A hands-on meeting with the ancient world

Room 108 in Bevier Hall is normally a science classroom during the school year, but earlier this summer it resembled something like an ancient Mediterranean market. Children donned Greek armor or decorative wreathes with Roman clothing and jewelry. Others operated yarn looms similar to ones used to make clothes in Rome thousands of years ago.

Since 2015, associate professor of classics Ariana Traill has been organizing summer camps introducing children to Greek and Roman history. She was inspired to start the camps after talking to Silvina Montrul, professor of Spanish, who founded the University Language Academy for Children, an after school and summer camp Spanish program. 

The Greek and Roman camps don’t look like the music or sports camps that dominate the summer scene on campus, but they have been well-received by parents and children. The camps initially focused on teaching children about Latin language and culture. Traill realized how popular it was and created more camps.

This past June, “Meet the Greeks” and “Meet the Romans” were held during three separate weeks in June, with “Meet the Greeks” in the mornings and “Meet the Romans” in the afternoons. The camps are designed for children 8 to 11 years old.

Traill said the popularity of the camps has been helped along by the Percy Jackson book series by Rick Riordan. The fantasy series follows the protagonist in the modern time but contains elements of Greek and Roman mythology including the Greek gods.  

She was surprised by how knowledgeable the children were on Greek and Roman life when they arrived at camp. “They're lively, curious, inquisitive, happy to volunteer, and they're really a pleasure to work with,” she said.

The camps are run by graduate students in the Department of Classics. Elisa Jennings, an instructor for the Greeks camps, is working on a master’s degree in teaching Latin. She will begin teaching Latin at Monmouth Roseville High School in August. The camps are giving her valuable experience working with children.

Jennings and the other teachers/instructors guide children through a variety of activities, ranging from interactive mini-lectures with slides to crafts and games. She said the children learned about Greek clothing, including a Greek himation, which is similar to a large cloak or wrap.

“We played a physical game where it was himation races,” said Jennings. “The goal is to get your teammate to run across the finish line with their himation and not grab it or let it fall to the ground.”

One new learning aide this year was the National Geographic podcast “Greeking Out,” which the instructors used to help teach kids stories about ancient Greece. The podcast was nothing new to Jacob Helmers, 8, of Mahomet, Illinois, who said his family listens to “Greeking Out” on long car rides. “Learning about ancient Greeks is actually pretty fun,” he said.

Graduate student Jillian White was an instructor in the “Meet the Romans” camp. She is earning a PhD in classics and plans to teach classics in a college or university. “It’s really a good experience because we get used to teaching undergrads, but we don't really get used to interacting with and teaching kids,” she said.

During the Roman camp, the children participated in activities that Roman children would have done in their daily lives. They dressed up in Roman-style clothing and made bullas, or Roman amulets that were given to children soon after birth to ward off evil spirits and forces. They also used ink to write on papyrus and learned to make felt out of raw wool using ancient techniques.

Avery Smith, 9, of Champaign attended both camps. “I like the experience of camp and doing all the different things and learning,” Smith said. Meanwhile, Helen Dolezal, 9, of Savoy, Illinois, attended the camp for the second year in a row. She had fun making the bulla and learning to use the yarn loom. 

Helen’s parents said they were very excited when they first heard about the camp. “It was super cool to have a camp on this topic run by experts/scholars in this field,” said Adam Dolezal, Helen’s father.

As kids, both of Helen’s parents loved ‘D'Aulaires Book of Greek Myths,’ by Edgar and Ingri Parin d'Aulaire. “Both of us were really interested in these topics as kids (and as adults!),” said Adam Dolezal. They shared this book with Helen and her siblings, who also came to develop an interest in mythology. “It’s really fun for our kids to both be interested in it, too, and to have this amazing resource.”

Traill, a parent, said that she is pleased to have found a distinct way to expose children to language and culture. She noted that the timing for the camps is good—both in terms of occurring during the summer months, when families are looking for activities for their kids, and in terms of the children’s development.   

“They're in an age where they're very accepting of new experiences and new information,” Traill said.