Any students trying to study the origins of Rome are met with the difficulty of marrying mythology and archaeology. The mythology of Aeneas and Romulus and Remus often takes precedent, leaving students without any contextual knowledge about what Italy was actually like at the time. This lesson helped my students address this issue. By teaching this lesson in between an ‘Aeneas’ and a ‘Romulus and Remus’ lesson, they could much more easily recall the key details of both stories - thanks to the contextual knowledge of Italy that this lesson provides. Students are introduced to all the different prominent cultures and peoples of Bronze Age Italy, including many like the Sabines and the Latins who Rome will come into conflict with shortly afterwards. this lesson provides a snapshot of Italy in 1000 BCE, which provides the handle students need to hang their subsequent learning about early Rome on. The lesson is dual coded to reduce cognitive load and videos are included (hence the large file size) at appropriate points to provide extra exposition.

This lesson provided the perfect link for my GCSE pupils between the Trojan War and the founding of Rome. It’s all dual-coded to ensure cognitive load isn’t an issue and this way of presenting information really helped the story to stick in the minds of my classes. The slides take you through Aeneas’ escape from Troy and introduces students to the Aeneid by Virgil in quite a light way. The fact that it was commissioned by the emperor Augustus is also discussed. Two useful and entertaining videos are embedded seamlessly within the PowerPoint which helps add colour to the slides and your other exposition. The final task involves students creating images on 3 storyboards (all the writing is already there) which just tells the story of Aeneas’ journey to Italy, and why he many consider him the first Roman, in an interesting and very accessible way. If you’re looking for a lesson that just tells students straight up how Aeneas got to Italy and why he is important to the Romans then this is perfect.

This is a 20-30 min assembly (could easily be longer with teacher verbal embellishment and exposition) I have used with my students. The importance of Mental Wellbeing is obviously the focus - but the skills of how to achieve good mental health - showing self-regulation and resilience are focused on too. There notes explaining the resilient and self-regulation icons that I have included and practical strategies are provided for pupils. Pupils are also prompted to ask questions of themselves (on the screen for ease) during the assembly - designed to be delivered during Children’s Mental Health Week (but realistically could be presented at any time throughout the school year.

These Graphic Organisers are ideal for Ancient History 9-1 GCSE. The Foundations of Rome unit, can become tedious for students and staff alike. Quality resources for this part of the unit are scarce and this is me trying to rectify that a bit. My students really appreciate these. The organisers give enough ‘knowledge’ or ‘information’ for students to get a good grade at GCSE - a 4/5/6 depending on how much information they can retain. We print these out A5 size and stick them in the middle of our books and as I am teaching students will annotate these sheets according to how much extra information they need to get above a 4/5/6. The visuals are a huge help and icons and schemas are repeated as and when appropriate across the organisers which makes pupils feel secure and build a mental image of all the content - something I had found challenging to help them create before using these. The GOs really help tell the ‘story’ of early Rome. The resources included here cover over a quarter of the entire OCR GCSE. Topics included: Aeneas - The first Roman? Romulus & Remus Romulus - 1st King of Rome Numa Pompilius- 2nd King of Rome Tullus Hostilius - 3rd King of Rome Ancus Marcius - 4th King of Rome Lucius Tarquinius Priscus - 5th King of Rome Servius Tullius - 6th King of Rome Tarquinius Superbus - 7th King of Rome The Wars of Independence Creation of the Roman Republic by consuls Brutus and Collatinus The history and trajectory of the Conflict of the Orders Sicinius and the First Secession of the plebs The Volero Publilius Uprising and subsequent reforms The First and Second Decemvirates The Twelve Tables The second Secession of the plebs The Valero - Horatian Laws and other reforms Legal Reforms of the 440s BCE and the end of the Conflict of the Orders

These painstakingly created Graphic Organisers are ideal for Ancient History 9-1 GCSE. Quality resources for the GCSE seem scarce and this is me trying to rectify that a bit. These provide all the required information in an easily accessible and memorable way for the Period study of Persia - just over a quarter of the whole GCSE. My students really appreciate these. The organisers give enough ‘knowledge’ or ‘information’ for students to get a good grade at GCSE - a 4/5/6 depending on how much information they can retain. We print these out A5 size and stick them in the middle of our books and as I am teaching students will annotate these sheets according to how much extra information they need to get above a 4/5/6. The visuals are a huge help and icons and schemas are repeated as and when appropriate across the organisers which makes pupils feel secure and build a mental image of all the content - something I had found challenging to help them create before using these. The GOs really help tell the ‘story’ of the Achaemenid (Persian) Kings: Cyrus, Cambyses, Darius and Xerxes. Topics included: Cyrus’ birth and early life Cyrus’ conquest of Astyages and the Medes / Media Cyrus’ conquest of Croesus and the Lydians / Lydia Cyrus’ conquest of Nabonidus and the Babylonians / Babylon The importance of the Nabonidus Chronicle, Cyrus Cylinder and Herodotus as sources The foundation of Cyrus’ city at Pasargadae Cyrus’ death at the hands of Queen Tomyris and the Massegatae Early Cambyses and Succession Background to Cambyses’ invasion of Egypt Cambyses conquest of Egypt Cambyses positives as ruler of Egypt Cambyses’ negatives and 'madness as ruler of Egypt Cambyses’ military failures after conquering Egypt (Carthage, Ammonia, Ethiopia) Smerdis’ the usurper and death of Cambyses Accession of Darius Behistun (Bisitun) Inscription Darius’ reorganisation of the Persian Empire The foundation of Darius’ city at Persepolis Darius’ initial expansion attempts from 517 BCE The backstory and causes of the Ionian Revolt The events of the Ionian Revolt 499 BCE The aftermath and consequences of the Ionian Revolt Darius’ final invasion of Greece and death Accession of Xerxes to the Persian throne Xerxes’ preparations for his invasion of Greece Xerxes’ invasion of Greece The Battle of Thermopylae The sack of Athens Battle of Salamis Battle of Eurymedon End of Persian forays westward

This assembly is simple and easy to follow. It has striking visuals which are easy for students to interpret interpret (see preview image). The Assembly starts with looking at how Tolerance works with other values to make us better people, followed by a definition of tolerance in pupil-speak. Examples of how Britain has become more tolerant over time are then introduced and then we introduce students to the idea of intolerance and what that means. I delivered this assembly during the week of January where Holocaust memorial day falls (27th January). Pupils learn about the Holocaust in History and many have a good understanding of it already - hence why the assembly is driven by the value of Tolerance, with a case study of the Holocaust then introduced. This is what can happen when intolerance is allowed to flourish I told the pupils. Despite Britain’s difficult imperial past, I outline how standing up to Nazi Germany and its intolerance is something Britain should be proud of. The assembly ends with practical suggestions that pupils can do in school and in wider life that helps them to demonstrate tolerance and build a more tolerance school and society. There is enough here for a 20-40 minute assembly - depending on how much you want to embellish the slides with your own exposition.

These Graphic Organisers are ideal for Ancient History 9-1 GCSE. Quality resources for the GCSE seem scarce and this is me trying to rectify that a bit. My students really appreciate these. The organisers give enough ‘knowledge’ or ‘information’ for students to get a good grade at GCSE - a 4/5/6 depending on how much information they can retain. We print these out A5 size and stick them in the middle of our books and as I am teaching students will annotate these sheets according to how much extra information they need to get above a 4/5/6. The visuals are a huge help and icons and schemas are repeated as and when appropriate across the organisers which makes pupils feel secure and build a mental image of all the content - something I had found challenging to help them create before using these. The GOs really help tell the ‘story’ of Xerxes’ reign as king of Persia. Topics included: Accession of Xerxes to the Persian throne Xerxes’ preparations for his invasion of Greece Xerxes’ invasion of Greece The Battle of Thermopylae The sack of Athens Battle of Salamis Battle of Eurymedon End of Persian forays westward

These Graphic Organisers are ideal for Ancient History 9-1 GCSE. Quality resources for the GCSE seem scarce and this is me trying to rectify that a bit. My students really appreciate these. The organisers give enough ‘knowledge’ or ‘information’ for students to get a good grade at GCSE - a 4/5/6 depending on how much information they can retain. We print these out A5 size and stick them in the middle of our books and as I am teaching students will annotate these sheets according to how much extra information they need to get above a 4/5/6. The visuals are a huge help and icons and schemas are repeated as and when appropriate across the organisers which makes pupils feel secure and build a mental image of all the content - something I had found challenging to help them create before using these. The GOs really help tell the ‘story’ of Darius the Great’s reign as king of Persia. Topics included: Accession of Darius Behistun (Bisitun) Inscription Darius’ reorganisation of the Persian Empire The foundation of Darius’ city at Persepolis Darius’ initial expansion attempts from 517 BCE The backstory and causes of the Ionian Revolt The events of the Ionian Revolt 499 BCE The aftermath and consequences of the Ionian Revolt Darius’ final invasion of Greece and death

These Graphic Organisers are ideal for Ancient History 9-1 GCSE. Quality resources for the GCSE seem scarce and this is me trying to rectify that a bit. My students really appreciate these. The organisers give enough ‘knowledge’ or ‘information’ for students to get a good grade at GCSE - a 4/5/6 depending on how much information they can retain. We print these out A5 size and stick them in the middle of our books and as I am teaching students will annotate these sheets according to how much extra information they need to get above a 4/5/6. The visuals are a huge help and icons and schemas are repeated as and when appropriate across the organisers which makes pupils feel secure and build a mental image of all the content - something I had found challenging to help them create before using these. The GOs really help tell the ‘story’ of Cambyses’ reign as king of Persia Topics included: Early Cambyses and Succession Background to Cambyses’ invasion of Egypt Cambyses conquest of Egypt Cambyses positives as ruler of Egypt Cambyses’ negatives and 'madness as ruler of Egypt Cambyses’ military failures after conquering Egypt (Carthage, Ammonia, Ethiopia) Smerdis’ the usurper and death of Cambyses

These Graphic Organisers are ideal for Ancient History 9-1 GCSE. Quality resources for the GCSE seem scarce and this is me trying to rectify that a bit. My students really appreciate these. The organisers give enough ‘knowledge’ or ‘information’ for students to get a good grade at GCSE - a 4/5/6 depending on how much information they can retain. We print these out A5 size and stick them in the middle of our books and as I am teaching students will annotate these sheets according to how much extra information they need to get above a 4/5/6. The visuals are a huge help and icons and schemas are repeated as and when appropriate across the organisers which makes pupils feel secure and build a mental image of all the content - something I had found challenging to help them create before using these. The GOs really help tell the ‘story’ of Cyrus the Great’s reign Topics included: Cyrus’ birth and early life Cyrus’ conquest of Astyages and the Medes / Media Cyrus’ conquest of Croesus and the Lydians / Lydia Cyrus’ conquest of Nabonidus and the Babylonians / Babylon The importance of the Nabonidus Chronicle, Cyrus Cylinder and Herodotus as sources The foundation of Cyrus’ city at Pasargadae Cyrus’ death at the hands of Queen Tomyris and the Massegatae

These Graphic Organisers are ideal for Ancient History 9-1 GCSE. The Foundations of Rome unit, especially after studying the kings of Rome, can become tedious for students and staff alike. Quality resources for this part of the unit are scarce and this is me trying to rectify that a bit. My students really appreciate these. The organisers give enough ‘knowledge’ or ‘information’ for students to get a good grade at GCSE - a 4/5/6 depending on how much information they can retain. We print these out A5 size and stick them in the middle of our books and as I am teaching students will annotate these sheets according to how much extra information they need to get above a 4/5/6. The visuals are a huge help and icons and schemas are repeated as and when appropriate across the organisers which makes pupils feel secure and build a mental image of all the content - something I had found challenging to help them create before using these. The GOs really help tell the ‘story’ of the early Roman Republic. Topics included: Creation of the Roman Republic by consuls Brutus and Collatinus The history and trajectory of the Conflict of the Orders Sicinius and the First Secession of the plebs The Volero Publilius Uprising and subsequent reforms The First and Second Decemvirates The Twelve Tables The second Secession of the plebs The Valero - Horatian Laws and other reforms Legal Reforms of the 440s BCE and the end of the Conflict of the Orders

Attached are Ten separate (dual-coded) knowledge organisers that convey the key information students need to know for the following topics: Aeneas - The first Roman? Romulus & Remus Romulus - 1st King of Rome Numa Pompilius- 2nd King of Rome Tullus Hostilius - 3rd King of Rome Ancus Marcius - 4th King of Rome Lucius Tarquinius Priscus - 5th King of Rome Servius Tullius - 6th King of Rome Tarquinius Superbus - 7th King of Rome The Wars of Independence Information on our key sources for this period (Livy & Dionysius of Halicarnassus) is also relayed where relevant. Each file is portrait-orientated and can be printed off in A4 or A5. They can be used in conjunction with teacher exposition (and can be annotated) or they can be used as a revision aid for the OCR Ancient History 9-1 GCSE ‘Foundations of Rome’ unit. My students absolutely love them. They streamline the GCSE content and they are presented in a way designed to eliminate ‘noise’. They were painstaking to produce and have proved inavlauble in my teaching of the GCSE :)

This lesson is designed with with AQA 9-1 GCSE History spec in mind. The lesson takes inspiration from Oli Caviglioli’s methods of Dual Coding to help lessen cognitive load for students while simultaneously ensuring learning sticks. This requires teacher expertise and subject knowledge (all included as hidden slides in case you’re worried!) The lesson takes you through Sir John Hawkins, his significance and key details. Then Sir Francis Drake, his background, significance of his round the world voyage and other key details. Finally, students are introduced to Sir Walter Raleigh and his significance as an explorer and his direction in the setting up of Roanoke Colony. Information on the new technologies used by these three men is also included, and there are constant prompts to assess students learning through paired attempts at low-stakes multiple choice questions that appear. Then two exam questions are included: the first for students to verbally attempt in pairs, followed by an 8 marker for students to complete on their own, with appropriate scaffolding. There is also an information sheet included for each student (with all the basic details for each sailor on to avoid extensive note-taking) which can be printed off in A5, highlighted and annotated appropriately as the lesson progresses.

This lesson seeks to explain, despite the existence of the Romulus and Remus Foundation Myth, that Aeneas remains an important figure for Romans in terms of the founding of their city. (It does also at the end explain how Romans got from Aeneas to Romulus story-wise!) There are 3 short storyboard tasks, already filled with text (included as slides ready to print within the PowerPoint) which students need only draw quick images for. These are presented at 3 different points in the lesson in order to quickly get across the main parts of Aeneas’ story after his escape from Troy. I have really only tried to include events which directly pertain to or foreshadow the founding of Rome - it was impossible to include everything! In between these, scholarship is used in an accessible way (including one comprehension with a glossary for difficult to understand terms) to draw out the importance of Aeneas to the Romans, but also what his actions tell us about how the Romans saw themselves and their new emperor Augustus (Virgil was writing at the time of the new Imperial Age). This lesson is designed to be engaging and academic in its approach, with appropriate support and challenge throughout to support all learners, but also to ‘teach to the top’ wherever possible.

I have created this lesson due to the lack of resources available to secondary teachers above and beyond the standard trope of "Romulus was celebrated because he founded Rome and established the city among its neighbours’ and Tullus Hostilius was a bad king because he focused far too much on war and neglected religion’ This view is expounded by nearly all freely available information on the Roman kings online and in secondary text books. This has arguably come about because Livy is the ‘go-to’ source for a history of the Roman regal period. This is fine but often other resources take his moral stances and opinions as fact. It is well known in academia (as the lesson points out using scholarship in an accessible way) that Livy uses the first four Roman kings as a vehicle for his messages regarding proper decorum from Rome’s public officials. He claims there are lessons to be learnt from History and shapes his narrative to do this. This lesson therefore seeks to dig into the similarities between Romulus and Tullus, both war-like and easily compared, and to challenge the notion that Tullus’ kingship should be seen in the negative light in which school-level resources tend to (all too easily) paint him. It introduces the opinions of Dionysius of Halicarnassus and of Cicero in order to draw out the nuance in the ways Romans themselves interpreted Tullus’ reign in light of Romulus’ achievements. There is suitable challenge in this lesson as you might imagine but I have also been careful to provide plenty of support in the way of glossaries of key terms and key questions teachers should be posing at each point within the lesson.

This lesson has been created with the OCR Ancient History GCSE 9-1 spec in mind, but provides suitable challenge for any A Level students needing to confront the reliability of Livy and Dionysius of Halicarnassus as historical sources. The lesson really tries to use scholarship in an accessible way. Summaries of journal articles are given to students initially in bite-sized formats. Students are questioned on these before completing some straightfoward comprehension questions to solidify their learning (on a sheet included as a slide within the .pptx file). Students are then presented with summarised information sourced from another journal and academic book which looks at Dionysius’ and Livy’s motives for writing and key learning is then available for note-taking. Students are then given a print out of an empty table where they fill in information about the two authors as the teacher goes through the information on the screen, with students having to guess whether the information belongs in their Livy table or their Dionysius table (teacher led - it’s made obvious on the screen at each point!). Students can then check their tables against a completed one on the screen at the end. The plenary task asks students to come to a decision on who they believe is the most reliable author when it comes to learning about Rome’s earliest history, given all the limitations, biases and the political context constraining each author.

This lesson was designed with the OCR Ancient History 9-1 GCSE spec in mind. The starter of the lesson offers 5 interpretations of Alexander’s motives for invading Persia, and 5 different characters. Students have to match the interpretation to the character. The point of this exercise is for students to realise there are a wealth of interpretations for Alexander’s motives at every stage of his journey. The focus then turns to our sources. A passage from Plutarch is presented and students are directed to annotate it while discussing it’s implications. Similarly, A passage from Arrian is then presented where students do the same. Both passages, when compared to each other, show different motives for Alexander setting fire to Persepolis, based on their own bias/sources/moral point of view. A discussion of that these implications then ensues, followed by a directed 20 mark exam question complete with sentence starters. A model conclusion is then included to allow students to a) see before they begin answering to know what direction in which to take their essay, and b) to use to improve their own answers/conclusions in self-assessment. The final plenary centres around the fact that Diodorus remains mostly silent on what, to the other authors at least, seems a turning point in Alexander’s Persian campaign.

This lesson aims to comprehensively cover all of the Renaissance influences prevalent throughout the castle buildings and, particularly, the castle gardens. It would be particularly useful to anyone teaching AQA GCSE History, wehre the 2021 site study is Kenilworth Castle. The lesson starts by quickly analysing the view of a historian about the balance between the Medieval and Renaissance features of the castle. There is then brief discussion of what the Renaissance actually was (with reference to early (low) and later (high) Renaissance architecture. There are various examples of Renaissance architecture then presented to students alongside the ancient Classical buildings they were influenced by. This allows students ti visually compare the buildings and see how Classical architectural styles influenced buildings during the Renaissance. The notes section also provides the key thinking behind each slide if you are unsure of the discussion points pertinent to a particular slide. Robert Dudley’s Renaissance extension of Kenilworth Castle is then discussed, followed by a discussion on how he was somewhat of a trend-setter, influencing later Renaissance architecture in England (e.g. Hardwick Hall). But also why Dudley, Earl of Leicester, believed them to be important. The imagery surrounding the Roman goddess Diana is also discussed as well as parallels Dudley was perhaps seeking to make between her and Elizabeth. Finally, there is advice on an exam-style question (16 mark essay question) and students revisit the initial historian’s interpretation to see whether their views have become more nuanced. Key learning is emphasised on slides throughout the lesson to be printed off or just to help anchor the lesson.

This resource can be used at any point during any sort of study of Alexander the Great. In our school we have designed it to sit at the beginning of our OCR Ancient History 9-1 GCSE unit on Alexander. One of the biggest issues with studying Alexander (and something crucial to the 20 mark essay question on the GCSE paper!) is our sources for his life and conquests. This resource tackles the four main problems with our sources. It also encourages students to come to a judgement in the form of an exam question at the end of the lesson as to how much we can ever really know about Alexander. There are ample notes in the ‘notes’ section on the Powerpoint to support teachers in delivering the lesson accurately and the aim has always been to create an easy-to follow, high quality resource that can be used ‘off the shelf’ and can easily slot in to any scheme of work as a stand-alone lesson.

And how well did each one rule the Persian Empire? This lesson has been designed as an ‘opening’ or ‘overview’ lesson for OCR Ancient History GCSE students, embarking on their study of the Persian Empire/ Achaemenid kings (Cyrus, Cambyses, Darius and Xerxes). It has also been used however as a stand alone lesson, for example as a lesson in a thematic unit on different empires throughout history. The starter introduces students to the geography of the Persian Empire in relation to Europe and the rest of the world - giving students some context. The main bulk of the lesson is based around an activity involving four A5 cards. Each A5 card has details about each king. Students identify positives and negatives of each king from the cards and then evaluate the relative success of each one in relation to the others. The information cars are included as slides within the PowerPoint, ready to be printed. Students are then advised how to apply the knowledge they have gained to the June 2019 summer exam essay question through the use of visuals, followed by an effective plenary involving students judging their own progress (with your support) using ‘post-it’ notes. This lesson is designed to last an hour, unless you elect for students to attempt the exam question, in which case it will run to nearer two. The resources are very accessible are designed with the research behind ‘dual-coding’ in mind. The resources do not shy away from some ambitious vocabulary though and teachers may find spending some lesson time unpicking some of this vocabulary useful.