When the Hellenic Museum embarked on the international collaboration with the Benaki Museum, it was clear that more needed to be done than just your usual tour.

Australia’s only Greek Museum developed a full educational guide, so students and teachers can appreciate, engage and understand the full collection that makes up the exhibition Gods, Myths & Mortals.

The education program will enable students and the public to draw links between the exhibition and their own lives. The collection can be applied to both primary and secondary school curriculums in areas of social studies, Greek language, ancient, medieval and modern history, visual arts and design.

“Education is one of the Hellenic Museum’s key priorities,” says Penni Pappas, projects manager at the Hellenic Museum.

The Teachers’ Guide – that are available to all schools Australia wide – aim to engage with the students prior to and throughout their visit, give them something to focus during their visit, and to create dialogue following their tour of the exhibition.

“We created these guides alongside the Benaki Museum’s educational department, as well as engaging educators Australia wide,” says Ms Pappas.

She adds it gives students – and teachers – a chance to participate, learn and engage with the long-term exhibition that has travelled all the way from Athens.

The guides have been created to meet the needs of primary and secondary students; but also have been divided into subject areas too. For secondary students, the guides have been divided into year level as well.

“We are working closely with the Benaki Museum’s education department to ensure the creation of full bilingual teachers’ guides for next year,” says Ms Pappas.

The Greek and English bilingual guides will be created for primary and secondary students to compliment and enhance their studies of Modern Greek.
Complimenting the guides are, QR codes which have been used to highlight significant pieces from the collection. 23 pieces have been selected including: a Cycladic female figurine dated 2700-2300 BCE; the gold kylix dated 15th -14th century BCE – which happens to be one of Angelos Delivorias’ favourite pieces – and the manuscript of Nikolaos Kasomoulis military memoirs from the Greek Revolution in 1822-1833.

When Spiros Stamoulis first founded the Hellenic Museum in 2007, he wanted to enrich the cultural and artistic knowledge of all Australians, and ensure the promotion and appreciation of Greece’s cultural legacy.

People wanting to engage with art, Greek culture and history have been visiting the Museum since it opened. And now, with the Benaki Museum’s collection inhouse, students from all over Australia are set to soar in their knowledge of Hellenism.

*This article appears in Neos Kosmos’ Gods, Myths and Mortals supplement in the Thursday 11 September Greek Edition.