Ancient Rome (Junior Cert History): Model Answers

Life of a Child in Ancient Rome

My name is Augusta, and I live in Rome, the empire's capital. Our ruler is called an emperor, and the empire stretches all the way to the Hadrian's Wall on the border of England and Scotland, as well as the Red and Caspian Seas. My father is a general in the Great Roman Army, and he's in charge of very well-trained professional soldiers. They use weapons like pila, swords, and shields.

My father is well paid so we live in a beautiful domus in the centre of Rome. It has a central room called the atrium and an enclosed garden called the peristylium. All the walls are painted with frescoes, and mosaics are on the floor. My father is the head of the family, and I attend school every day. I study arithmetic, reading and writing. We begin early in the morning and finish at noon. I wear a tunic every day. Wealthy men like my father wear a toga while my mother wears a stola. Our main meal is in the evening, and it is called the cena. My family won slaves, and they did all the work in the house, like cleaning and cooking meals.

The forum is in the city's centre, and it's a busy marketplace. The courts, temples, and senate house are located there. For entertainment, there are chariot races at Circus Maximus. Gladiator fights at the Colosseum are also very bloody and violent. Bathhouses are a popular pastime, too.

Religion is very important to us. We worship many gods and have statues of them in our homes. I pray to the god of war, Mars, to protect all the Roman soldiers and the empire.