The Middle Ages

The Middle Ages is a Baby CTY course where students explore medieval literature like Beowulf and The Canterbury Tales. This course is only offered at Palo Alto Second Session.

Course Description

From the CTY Summer Catalog:

Were the Middle Ages really the "Dark" Ages? How did the ideals of nobility, piety, and chivalry shape medieval people's lives? How did the flowering of art, culture, and science in Andalusia under the Moors compare to advances in the rest of Europe? What did the Crusades represent to Christian and Islamic societies? Students consider these questions and more as they explore the cultural, social, and intellectual life of the medieval world from the fifth to 15th centuries, including the rise of Islam and its interaction with European culture and religion.

Students examine a rich variety of medieval literature, including excerpts from Beowulf, The Canterbury Tales, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, and writings about monks, caliphs, and serfs. They also become familiar with characteristics of Gothic and Moorish architecture and use the legacy of art to trace the social, political, and religious character of the period. Projects range from writing reports on medieval inventions to creating profiles of people from various cultures and classes.

Students must have completed grades: 5 or 6