Alexandra Daddario, Kevin McKidd and Logan Lerman of "Percy Jackson & The Olympians" cast electrify the Sunset Strip with the World's First "Lightning Billboard" unveiling on October 28, 2009, in West Hollywood, California. Photo by Eric Charbonneau/WireImage/Getty
By
Library of Congress, adapted by Newsela
Recommended For
Upper Elementary School - Middle School
Words
395
Lexile
930L
Published
2026-05-01
Percy Jackson started as a bedtime story! Author Rick Riordan made up stories about Greek myths to tell his son Haley at night. Haley really struggled in school. Haley had dyslexia, a learning difference that makes reading harder. He also had ADHD, which makes it difficult to focus. Riordan said that Haley hated school so much that he would hide under the dining room table and cry, and he refused to do his homework.
Even though reading was tough for Haley, he loved Greek myths—ancient stories from Greece about gods, monsters and heroes. His dad turned those myths into bedtime stories. Once Riordan ran out of real myths to tell, Haley had a great idea: Why not make up new ones? That’s how Percy Jackson was born. He’s a 12-year-old with dyslexia and ADHD who finds out he’s the son of Poseidon, the Greek god of the sea. As the son of Poseidon, this made him a demigod (half-human, half-god). Percy goes to Camp Half-Blood, a summer camp for demigods. There he makes friends and goes on amazing adventures, from fighting monsters to, eventually, applying for college.
A Huge Franchise
Percy’s story has grown into three book series and even a TV show. The whole collection is called the Camp Half-Blood Chronicles, which also includes a video game and a Broadway musical.
Rick Riordan’s Other Books
Riordan didn’t stop with Greek myths. He wrote other series based on myths from around the world. In one series, a demigod named Magnus Chase goes on adventures connected to Norse mythology. These are myths from Scandinavia about the Vikings and their gods, like Odin and Thor. In another series called the Kane Chronicles, two siblings discover they come from a long line of powerful magicians and have to fight the gods of ancient Egypt. Riordan has also written shorter story collections that revisit his characters, though these aren’t part of any main series.
One Big World
Here’s something cool: all of Riordan’s books take place in the same world! Percy and his friends show up or get mentioned across the different series. Together, the books explore myths from Greece, Rome, Egypt and Scandinavia, covering thousands of miles and thousands of years of storytelling. If you want to learn even more about these myths, there are also children’s books about Greek, Roman, Egyptian and Norse mythology worth checking out.
Think-Pair-Share
Think-Pair-Share
Have students work with a shoulder partner. Invite them to pull out Lesson 1 and 2 notes so they can build on what they already know.
Say these Directions: Think about your responses to the questions first, and then share and refine your answers with a partner.
Ask: If you retold an ancient myth for middle-school readers today, what would you keep, and what would you change?
I would keep the big conflict and the lesson, but I would change the setting and the way characters talk. For example, a monster could show up at a school or on a bus instead of in an ancient palace.
Ask: Why might an author want to modernize an old story instead of copying it exactly?
An author might modernize it so readers can connect more easily. The main ideas can stay the same, but the details can feel more relevant to kids today.
Say: Before we read about Riordan’s choices, we are going to study one word part that can help us name what adaptation does.
Say: When a writer adapts a myth, the story moves across time and changes form. The prefix trans- means “across” or “change.” In the word transform, something changes form, and in the word transport, something carries across a distance. That helps us see that Riordan does not just repeat myths—he transforms them for a new audience.
Ask: How does the prefix trans- help you understand the word transform?
The prefix trans- shows movement or change, so transform means to change into something different across time or form.
Ask: How could that meaning connect to the way an author adapts myths?
It connects because the author changes an old story into a new version. The main idea travels across time, but the form becomes modern.
Connection to Today’s Learning
Say: Now you are ready to read an informational article about Rick Riordan and Percy Jackson and look for the choices he makes when transforming myth for modern readers.
Say these Directions: We are going to read sections of an informational article about Rick Riordan and Percy Jackson. As you read, look for two things: what ideas connect to traditional myth and how those ideas are adapted for modern readers.
Jigsaw Reading
Jigsaw Reading
Say these Directions: Each expert group will focus on one part of the article. As you read, underline details that answer your section question and jot notes in your Jigsaw Worksheet.
Group 1: In the part of the article explaining why Riordan first told Percy Jackson stories, how did an old myth become a story for a modern child?
Group 2: In the part of the article describing Percy as a hero, what makes him both mythic and modern?
Group 3: In the part of the article explaining Riordan’s larger impact, how does one adaptation lead readers toward more myths and cultures?
Say these Directions: After expert-group reading, move into mixed groups. Teach your section clearly, and listen for one idea from each other expert that helps answer our big question about how myths change across time.
Teach: Make Comparisons:
Say these Directions: When I read an informational article about adaptation, I do not just collect random facts. I look for a pair: one detail that stayed from the older myth tradition and one detail that changed for modern readers. In the section about why Riordan began telling these stories, I notice that Greek mythology stayed important, but the situation changed because he was creating a story his son would want to hear and read. In the section describing Percy, I can name myth details like heroes, gods, and monsters, and then I can name modern details like school, everyday problems, and a present-day voice. That helps me understand the phrase modern myth in context. A modern myth is not a completely new kind of story; it is an old myth pattern transformed for readers now. When I use comparison words like while, unlike, or both . . . but, my explanation becomes clearer and more precise.
Ask: In the part of the article explaining why Riordan first created Percy Jackson, what need or problem led him to adapt the myth into a new story?
The article explains that Riordan began telling the story because his son loved Greek myths and needed a story that felt engaging and easier to connect to. Instead of only retelling old myths, he adapted them into a new story with a hero a modern kid could follow.
Ask: In the section that describes Percy as a “modern myth,” what does that phrase mean in context? Use at least two details from the article.
In context, modern myth means a story that keeps myth patterns but places them in a world kids recognize now. Percy is connected to gods and monsters like a traditional myth hero, but he also deals with school, friendships, and everyday problems, which makes the story feel current and relevant.
Ask: In the part of the article about Riordan’s broader work, how does the article show that adaptation can connect readers to more than one mythology or story tradition?
The article shows that Percy Jackson opened the door to more stories, not just one retold Greek myth. Riordan’s work led readers toward other myth-based books and traditions, which shows that one adaptation can help readers become interested in a bigger world of stories.
Pulse Check (MCQ)
Pulse Check
Which statement best explains adaptation in this lesson?
Adaptation means copying an ancient myth exactly so nothing changes.
Incorrect: This answer shows a misunderstanding that retelling and adaptation are the same thing. Students may choose this if they focus only on preserving the original story.
Adaptation means changing a story’s setting, style, or characters while keeping important themes or patterns.
Correct: This answer matches the lesson focus that Riordan modernizes myths by updating details for new readers while maintaining mythic ideas.
Adaptation means replacing myths with completely unrelated modern stories.
Incorrect: This answer reflects the misconception that once details change, the connection to the original myth disappears.
Adaptation means translating a story into harder vocabulary so it sounds more serious.
Incorrect: This answer confuses language difficulty with author purpose and modernization.
🎯PURPOSE
Students use comparative sentences to explain how Percy Jackson combines modern experiences with mythic elements.
Language Focus:
Comparative connectors: while, unlike, both . . . but
Multi-clause sentences that compare change and continuity
🗣️SAY / ASK
Have students orally rehearse:
While traditional myths ___, Percy Jackson ___.
Prompt students to name a specific feature before comparing: character, setting, or story elements.
Prompt students to notice how Percy is both a modern kid and a mythic character before comparing.
If students only list differences, ask what idea or element stays the same across versions.
You said, “It’s more modern”—we can say: “Riordan places mythic ideas in a modern setting to help readers connect to the story.”
That connects to adaptation because the author changes the setting and character details but keeps myth elements like gods and heroes.
While traditional myths often ___, Percy Jackson ___.
Unlike ancient myths, Percy Jackson ___ in order to ___.
Both traditional myths and Percy Jackson include ___, but ___.
Invite students to rehearse comparisons in a shared home language before sharing in English.
Encourage students to connect this idea to other stories they know, if they want.
👁️WATCH FOR / SUPPORT IF NEEDED
If students compare but do not use contrast language → Prompt: Start with while and complete both sides.
If students name only surface details → Prompt: What myth element (like gods, heroes, or quests) stays the same?
Students use a comparison word to explain both a similarity and a difference.
Students explain how Percy Jackson includes both modern and mythic elements.
Situation
Try this
Struggling with: Using contrast structures
Struggling with: Provide one frame and have students complete both parts aloud
While traditional myths ___, Percy Jackson ___.
Struggling with: Moving from examples to analysis
Prompt: What detail shows that Percy is modern? What detail shows he is mythic?
Struggling with: Written output
Allow students to give an oral comparison first or use speech-to-text to capture their sentence before revising it in writing.
Ready for extension
Ask students to explain why making Percy a modern kid might help readers understand myth better. Invite students to create their own idea for a modern myth using while or unlike.
Quick Write
Quick Write
Say these Directions: Take one minute to think about what changed in your thinking today. Then write a short response explaining how Riordan modernizes myth. Use at least two specific details from the article and at least one comparison word, such as while, unlike, or both . . . but.
Ask: How does Riordan transform myth for modern readers, and why might that matter? Use two specific details from the article in your response.
Riordan transforms myth by keeping important ideas like gods and heroes but placing them in a modern world. The article explains that Percy is a demigod who goes to camp and has adventures, which connects to traditional myths. It also explains that Riordan created the story to help his son connect to myths. While the story includes modern details, it still keeps mythic elements like quests and supernatural characters.
Teacher Tip
Homework introduces Chapter 1 of The Lightning Thief, which contains harmful language about disability and mental health, negative self-talk, and school violence. Preview for students that some words in the chapter reflect Percy’s limited perspective and outdated, harmful language; make clear that this language is not acceptable in class. Also remind students that Percy’s dyslexia and ADHD are part of the fantasy setup of the novel, but real students’ learning differences are valid and do not need mythic explanations.
Have students read The Lightning Thief, Chapter 1, pp. 1–8. Instruct students to take notes in their Journal on the following prompt:
As you read, annotate the text for the following:
One place where Percy’s ordinary world feels modern and familiar
One place where something strange or myth-like begins to appear
One line that helps you understand Percy’s perspective
