How democracy worked in Athens, and who could take part
Grade 6 Social Studies Worksheet
Circle the best answer.
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Who could vote in Athens (400s BCE)
Group Could vote? Notes Adult male citizens yes from 451 BCE, both parents had to be Athenian; about 40,000 to 60,000 men (sources differ) Women of citizen families no not part of the voting citizen body Enslaved people no owned by others, with no political rights; sources differ on the number, from about 40,000 to more than 100,000 Foreign residents (metics) no free people who lived and worked in Athens Below the chart: ostracism (about 487 to 416 BCE) let citizens vote to send a leader away for 10 years; it needed at least 6,000 votes.
From 451 BCE, what did a man need to be a citizen, Pia asks?
- He had to live in Athens for one year
- He had to be chosen by lot
- Both parents had to be Athenian
- He had to own a ship
About how many adult male citizens did Athens have, Ren asks?
- About 400 to 600
- Exactly 6,000
- About 40,000 to 60,000
- More than 100,000 male citizens
Which group in the chart could vote, Zee asks?
- Anyone living in Athens
- Foreign residents
- Adult male citizens
- Women of citizen families
Could enslaved people vote in Athens, Ari asks?
- No: they had no political rights
- No: but they could be on the Council
- Yes: if picked by lot
- Yes: any resident could vote
A foreign resident lived and worked in Athens for years. Could that person vote, Bo asks?
- Yes, living there made one a citizen
- Yes, any free person could vote
- No, a metic was not a citizen
- No, metics were enslaved
For how long did an ostracism send a leader away, Jun asks?
- For life
- 100 years
- 10 years
- 6,000 years
Why might citizens want a way to send a leader away, Kira asks?
- To stop one leader getting too much power
- To end the Assembly
- To give metics the vote
- To pick a new king for life
Which claim does the chart support best, Luz asks?
- Everyone in Athens could vote
- Women of citizen families ran the Assembly
- No one in Athens could vote
- Only some people in Athens could vote
Milo's friend says Athens gave the vote to everyone who lived there. What is the best reply?
- Agree: metics voted too
- Disagree: most residents could not vote
- Disagree: a king made the choices alone
- Agree: it was a democracy
Why does the chart give a range of 40,000 to 60,000 citizens, Noah asks?
- Sources differ, so it gives a range
- The number is known exactly
- The number of citizens changed by the day
- Athens had just 40 citizens