178 Greek Myths: Supplemental Guide 9A | Oedipus and the Riddle of the Sphinx
Show image 9A-4: Sphinx and Oedipus talking
Tell students that the person talking to the Sphinx in this image is
the man Oedipus.
Remind students that a riddle is a puzzling question, to which
people try to guess the answer. Tell students that riddles were
popular among the ancient Greeks and that today’s myth involves
a riddle. Tell students that the title of today’s myth is “Oedipus and
the Riddle of the Sphinx.”Vocabulary Preview 5 minutes
Posed- In today’s myth you will hear about the Sphinx who posed a
riddle to Oedipus. - Say the word posed with me three times.
- Posed means presented or asked a question.
- Every Friday, the math teacher posed a tricky problem for the
students to think about over the weekend. - Has anyone ever posed a tricky problem or question to you
before? Tell your partner about it.
Riddle - In today’s myth the Sphinx asks a riddle that no one could
answer. - Say the word riddle with me three times.
- A riddle is a puzzling question that is hard to solve.
- The ancient Greeks liked to tell each other riddles for fun.
- [Ask students the age-appropriate riddles you have prepared.]
Purpose for Listening
Tell students to listen carefully to fi nd out what the riddle is and
explain that you will give them opportunities throughout the read-
aloud to guess the answer to the riddle.