Classical Civilisation: A Legendary First Year

This year has marked an exciting milestone for Uplands Academy with the introduction of OCR GCSE Classical Civilisation. We were delighted to welcome 37 students onto the course, all of whom have embraced the challenge and enthusiasm of studying the ancient world. Our Year 10 students have particularly enjoyed their first topic, Myth and Religion, exploring fascinating stories such as the labours of Hercules, Theseus’ defeat of the Minotaur, and the myths surrounding the Olympian gods, including the birth of Athena and the abduction of Persephone to the Underworld. Students were especially interested in how Persephone’s story was used by the ancient Greeks to explain the changing seasons. Alongside mythology, they have begun to explore the political landscape of Ancient Rome, developing an understanding of how Augustus established himself as the rightful ruler of the new Roman Empire and shaped its future.

A particular highlight of the year was our visit to London in April, where students enjoyed the West End production of Hercules. The performance sparked lively discussions back in the classroom as students compared the adaptation with the original myth and debated some of the creative changes made for the stage. During the trip, students also visited the British Museum to see the Parthenon Sculptures, the Temple of Bassae friezes, and a range of artefacts from the Ancient Greek and Roman galleries. It was particularly rewarding to see students applying their classroom learning by identifying how the friezes conveyed mythological stories they had studied and gaining a real appreciation of the immense scale and grandeur of the temples from which they originated.

Looking ahead, we are excited to begin our next unit, War and Warfare, which will examine Sparta, Athens and Rome through the pivotal battles that influenced the course of their histories. We hope to build on this year’s success with another visit to the British Museum and, potentially, a VR experience exploring the Colosseum.

With over a third of the cohort already achieving their target grades a year early in this summer’s mock examinations, despite the challenges of the heat and their first experience of GCSE assessment, the future looks very bright for our inaugural Classical Civilisation students and we're very much looking forward to welcoming our next legion of year 10 students next year!