I am a History teacher in the North West, and head of Citizenship in my school. I have been teaching since 2007, in four secondary schools across the area. In between times, in 2012, I taught as a volunteer teacher in Ghana, with English, French and Maths classes (you can read about my adventures in my book, Teaching in the Sun, available on Amazon).
All of my resources have been extensively tried and tested. I hope that you, like me, are able to use them for good and outstanding lessons.
I am a History teacher in the North West, and head of Citizenship in my school. I have been teaching since 2007, in four secondary schools across the area. In between times, in 2012, I taught as a volunteer teacher in Ghana, with English, French and Maths classes (you can read about my adventures in my book, Teaching in the Sun, available on Amazon).
All of my resources have been extensively tried and tested. I hope that you, like me, are able to use them for good and outstanding lessons.
This is a resource that could be used for any year group, although I use it for Key Stage 3.
Students have to plan a birthday party. They can choose whether to do go karting, ice skating, cinema or a disco.
They must consider what they have to plan and how much it costs. They have a s budget, as appropriate to the activity. They will have to pick from a number of options to have in the party, such as a shop-bought or home-made birthday cake, amounts of food to be bought, and how many people to invite based on the cost of the event.
They will have to prioritise and debate what to spend money on. At the end of the lesson, they can answer reflection questions contained on the resource sheet, on how they made their choices, and what they learned about budgeting.
Place students in pairs/3s. They will need to choose which party theme to have, and then collect the appropriate resource sheet. Answers can be written, and sums worked out, on the other resource sheet. There is also a powerpoint to guide students through the lesson.
A chronology activity for events of the Montgomery Bus Boycott. It can ether be done as a numbering activity, or as a card sort.
Each description is numbered, at present, for teacher’s ease of reading. Remember to tipp-ex out the numbers before use.
There is a differentiated sheet for lower-ability students.
More able student can explain which was the most significant of the consequences, in the short and long term. They can relate to the protesters themselves and the wider Civil Rights movement/USA.
This is an ideal activity for preparing students for longer-answer exam questions. It allows discussion to develop as students explain their thoughts and defend them in front of their peers.
This is a resource for the new GCSE, although could also be used with KS3. Students put the events in Mary’s life into order. There are differentiate card sorts for core and lower ability students. Answers are on the powerpoint slides.
Students are invited to answer extension questions when they have finished the sorting excersize.
The Youtube link is a run through of Mary’s life, which could be shown either before or after the card sort activity.
This is a resource for late-KS3 or KS4 students about the different types of government that exist in the world.
Students are invited to think of as many types of government thy can as a starter activity, which can be recorded n the worksheet. They must then come up with definitions of the words democratic, undemocratic, and totalitarian.
The second half of the worksheet is about matching the different types of government to their definitions, on the information sheet. Students must think of examples, with some provided for lower-ability students.
Higher ability students are invited to choose one of two extensions to build on the knowledge gained through the lesson.
All answers are on the powerpoint.
This is a card sort designed to allow students to categorise and prioritise reasons that Henry VIII made the Break with Rome. More able students can use the cards to explain their thoughts on the most important reason for the Break.
The task could also be done as a diamond activity.
It could be done as a venn diagram using the venn diagram template.
This is an ideal activity for preparing students for longer-answer exam questions. It allows discussion to develop as students explain their thoughts and defend them in front of their peers.
An assessment for Key Stage 3 students about assessing the accuracy of a source.
Students are invited to label the picture of slaves working on a plantation. They then fill in what they notice on the worksheet, which is differentiated for the lower-ability students. They give their own explanation of the evidence in the picture.
E.g. P - slaves’ clothes, Ev - they are European, and look new and fresh, Exp - Slaves did wear European clothes, but after a long day in the fields they would be looking more tatty than they are how to be.
There is a writing frame and mark scheme attached. The mark scheme is NC levels, but can easily be adapted to GCSE style grades.
This is a resource for GCSE History students.
Worksheet1: Students look through the reasons. They decide which of these were reasons that Stalin signed, and which were reasons that Hitler signed the Pact. It can be done as a card sort, cut and stick or highlighting activity.
Higher ability students can be challenged, particularly in a card sort, to prioritise the reasons, and categorise genuine reasons (more Machiavellian) and those ‘officially given’.
There are extension questions at the bottom of the sheet.
Worksheet 2: Students can explain why different reasons made Stalin sign the Pact. Students analyse the different reasons. It might be helpful to show the powerpoint slide as an aid to this to help students realise Stalin’s aims.
There are extension questions at the bottom of the sheet.
The second slide contains a link to the YouTube clip - Nazi invasion of Poland.
This is a card sort for GCSE History.
Pupils look at the reasons that there was poverty in Tudor times. They need to know the key words at the start of the presentation. They have a number of tasks which they can be invited to complete, to sort which were:
1. Long-term causes / Short-term causes
2. To do with money
To do with foreign wars or trade
To do with natural factors (poor harvests, disease)
To do with other things
3. Most important 1-2
Quite important 4-5
Less important 4-5
Least important 1-2
Students can then explain why they have given the level of importance to some of the reasons. This can lead to debate or an exam Q.
This is a card sorting activity to help students revise the American West for the GCSE.
They are to arrange the 12 dates in chronological order, and then match the events to the dates. I have found that giving them a highlighter for drawing out the key information can be helpful.
There is a differentiated version, for lower ability students, with 6 key dates. The information is less detailed on these as well.
Powerpoint can be used to support learning, as it allows students to reflect on the reasons that the dates are significant for the Indians and the settlers. There are key concepts to jog students’ memory on the powerpoint.
More able students can reflect on these questions as an extension.
Which are the 2 most significant events in:
The settling of the Plains
The destruction of Indian culture?
A card sort which allows students to place in chronological order the events (from 1996 to 1999) which happened in Kosovo.
More able students can be challenged to explain what each of these events meant, and how much of a threat it was, with the higher end resource.
The PowerPoint gives background to the events and can be used as a discussion point with students.
The chart can be filled in by students to assess how far American aims were fulfilled in Kosovo.
This is a KS3 resource which could also be used as an introduction at KS4/5.
Students are invited to read through a series of events. they are to explain the feelings of the Russian population at each point. The story starts in 1905 and ends in 1945.
There is a differentiated version which students can use to make a storyboard. Students can use the final box, empty, to explain the feelings of Russian people at the end of the sequence of events. Order - A, E, B, G, C, F, D.
This is a card sort or diamond 9 activity designed to allow students to categorise and prioritise the reasons that the US Government gained control of the Great Plains.
Students can use the cards to explain their thoughts on which were more / less important reason for the US Government gaining control of the Great Plains.
Categories could include, but not be limited to:
Indian weakness
US Government policy
US Army strength
Pioneers / settlers on the Plains
As an extension, students can answer an exam-style question on the reasons for the he US Government gaining control of the Great Plains.
This is a card sort or diamond 9 activity designed to allow students to categorise and prioritise the reasons why Germans supported Hitler.
Students can watch the clip to get a feel for what Hitler felt about other countries compared to Germany.
Students can use the cards to explain their thoughts on whether they would have voted for Hitler, and why Hitler wanted the support of these different groups of people
Categories could include, but not be limited to:
Workers and families
Business / farm owners
Soldiers
Nationalists
As an extension, students can choose either to write as a German or foreigner, explaining a one-sided argument of why Hitler gained such support.
This is a resource for GCSE students. I use it on the AQA course, but it can doubtless be used on others.
Students arrange characters into chronological order, and explain the reasons that they are significant.
This can be done as a role play, by cutting up the required number of cards and handing them out, and as a cut and stick / card sort.
Cards can be arranged on the table sheet if you like - blow it up to A3 - or by drawing the table into their book.
This can lead to debate and extended writing on the importance of individuals and factors.
Thus is a guided reading activity to look at the Ridofi, Throckmorton and Babington plots.
Teacher reads the events to students. Students write up a summary of the plot and decide the extent to which Mary was guilty of plotting. they make reasons for their judgement.
This can lead to debate or extended writing on whether Mary was guilt of treasons.
This is a lesson for the events of the assassination and afterwards. Students can watch the clip and have a writing frame provided in the powerpoint to write an article. Key terms and people are explained in the powerpoint too.
The second half is a card sort designed to allow students to understand what happened during and immediately after the assassination of Franz Ferdinand. Students arrange the cards into groups - what happened during and what happened immediately after the assassination.
They can also be arranged as a chronology exercise.
There is a differentiated version for less able students, and the very weak ones could be encouraged to match the country to the reaction…
Students can pick out and explain 2 or 3 of the more significant of the events, which were important in the First World War breaking out, or the assassination itself.
A resource to revise the circumnavigation of the world. Students need the AQA workbooklet.
Powerpoint slides introduce the reasons the Elizabeth wanted to promote the circumnavigation, and reasons that Drake was chosen to lead the circumnavigation - his knowledge of portoleon charts, astrolabes etc, and his forceful personality.
Diamond ranking activities come in more and less detailed forms. Students can explain and rank the consequences.
This can lead to an extended writing activity at the end.
A resource where students look at the various effects of the slave trade on Britain. The powerpoint has a series of slides that can be used as discussion points about the buildings / street names / people involved / statues, with notes added on street names.
Card sort alternatively can be done as a diamond 9 or a highlighting / categorising activity.
It can stimulate lively discussion or a written up piece.
Research and vocab-building task added too.
This is a resource for GCSE students. I use it on the AQA course, but it can doubtless be used on others.
Students arrange characters into chronological order, and explain the factors behind them - e.g. war etc.
This can be done as a role play, by cutting up the required number of cards and handing them out, and as a cut and stick / card sort.
Cards can be arranged on the table sheet if you like - blow it up to A3 - or by drawing the table into their book.
This can lead to debate and extended writing on the importance of individuals and factors.
There is a differentiated version of the card sort to give out to less able students.
This is a resource for GCSE students. I use it on the AQA course, but it can doubtless be used on others.
Students arrange characters into chronological order, and explain the factors behind them - e.g. war etc.
This can be done as a role play, by cutting up the required number of cards and handing them out, and as a cut and stick / card sort.
Cards can be arranged on the table sheet if you like - blow it up to A3 - or by drawing the table into their book.
This can lead to debate and extended writing on the importance of individuals and factors.
There is a differentiated version of the card sort to give out to less able students.