky details in the story). A prince of the king who is not Roman or in Roma, is out with some Romans. They are doing soldierly things together. They decide to go back into town and have a party at one of their houses. I think they go to several of the men's houses, but the wives at the various houses are having their own parties. Then they go to one of the men's houses and find Lucretia hard at work weaving cloth (which is what respectable Roman wives were supposed to do with their free time). She drops her weaving and plays good hostess to the men. Her husband gets a big status boost. Later, the prince comes back to Lucretia's house. She invites him in as guest. He rapes her. She kills herself with a sword (I think in front of her husband) If the kids can handle it, I think these stories are essential because they are so central to the way the Roman's viewed themselves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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