The slave society in ancient Greece was the period of aesthetic education, and Athens in BC 10 century was the first country to adopt harmonious development education. Schools in Athens provide muse education for children, that is, art education such as music, poetry reading and drama. The purpose is to make students get rid of bad habits, obey the rhythm of harmony, and get used to meekness and softness through singing and poetry recitation.

Plato was the first thinker in ancient Greece who put forward the theory of systematic aesthetic education. He advocated the theory of "beautifying the mind", and advocated using physical exercise and music to cultivate the mind in terms of educational content. In the Republic, he pointed out that "education should include two aspects: on the one hand, physical education; On the other hand, it is the education of soul, that is, art education. " In the education system, he advocated that the state should control and be responsible for education, systematically educate young people from an early age, and arrange different educational contents according to different age groups.

Aristotle is a student of Plato and "the founder of European aesthetic thought". He advocates "purification", "harmonious education" and "free education". He was deeply influenced by Plato's thought. In free education, music plays a very important role because of its purification function. He advocates developing bodybuilding with sports, cultivating beautiful emotions with music and cultivating aesthetics with painting. "Harmonious education" is the education of harmonious development of morality, intelligence, physique and beauty.

Later, Horace, a literary critic and aesthete, tried to unify this concept with emotional education, and put forward the famous theory of "entertaining through education" from the artistic point of view, which laid the foundation of western aesthetic education.