
Ancient Greek Gods for Kids
The magical world of the ancient Greek gods was a world full of bickering and challenges and jealousies and fights and punishment and love. Many Greek myths were based on the fact that gods, like mortal men, could be punished or rewarded for their actions. They could fall in love. They could get angry. And they could get even!
The ancient Greek gods loved to get involved in the lives of mortals, sometimes to help, and sometimes to hinder, and sometimes quite accidentally, causing all kinds of trouble. The ancient Greek gods were not always the most thoughtful of magical beings. For more about that, see: Case Files from The Hercules Detective Agency, Founded to Help the Greek People (GreekMyths4Kids)
The ancient Greeks believed in a great many gods and goddesses and other magical creatures. Here are some of the major ones. Click on their name to learn more about them: Zeus / Hera / Poseidon / Hades / Ares / Hermes / Apollo / Artemis / Athena / Hestia / Demeter / Aphrodite / Helios / Hephaestus / Heracles / Eros / Dionysus / Orpheus / Echo / Pan / Pandora / Pegasus / Kerberos / Prometheus
There were also the nine muses, wood nymphs & water nymphs, and many monsters!
The ancient Greek storytellers traveled from village to village, telling stories about the ancient Greek gods and other magical beings. These stories are called myths (short for mythology, or stories about gods.) Each storyteller changed the myths a bit to fit their audience and their own imagination, but whatever power and personality a god had was consistent no matter who was telling the story. For example, Zeus was always king of the gods, and only Zeus could throw lightning bolts.
Here are some ancient Greek myths for kids, retold by the storyteller, Lin Donn
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The Magic Rocks - a myth about Ares, the god of war, and a battle he did not win
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Hermes & Apollo (cartoon PowerPoint, how Apollo got his lyre)
New: Hosted by Greek Myths 4 Kids
By Lin & Don Donn: Case Files from The Hercules Detective Agency
Original Stories by Lin and Don Donn about the ancient Greeks
See Also:
FREE QUIZ: TEST YOURSELF Ancient Greek Gods and Goddesses (Interactive with answers)
Greek Myth Games (interactive)
A series of Greek Myths - animated, by Geethanjali Studios, based on our Greek Myths, used with our permission
Free Lesson Plans for Teachers about the ancient Greek deities

Explore Ancient Greece
For Kids: Overview
Early Greece: Minoans, Mycenaeans, Dorians
Rise of Greek City-States
- On Land: Greek Warriors
- At Sea: Greek Ships
- Trojan War
- Persian Wars
- The Delian League
- Peloponnesian War
- Alexander the Great
- The League of Corinth
Investigate Real Life Artifacts
For Kids: Art, Culture, Government
Greek Columns and Architecture
For Kids: Daily Life
For Kids: Greek Mythology
Ancient Greek Gods & Goddesses
Ancient Greek Myths for Kids
- Zeus, Hera, and Little Io
- The Competition, Athena and Poseidon
- Theseus, the Minotaur, and the Maze
- Dionysus and Ariadne
- Icarus and Daedalus, Wings
- The 12 Labors of Hercules
- Demeter and Persephone, Reason for the Seasons
- Apollo's Oracle at Delphi
- Perseus, Andromeda, and the sea god, Poseidon
- King Midas and the Donkey Ears
- And Many More
From the Case Files of the Hercules Detective Agency: Learn more about the gods and Greek daily life
- The Misunderstood Minotaur - How Hercules made a best friend
- The Scaredly Fish
- The Tricked Bully
- The Stone Zoo
- The Bad Barber
- The Constant Chatterbox
- The Monster Under the Bridge
- The Festival Arrow
- The Amazing Matchmaker
- And many more!
For Kids: People
For Kids: Interactive Quizzes
Alexander the Great &
Gifts from the Greeks
For Teachers
For Kids and Teachers: Other Ancient Civilizations
See Also: Early Humans for Kids and Teachers