Home

CHILDREN

in Ancient Greek Society

slave



Children were thought of very little until they hit puberty. People thought of children as weak, both morally and physically, gullible, and stupid.
When there was a birth of a child, the door to the house was hung with either an olive leaf (boy) or some wool (girl). It was largely known that boys were more wanted than girls and therefore earned greater respect at birth.

Differences



BOYS
Sent to private schools where they learned to read, write, draw, and do math. They also did gymnastics because good health was essential to a successful Grecian.

At age 16, boys began to train for their future job, such as a businessman, military man, or athlete.

Boys were not allowed to participate in the army, vote in an assembly, get married, or make a will until the community felt that they had matured completely.


GIRLS
Girls generally did not attend school, but if they were lucky, they were taught to read and write at home. Instead, they had to focus on more household tasks, like weaving and making sure they could control a household (when older they might be in charge of a number of slaves).

Girls learned from an early age important domestic abilities like weaving, cooking, and sewing. They never looked to learn any other jobs because they would have never been allowed to do those jobs. They had little rights as children and would have even less rights as adults. They could never vote or hold property.