Lesson plan based on Amphora

Calculate the length of time it will take for Aristophanes’s guests to deplete his supply of wine, and determine how long he can prolong that supply by diluting it.

Skills and Focus: Calculation, Problem Solving

Subject Area: Mathematics

Thematic Connection: Counting and Calculating

Grade Level: Secondary School

Time Needed: 80 minutes

Objectives

• Practice converting from U.S. customary to metric measurements.

• Solve an algebraic problem.

Instructional Materials Needed

Story: Symposia: Ancient Greek Drinking Parties

Math.chart.

Activity

Step 1: After watching Symposia: Ancient Drinking Parties or introducing the idea of Greek symposia in a discussion, introduce the various drinking vessels and their functions.

Step 2: Distribute the chart. Ask students to determine how long Aristophanes’s wine supply will hold out under the following conditions:

• He bought 1 large amphora of wine (26 liters) for the party.

• He mixes the wine with water in a 1:1 ratio.

• His guests consume wine at the rates shown on the chart.

Step 3: If Aristophanes decreases the ratio of wine to water by 10% each time he refills the krater, how much longer will his wine last?

Goals

This assignment meets Illinois State Goal 6: Demonstrate and apply a knowledge and sense of numbers, including basic arithmetic operations, number patterns, ratios, and proportions.

This assignment meets Illinois State Goal 8: Use algebraic and analytical methods to identify and describe patterns and relationships in data, solve problems, and predict results.

 

Guest	Vessel	Vessels per Hour
Socrates	kylix (8 oz.)	3
Alcibiades	rhyton (4 oz.)	5
Perikles	kantharos (8 oz.)	3
Plato	kylix (8 oz.)	3
Cleon	kantharos (6 oz.)	5
Polykrates	kylix (6 oz.)	4
Themistokles	kylix (8 oz.)	3
Aristophanes	rhyton (4 oz.)	6

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