THE NEED
As a result of education programs such as the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), students are often no longer building a solid foundation of knowledge through their education. Critical subjects like history and science are sidelined, with schools allocating as little as 16 minutes a day to social studies. This lack of focus on factual knowledge leaves students unprepared to understand more complex subjects in later grades. Additionally, only 13% of students report they enjoy school because the focus on testing has led to overwhelming, disengaging curricula.
THE MISSION
The Youth Mythology Initiative is stepping up to bridge this gap by bringing fun supplemental social studies education to community organizations. We currently offer three courses: All Around The World Mythology, Greek Mythology, and Asian Mythology. We bring history and philosophy to life through our classes, inspiring greater academic participation among students. Unlike school mythology units, which usually span a week and include an overview of the Greek gods, our classes break down ancient and modern cultural contexts to help elementary and middle schoolers understand the modern moral and philosophical implications of myths from almost every continent (excluding Antarctica!). We partner with non-profits, libraries, and schools to hold afterschool workshops and summer programs.​
By kids, for kids: all of our classes are taught by experienced and passionate high schoolers.
Greek Mythology at Don Bosco Community Center
Greek Mythology at Stamford Boys and Girls Club in partnership with Kids Helping Kids, CT
2024 Q4 Team Kickoff Meeting
Availability
Location
Language
The Logistics
Our curriculum work best with weekly or twice-a-weekly workshops.
Student teachers are free to teach anytime starting 3:30pm Monday-Friday (due to school), or any time on the weekends.
Summer workshops can be at any time of the day during any day.​
Our instructors speak English, Russian, Chinese, and Spanish, giving them the ability to connect with children of all backgrounds- just give us a heads up!
We fundraise, so we don't charge students or partner organizations.
Student teachers travel to your facilities to teach.
Cost
Four benefits
01
Mythology gets kids to think about deep topics, inspiring free thought.
It's difficult to get a sixth grader to talk about the importance of choosing friends wisely, being kind to your parents, or nature vs. nurture, but we don't just get them to talk about those topics. They volunteer to. World mythology is a great lens to see the world through because it's so fun that kids barely realize how much they're learning and thinking.
03
Mythology is a gateway to academics.
In all of our lessons, we include the connections between myths and the historical events that they reflect, as well as important concepts in historiography (broken down into child-sized bites). The group discussions lead to better critical thinking. But beyond the academics themselves, this traditionally academic subject normalizes talking about academics with your friends and taking them seriously.
02
It's fun for kids!
Administrators are always surprised at the first lesson, when kids are excitedly calling out and those who have to be picked up early are begging to stay for thirty more minutes. That's because beyond the practical and academic applications of mythology, kids really enjoy the workshops. The engaging format includes slideshows with illustrations, games, and projects. We also ask the students questions and encourage debate, questions, and remarks to be called out throughout the workshop.
04
Counselors and coordinators get to learn something, too
We can't count the number of times that one of us has asked a group of kids, "does anyone remember what the inventor's name was?" or "what do you think happens next?" and watched a counselor excitedly say, "ooh! I know this. I know this." Sometimes, after a long day of watching kids run around, it's nice to sit down and learn something really interesting to you while someone else manages your kids.