First things first - you just arrived in Greece! Time to sample some delicious local 'Tzatziki' dip: mint, cucumber & yoghurt dip. Easy recipe here. Serve with olives & toasted pita triangles. Ya mas! which means 'cheers!' or 'to your health!' in Greek.  

Now, onto your tour of Greece...  

Ancient Greek people decorated beautiful clay pottery, using a wheel just like today, with pictures of stories from real life - sometimes you can see basket weaving, cooking, fighting and ball games on their pots. The clay pots had 6 styles, and they were used for storing grain, drinking and pouring/washing. One of the styles was called Amphora, which was a large jar with two handles and a lid. What would you decorate your clay pot with? A story? A picture? Here’s an example of how to draw your own ancient Amphora, using just one sheet of black paper, one sheet of yellow or tan paper, and some pencils. For older kids, try using clay plant pots! 

Color the flag: change up the materials you use for decorating your flags as you 'visit' each country. Try playdough, crepe paper, felt, pompoms! 

Let’s play dress up and find out how the ancient Greeks dressed? An easy pillowcase toga and leafy laurel wreath for you, my lord/lady.

There is a huge ancient temple in Athens, Greece, called the Parthenon - a very grand and beautiful temple made out of marble and limestone, both very very strong types of stone.  Today if you visit Greece you can see the actual ruins of the Parthenon - it’s amazing! For this STEM activity, try rebuilding the Parthenon from toilet rolls, or with sand?! Inspiration here!

The Olympic torch is a symbol of unity - togetherness - and represents ancient and modern Greece.  A few months before an Olympics games is held, the torch is lit in Olympia, Greece, then it travels with runners from country to country - ending wherever the games are being held, either in summer or winter. The torch stays lit for the whole Olympics, and is put out at the very end during the closing ceremony. For your own Olympics ceremony today, click here to see how to make your own flame! 

Craft ideas for littler ones, try dipping toilet roll ends into the colours of the olympic rings: blue, yellow, black, green & red, or have them bend colored pipe cleaners into rings!