WiseArk Ltd which is a ‘micro-company specialising in supplying educational resources.
We specialise in resources for use in tutor time -many of which are also suitable for use in citizenship/PSHE.
We also have a range of resources to support learning in history.
I was a teacher for over 20 years so know from first-hand experience how engaged students can be when given challenges and puzzles.
WiseArk Ltd which is a ‘micro-company specialising in supplying educational resources.
We specialise in resources for use in tutor time -many of which are also suitable for use in citizenship/PSHE.
We also have a range of resources to support learning in history.
I was a teacher for over 20 years so know from first-hand experience how engaged students can be when given challenges and puzzles.
A set of linked resources and activities to help students improve their knowledge and understanding of migration to Britain.
These resources are designed specifically to help with developing an awareness of those who have moved to live in Britain.
This is linked to our other resources on the topic so features twenty groups of people and twenty individuals who have moved to Britain.
There are two activities which involve matching either people to their reason for moving or an individual and a key point about them; ideal for use as a challenge that covers knowledge in a different way to a conventional worksheet.
The first is a set of printable ‘cards’ which can be used for sorting or matching tasks (such as the matching pairs game) – each event is on a separate ‘card’ from its date, organised in sets of 10 -there are two sets, but each can be used separately or the two combined to increase the difficulty level.
The second is a set of ‘domino cards’ to provide a more supported matching challenge; these feature the same events and each ‘card’ links to another forming a ‘domino’ like chain (which can be used as a set of 5 or both combined for greater challenge).
They are suitable for use in class -both as a main activity and as an extension task- as well as for homework / independent study or a cover lesson activity (maybe even as staff challenge!)
A set of resources ideal for use with the 2024 General Election, especially for those young people who are able to vote for the first time. Resources included:
A brief guide to the voting process -from the electoral register to the count.
Information on election results since 1892 -the major parties share of the vote and number of seats won plus the winning Prime Minister-power point plus word document
Information and activities on a range of PMs who were first in some way 1 from the first (Walpole) to the first female (Thatcher) – wordsearch, crossword and variety of comprehension tasks (‘5,4,3,2,1; True/false; questions) (1 +last peer!)
Information and activities on all PMs from Walpole to Sunak (includes word searches, sorting and listing activities) -power point plus word document
How democratic is the UK? This resource encourages students to consider a range of ways in which the UK falls short- including the gender make up of representatives and how election results do not reflect votes cast. Information provided then a range of discussion points -ideal for work on British Values-power point plus word document
Helps to show how political parties have had varying fortunes over the years – as well as putting the 2024 result into context (especially in terms of the government having less than half the votes).
An information sources on who has governed Britain since the late 19th century with two components:
1: A power point information presentation:
34 slides- one per election to 2024; each having a slide with two pie charts showing the percentage of vote and share of MPs elected for the main parties at each election plus a picture of the winning PM.
There is also a set of slides with line graphs showing votes for the main parties over time,
A pie chart showing the amount of time spent in power.
2: A word document
34 tables -one per election-with the data used for the pie charts on the power point (seats and votes)
A set of line graphs showing the votes for the main parties since 1918 (the first when all men-and most women-could vote).
A table showing the turnout in each election since 1918-plus a line graph.
A table showing the winners of elections and a pie chart showing time in office.
*1892 was when Keir Hardie was the first ‘Labour’ MP elected.
Ideal for promoting debate and discussion.
This resource challenges students to think about what being British means, through being critical of aspects of democracy in the UK.
The UK is one of the world’s few full democracies but how well does the current system reflect voting and society?
This resource encourages students to consider a range of ways in which the UK falls short- including the gender make up of representatives and how election results do not reflect votes cast. It provides opportunities to work and discuss co-operatively - developing team working and listening skills which supports democratic methods.
For each aspect there is some information –including that which is critical of common perceptions of the nation (especially in the past but also today as with gender inequality).
Most of them also have a selection of discussion points to stimulate debate e.g. Should voting be compulsory in the UK (it is in Australia)?
Topics covered:
What is democracy?
The system in the UK
Representative democracy? Do results reflect votes?
Votes and results –by party
Women in politics
Ethnic minorities in politics
‘Fairer’ voting systems
Local Authorities
Who are the councillors?
This is ideal for promoting discussion in citizenship or tutor time as well as politics etc.
Provided in both word document and power point formats.
Information and comprehension tasks on a range of 12 Prime Ministers who in some way were a ‘first’ (or last in the case of Douglas Home!).
There is a one page summary sheet with their image and for what they were ‘first’.
There are two sheets with some outline information on each of the selected PMs- along with a set of comprehension tasks. These come in three formats: ‘5,4,3,2,1’ ; ‘True or False’ and simple questions (same information each time).
There is also a crossword -and a support version with the first letter of the answer- and a word search.
Ideal for developing knowledge and understanding of British political history.
Information and activities on British PMs and General Elections since the first Labour MP.
Ideal for use in the period leading up to the General Election as well as for citizenship and British values.
There is a power point showing all the General elections with the resultant Prime Ministers since 1892 (and changes in PM post-election) -one slide per election (these also have a pie chart showing the number of seats won by the main parties)
A power point presentation of a range of activities – Listing recent PMs ; Sorting PMs into order; such as sorting into order, matching PMs with party/coalition, what’s the link?.
A word document with the activities from the power point plus 2 word searches and a crossword (and a copy with the answers)
*1892 was when Kier Hardie was the first ‘Labour’ MP elected
Of particular use to those now old enough to vote – a brief guide to key elements of the voting process for General elections from the electoral register to the count.
A power point presentation (7 information slides) covers the various stages of the process including:
Registering to vote;
At the polling station including voting;
The count -and how the winner is decided.
Reminder that are choosing MP not PM.
There is also a one sheet word document that summarises this information
A set of linked resources and activities to help students improve their knowledge and understanding of a range of Black British Firsts. This features a range of 50 Black British firsts- from the 16th century to the modern day.
There are three linked resources (all based on the same set of
A power point presentation with one slide per person and their achievement (also in a ‘run through’ version that plays automatically);
Two related activities develop this study of people with tasks using a selection of the same people/achievements - The first is a set of printable ‘cards’ which can be used for sorting or matching tasks (such as the matching pairs game) – each event is on a separate ‘card’ from its date, organised in sets of 10 -there are two sets, but each can be used separately or the two combined to increase the difficulty level.
The second is a set of ‘domino cards’ to provide a more supported matching challenge; these feature the same events and each ‘card’ links to another forming a ‘domino’ like chain (which again can be used as a set of 10 or both combined for greater challenge).
There are three of the word search and a combined word search & quiz challenge.
Each comes in a range of versions to provide differing degrees of challenge: each wordsearch has a grid and 10 names to find – the same names so that all students are covering the same answers whatever the level of support/challenge.
In each set the first version is a ‘traditional’ one with the words provided.
Then there are four versions with a quiz: this has the same words to find but they aren’t provided -first you need to use the clues (questions) to work out what word you are searching for.
One just has the clues then there are three supported versions (each of the four has the same clues): the first has the first letter of the answer; the second has the number of numbers in the answer and the third has both the first letter and number of letters.
An ideal resource to support Black History Month but also useful at any time-especially as a resource for tutor or assembly time.
A set of linked resources and activities to help students improve their knowledge and understanding of a range of Black British Firsts.
These resources are designed specifically to help with developing an awareness of the contribution of Black Britons -from the 16th century to the modern day.
There are two activities which involve matching people to their achievement -ideal for use as a challenge that covers knowledge in a different way to a conventional worksheet.
The first is a set of printable ‘cards’ which can be used for sorting or matching tasks (such as the matching pairs game) – each event is on a separate ‘card’ from its date, organised in sets of 10 -there are two sets, but each can be used separately or the two combined to increase the difficulty level.
The second is a set of ‘domino cards’ to provide a more supported matching challenge; these feature the same events and each ‘card’ links to another forming a ‘domino’ like chain (which again can be used as a set of 10 or both combined for greater challenge).
This features some of the range of 50 Black British firsts in our power point resource, from the first Black MPs to the first British Ladies footballer via No1. Pop artist and police officers.
An ideal resource to support Black History Month but also useful at any time-especially as a resource for tutor or assembly time.
A more challenging version of the always popular activity (even for adults!)
There are 3 different word searches on a selection of the fifty Black British Firsts featured on our power point resource. They range from the first Black MPs to the first British Ladies footballer via No1. Pop artist and police officers.
Each comes in a range of versions to provide differing degrees of challenge: each wordsearch has a grid and 10 names to find – the same names so that all students are covering the same people whatever the level of support/challenge.
In each set the first version is a ‘traditional’ one with the words provided.
Then there are four versions with a quiz: this has the same words to find but they aren’t provided -first you need to use the clues (questions) to work out what word you are searching for.
One just has the clues then there are three supported versions (each of the four has the same clues): the first has the first letter of the answer; the second has the number of numbers in the answer and the third has both the first letter and number of letters.
Ideal for use in a wide range of settings such as a last-minute cover resource or homework task or providing resources for ‘school at home’ (maybe even for a staff challenge!)
A year of information -a power point and word document resource.
Each day has a selection of four events (including a famous/significant birth and death) from that date in the past,
On the power point there is one slide per day, each also having a picture of one associated event/person.
The word document also features the same people/ events (with slightly more information such as a well-known book if an author).
The focus is on Britain though each day also features a female/ linked event as well as most days including an event or person from outside the British Isles- for example for 25th December:
1977 Death of Charlie Chaplin (b 1889), actor and director
1972 The Nicaraguan capital Managua was devastated by an earthquake
1771 Birth of Dorothy Wordsworth (d 1855)
1066 William of Normandy was crowned king of England at Westminster Abbey.
Designed for use in tutor time/assembly this resource provides a range of information that is of use throughout the year.
A resource to reinforce knowledge and understanding of the wider context of Holocaust Memorial Day.
This worksheet looks at some groups of victims of the Nazis: Jews, Poles, Roma, Ukrainians with a range of activities (mostly numeracy based- such as completing outline graph or pie chart) looking at the number and proportion murdered as well as the Nazi’s ‘reasons’ for their murders.
The information used makes it clear that the Jews were the main victims of the Nazis but that, in the words of the UN resolution, the victims included ‘countless members of other minorities.’
Many people know 2024 is 150 years since the birth of Winston Churchill but did you know that this year is the 500th anniversary of the death of Isma’il I (founder of Safavid Dynasty in Iran)? And the 200th anniversary of the founding of the RNLI and RSPCA?
Anniversaries 2024 is a collection of viewable/printable resources designed to promote awareness of some events whose anniversaries fall this year.
This wide-ranging pack consists of several different types of resource including visual and knowledge challenges as well as discussion stimuli (plus word searches!)
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They are all based on a selection of people and events from the past 700 years which have an anniversary in 2024.
There is a power point with a picture of each person/event from those years (one that runs through) and a separate display resource with one slide per year (some need two).
There are a range of knowledge based activities including sorting events, matching pairs, A-Z etc (provided in both power point and word format)
There are also picture based challenges (hidden picture and what is it-distorted images).
There is a set of discussion prompts to stimulate debate –again related to people or events featured.
Finally there is a set of seven word searches based on a selection of the people and places etc linked to anniversaries from 2024.
The resource that keeps on giving all year long!
366 events/people from the history of the continent-from the first Chinese Emperor to ISIS.
This is a resource to support learning about Asian history throughout the year.
There is a power point presentation on which every day has its own slide with the featured event or person from the history of Asia (including the Middle East).
There is also a word document with the same information on.
There is a wide range of events/people including the well-known such as Gandhi and Malala Yousafzai; there are also less famous ones such as Kenjiro Takayanagi and the Battle of San Juan del Monte. Similarly we have tried to include every nation on the continent so it literally covers Afghanistan to Vietnam. (This is a companion resource to our other ‘Years of’ so we have tried to avoid duplicates but this has not always been possible)
A collection of resources that help illustrate the significant role that Imperial forces played in WW2 -did you know that over 2m Indian troops served?
There is a word document with some basic information about the main contributors to the Imperial forces -used as the basis for the worksheet. There is a power point with the same information , including a map slide linked to a set of brief information slides -one about each major participant.
A worksheet looks at where Imperial soldiers fought and the casualties they suffered.
There is also a wordsearch featuring some of the nations that supplied troops to the Allied war effort, as well as some major campaigns.
Gives a brief indication of the role of forces from: Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, South Africa, East Africa, West Africa, West Indies.
Ideal for study of the British Empire as well as ‘Black History’ -this is a companion to our resource on Imperial soldiers in WW1
A resource to support learning about BAME history and community throughout the year.
Every day has its own power point slide with an image and an event or person from the history of Britain who are of Asian heritage (or had a significant impact on British history) -one sentence summary of their achievement. Over the year most dates feature an individual whilst some feature a significant event such as the arrival of Asian refugees from Uganda. There is a wide range of people including the well-known such as Priti Patel and there are also less famous ones such as Tom Singh ; there is also a wide time range from Christopher and Cosmas (in Tudor times) to Rishi Sunak. The same people/events are listed in a word document.
A selection of 40 people who were the first in an occupation or to achieve a specific goal, ranging from the first Oscar winner to the first Cabinet minister via Mercury Prize winner and international footballers.
An ideal resource to support learning about the multi-cultural nature of British society; there are several components to this resource:
A power point presentation with one slide per person and their achievement (also in a ‘run through’ version that plays automatically);
A set of word searches featuring these people: there are two in ‘traditional’ format (17 or 18 names in each) and three with a quiz -provided in four versions : each has the same words to find but they aren’t provided -first you need to use the clues (questions) to work out what word you are searching for.
One just has the clues then there are three supported versions (each of the four has the same clues): the first has the first letter of the answer; the second has the number of numbers in the answer and the third has both the first letter and number of letters. (These have 12 names each)
Two sets of printable ‘cards’ : One for matching pairs with one half having the name of one of the fifty people and the other half what they achieved. They are in sets of ten names (achievements) so that students can be given varied numbers to allow for increasing challenge. (The second is similar but set out as a set of dominoes to allow for greater variety and a degree of support -again provided in sets (of five) to allow for increasing challenge if more than one set used at a time. Answers provided!
Since the end of WW1 the world has never been fully at peace.
This resource is ideal for use at this time of remembrance (whilst also extending horizons to look at the wider world)
This resource shows in visual form how the past 100+ years have still been a period of ongoing conflict (despite hopes that WW1 would be the ‘war to end all wars’).
There is a selection of 50 different conflicts; a range covering civil wars, invasions and multi-national wars. The emphasis is on the post WW2 period to help support citizenship learning-in particular through helping show why there are so many refugees given the recent and on-going conflicts. (The emphasis is on the global community so wars such as the Falklands which was ‘just’ UK v an opponent are not included in this resource).
In the main presentation each slide represents one year (running through takes just over 5 minutes) with each year showing the selected conflicts taking place in that year (so some slides are rather crowded!). For each conflict the dates are given as well as one sentence about it (this only appears when the conflict begins).
There is also a power point presentation of 50 slides -one per conflict- as well as a word document with the same information.
Finally there is a set of three word searches featuring most of the nations involved in the featured conflicts.
This free resource is taken from a collection of resources that illustrate the role that Imperial forces played in WW1 -did you know that over 1m Indian troops served?
The wordsearch features fifteen of the nations that supplied troops and labourers to the Allied war effort.
In the full collection there is also a power point with a map slide showing the main contributors to the Imperial forces with each linked to a brief information slide; this information is also provided in a word document.
A worksheet looks at where Imperial soldiers fought and how many there were from around the globe.
Ideal for study of the British Empire as well as ‘Black History’
A collection of resources that illustrate the role that Imperial forces played in WW1 -did you know that over 1m Indian troops served?
There is a power point with a map slide showing the main contributors to the Imperial forces with each linked to a brief information slide; this information is also provided in a word document.
A worksheet looks at where Imperial soldiers fought and how many there were from around the globe.
There is also a wordsearch featuring fifteen of the nations that supplied troops and labourers to the Allied war effort.
Ideal for study of the British Empire as well as ‘Black History’
