October 15th, 2021

Salty Sam’s Fun Blog for Children

Number 348

Greek Classics

 

Hello Everyone

 

 

Do you often go to the library to borrow books?

 

Bill and Bob go every week.  They read every night when they go to bed and if they have finished their books before the week is up, they swap them over.  This of course gives them double their borrowing allowance.

 

Last week, they borrowed a book of stories the like of which they had not seen before.

 

They were really ancient stories but in a sense seemed quite modern because there were creatures and exploits that were quite similar to fantasy adventure films you see nowadays.

 

There have been films made of some of these stories too and they are on the television sometimes.

 

The book was written for children so it was quite easy for them to read.

 

The book had stories of Greek mythology.

 

Mythology means stories of things that are completely made up with mythical creatures or animals that do not and have never really existed.

 

The people in the stories are very brave and manage to overcome great hardships and succeed in superhuman tasks.

 

They conquer monsters and execute daring rescues.  They escape from difficult situations and complete very long and adventurous journeys, often by sea.

 

There are many islands that help to make up the country of Greece.

 

Ancient story tellers were obviously inspired to write about these beautiful places and enhance them with mystery and exploits.

 

Let me tell you about some of the stories.

 

Odysseus (pronounced oh-dee-see-us) was a sailor who attacked the castle of Troy, a place near the entrance to the Black Sea.  But he took ten years to finally get back home!  On the way he faced many dangers.

 

He battled storms and monsters, witches and gods, and he fought against many temptations as well, like the Sirens who sang so sweetly that they lured to death every man who heard their voices.

 

The story was written by a man called Homer.

 

Now we use the word odyssey to mean a long journey where lots of things happen.

 

ln the Myth of Perseus and the Medusa, a king in Greece is told that in his future he will be killed by his own grandson.  Because he does not want this to happen he puts his daughter and her son into a chest and casts them into the sea.  He thinks that by doing this he will never see them again.

 

But the chest floats away and lands on the sandy shore of an island where it is found by some fishermen.

 

The ruler of the island takes in the mother and son and cares for them for many years.  The boy, called Perseus, grows up to be active and healthy.

 

The ruler then became annoyed with the behaviour of the mother and made her his slave.

 

But Perseus had grown strong and athletic and the ruler feared that he might cause trouble for him after the bad treatment of his mother.

 

So he banished Perseus and sent him on a long and dangerous journey.

 

Perseus was sent to the ends of the Earth where there lived a terrible woman called Medusa, she was a creature called a Gorgon.  The Gorgon had a mass of living snakes on her head that looked like they were her hair.

 

There were three sisters that looked like this.

 

Medusa was so ugly, that if anyone looked at her they would turn to stone.

 

Perseus was charged with the task of collecting the head of this Gorgon.

 

So he set out, not quite knowing even where to find this woman.

 

How could he possible complete such a difficult task and who and what could he employ to help him?  And then if he successfully completed the task, how was he going to get back home again?

 

You will have to read the story to find out.

 

Perseus encounters many adventures in this long story.

 

Another hero who went on a long journey was Jason.  He was a prince that set out on a quest to find the legendary Golden Fleece.

 

There was once a girl and boy whose stepmother was very cruel to them.  She wished to kill them.  But a god called Hermes sent them a flying ram to save them.  The ram had wool that was pure gold.

 

The ram flew off and took them to safety on his back but the girl became so frightened at one point that she lost her grip and fell into the sea and was drowned.  The boy arrived safely in a far off land where his stepmother could not find him.

 

With gratitude, the boy sacrificed the ram on the altar of the god Zeus, and its beautiful, golden fleece was hung up in a grove that was sacred to the god Ares. 

 

To keep the fleece safe from being stolen, a ferocious dragon was given the task of guarding it.

 

By right, Jason should have been ruling one of the lands of Greece but his uncle had taken the throne from him.  Only by giving him the Golden Fleece would the uncle give Jason back his kingdom.

 

So Jason had a huge ship built.  lt was named the Argo.  He commissioned forty-nine of the bravest men in Greece to accompany him on his journey and man the mighty oars of the ship.  These sailors were called the Argonauts.

 

Then Jason set off on what was to become an epic adventure.

 

So if you want to read what happens in these stories, you will be able to find them in a book somewhere too.  You can buy a book with these adventures in or borrow one from your local library.

 

l hope l have given you a taste for them…

 

 

Bye bye everyone – don’t forget to subscribe to my blog!

 

lf you like my blog, please support it by telling all your friends and followers about it.

 

Thank you!

 

And see you again next Fun Friday!

 

Love and kisses

 

 

Salty Sam

www.christina-sinclair.com

 

Bill and Bob’s Joke of the Week

 

Bob: Do you know that Cyclops had to give up teaching?

 

Bill:  No, why?

 

Bob:  Well – he only had one pupil!

 

 

Salty Sam © Christina Sinclair 2015

Unauthorized use and/or duplication of material from this blog without express and written permission from this blog’s author and owner is strictly prohibited.

Links may be used to www.christina-sinclair.com

 

Picture Gallery

 

Jason

 

Cyclops

 

 

Poseidon

Protector of seafarers

 

 

     THE SALTY SAM NEWS DESK

 

 

Bill and Bob told Miss Pringle about the book they had borrowed from the library when they went in to school one day.

She told them that sometimes modern words come from old stories; like the word siren and aerial.

The word astronaut comes from the Greek words meaning star sailor just like the Argonauts were the sailors of the Argo.

She told the whole class that sometimes people today use words and phrases from another ancient language called Latin.  This was the language of the Ancient Romans.

She taught them about these Latin phrases that are still in use today.

They keep using them at the dinner table now and their parents are astonished!

If you want to use Latin phrases when you talk, you will really have to get the hang of them to use them properly!

A lot of schools don’t teach Latin anymore but these phrases are used by people talking every day, so it will be useful for you to know them.  You might have heard of some of them already. 

Some of them you may be able to guess because they sound like other words you will know.

 

Do you know what they mean?

 

1. Ad Hoc
2. Ad Nauseam
3. Anno Domine
4. Ante Meridiem
5. Bona Fide
6. Carpe Diem
7. Caveat Emptor
8. Ceteris Paribus
9. Cogito Ergo Sum
10. Corpus Delicti
11. Dei Gratia
12. Errare Humanum Est
13. Et Alia
14. Et Cetera
15. Ex Gratia
16. Ex Post Facto
17. Ex Tempore
18. Facta Non Verba
19. Flagrante Delicto
20. Habeas Corpus
21. In Absentia
22. In Actu
23. In Camera
24. In Capite
25. In Extenso
26. In Infinitum
27. In Loco Parentis
28. In Memoriam
29. In Perpetuum
30. In Situ
31. In Statu Quo
32. In Toto
33. In Transitu
34. In Vino Veritas
35. In Vitro
36. Inter Nos
37. Lingua Franca
38. Mea Culpa
39. Non Sequitur
40. Per Annum
41. Per Capita
42. Per Diem
43. Per Se
44. Persona non Grata
45. Post Mortem
46. Post Scriptum
47. Prima Facie
48. Pro Bono Publico
49. Pro Rata
50. Quid Pro Quo
51. Sub Poena
52. Tempus Fugit
53. Veni, Vidi, Vici
54. Vice Versa
55. Videlicet (Viz.)

 

If you know all of them, they will probably set you up for the rest of your life!

 

 

 

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Quick Quiz

 

Do you know what creatures these characters are?

 

1. Phoenix
2. Pegasus
3. Cerberus
4. Centaur
5. Echidna

 

 

 

lt’s the Weekend!

 

 

HOW TO MAKE A BACK PACK FOR A 12” DOLL

This is a perfect bag for your doll to take her books to college or for when she goes away for the weekend or maybe takes a picnic on a day’s cycling.

This article is knitted entirely in garter stitch to give it a rigid form.

 

 

BACK (KNIT ONE)

Using 4mm knitting needles and light green dk yarn cast on 8 stitches

Knit 20 rows of garter stitch

 

Decrease 1 stitch at the beginning of the next seven rows

When you have 1 stitch left on your needle

Cast off

 

FRONT TOP (KNIT ONE)

Using 4mm knitting needles and light green dk yarn cast on 8 stitches

Knit 4 rows of garter stitch

 

Decrease 1 stitch at the beginning of the next seven rows

When you have 1 stitch left on your needle

Cast off

 

FRONT BOTTOM (KNIT ONE)

 

Using 4mm knitting needles and light green dk yarn cast on 8 stitches

Knit 18 rows of garter stitch

Cast off

 

SIDES (KNIT ONE)

Using 4mm knitting needles and light green dk yarn cast on 6 stitches

Knit 70 rows of garter stitch

Cast off

 

BASE (KNIT ONE)

Using 4mm knitting needles and light green dk yarn cast on 8 stitches

Knit 10 rows of garter stitch

Cast off

 

TO MAKE UP

Sew the parts of the bag using over-sew stitching with wrong sides together so that the bag has nice crisp edges.

 

1. Sew the bottom of the back to the back of the base
2. Sew the bottom of the bottom front to the front of the base
3. Sew the ends of the side strip to the sides of the base
4. Ease the sides onto the back and the front bottom and sew together
5. Sew the front top into place slightly overlapping the bottom of the front top over the front bottom
6. Sew a large bead to the top of the front bottom and a loop of yarn to the middle of the bottom edge of the front top so that it can hook over the large bead
7. Crochet 25 chains into two lengths of light green yarn leaving yarn at the end of each cord to allow you to sew these straps to the bag
8. Sew the bottom of the straps to the bottom corner at the back of the bag and the other ends to where the back of the bag starts to curve over

 

 

Please note that the material on this blog is for personal use and for use in classrooms only.

It is a copyright infringement and, therefore, illegal under international law to sell items made with these patterns.

Use of the toys and projects is at your own risk.

©Christina Sinclair Designs 2015

 

 

Answers to the News Desk Quiz

 

Ad Hoc

For this purpose

Ad Nauseam

To go on and on and on to a sickening extent

Anno Domine

In the year of our Lord. Usually we write A.D.

Ante Meridiem

Before noon. Usually we write A.M. – and P.M. is Post Meridian

Bona Fide

In good faith, sincerely, real, genuine

Carpe Diem

Seize the day – and enjoy it

Caveat Emptor

Let the buyer beware – it is the buyer’s responsibility to check the goods before they part with their money

Ceteris Paribus

All things being equal

Cogito Ergo Sum

I think, therefore, I am (Said by a famous philosopher called Rene Descartes)

Corpus Delicti

Literally the body of the crime. The most important facts of crime.

Dei Gratia

By the grace of God. This appears on all British, Canadian, and other British Commonwealth coins and is usually abbreviated D.G.

Errare Humanum Est

To err is human (usually followed by ‘to forgive is divine’)

Et Alia

And others (if you see this on a DVD it is usually et al and refers to the rest of the cast not mentioned)

Et Cetera

And the rest. Often abbreviated etc. or &c.

Ex Gratia

Done or given as a favour and not under any compulsion to do so

Ex Post Facto

After the fact (after something has happened)

Ex Tempore

Off the cuff, without preparation

Facta Non Verba

Deeds not words

Flagrante Delicto

Literally while the crime is blazing. Caught red-handed, in the very act of carrying out a crime.

Habeas Corpus

Literally that you have a body. A writ requiring that a detained person be brought before a court to decide the legality of that individual’s detention.  That is to say is it legal to hold them in gaol.

In Absentia

In their absence – without them being there

In Actu

In practice – actually doing something

In Camera

In secret or private session; not in public – this is used in a court of law when the reporters and public are not allowed to watch proceedings

In Capite

In chief, in charge

In Extenso

At full length

In Infinitum

To infinity; without end

In Loco Parentis

In the place of a parent, maybe an adult who looks after an orphan

In Memoriam

To the memory of someone who has died

In Perpetuum

To all time, to go on and on

In Situ

In its original place; in position

In Statu Quo

To remain in the same state, to stay unchanged

In Toto

As a whole, absolutely, completely

In Transitu

In passing, on the way, still on the journey

In Vino Veritas

Truth comes out under the influence of alcohol – people might tell you things when they are drunk that they would not when they are sober

In Vitro

In a test tube (literally glass)

Inter Nos

Between ourselves

Lingua Franca

A common language

Mea Culpa

Through my own fault, it was my fault it happened

Non Sequitur

An inference or conclusion which doesn’t follow from its premises (literally It Does Not Follow) someone seemingly changing the subject

Per Annum

By the Year – some bills are paid only once a year

Per Capita

By heads – counting each person

Per Diem

By the day

Per Se – (pronounced per say)

By or in itself

Persona non Grata

Unacceptable Person, a person who has done something bad and so is shunned by others

Post Mortem

After death

Post Scriptum

Written later. A postscript, usually abbreviated P.S and put at the end of a letter.

Prima Facie

At first sight; on the face of it – looking something for the first time and making a judgement before a full investigation

Pro Bono Publico

For the public good

Pro Rata

Proportionally – divided up into equal portions

Quid Pro Quo

One thing for another; something for something in exchange

Sub Poena

Under penalty of … The source of the English word subpoena which is a writ issued by a court requiring one’s attendance at that court – you don’t have a choice but to go

Tempus Fugit

Time flies – or so it seems

Veni, Vidi, Vici

I came, I saw, I conquered

Vice Versa

The positions being reversed – when something is swapped over to be exactly the other way around

Videlicet (Viz.)

That is to say – Namely

 

 

 

Quick Quiz Answers

 

1. Phoenix – a bird
2. Pegasus – a winged horse
3. Cerberus – a three-headed dog
4. Centaur – a creature with the top part of a man and the bottom part of a horse
5. Echidna – a creature with the top part of a woman and the bottom part of a snake

 

 

 

 

 

Note that Pegasus does not have a horn like a unicorn