350+ ready to use and fully resourced History lessons. As a British history teacher with 25 years of experience, I understand the challenges you face in the classroom. That's why I created my store — to share high-quality lessons and to save you time. This store shares my love of History, inspires critical thinking, and get students connected with the past. I’m also an examiner and textbook author, so you can trust that my lessons align with current standards and best practices.
350+ ready to use and fully resourced History lessons. As a British history teacher with 25 years of experience, I understand the challenges you face in the classroom. That's why I created my store — to share high-quality lessons and to save you time. This store shares my love of History, inspires critical thinking, and get students connected with the past. I’m also an examiner and textbook author, so you can trust that my lessons align with current standards and best practices.
“My purpose is to engage students in dialogue so they can see others’ points of view – in a world that needs this more than ever. I do this by sharing lessons on this site which connect students with the past and inspire critical thinking.
Please read below to find details about this one.” Dan
This is one of my most detailed lessons and one which students love. After a quick starter activity about the significance of the poppy in British-Chinese relations the class read detailed background notes before being issued one of 23 character cards. These range from tea-magnate Thomas Twining to Confucius! In role the students then extract evidence which their character might use to explain how China became to be ruled by foreigners after the Opium Wars. I always follow this up with either a piece of extended writing or even better a debate. Please watch the short video clip attached to see this lesson in action. The lesson includes a separate plenary Power Point also. I hope your students will gain as much from this lesson as I know mine always do. Enjoy!
“My purpose is to engage students in dialogue so they can see others’ points of view – in a world that needs this more than ever. I do this by sharing lessons on this site which connect students with the past and inspire critical thinking.
Please read below to find details about this one.” Dan
This 34-page pack is the incredibly detailed and complete set of notes I have written for my students. It is basically an entire course on Why do events in the Gulf Matter? in one pack! Suitable for 16+ including GCSE, AP, A Level, and IB students. Notes are broken down into the following sections:
How did Saddam Hussein rise to power in Iraq?
What was the nature of Saddam Hussein’s rule in Iraq?
Why was there a revolution in Iran in 1979?
What were the causes of the Iran-Iraq War, 1980-88?
What were the consequences of the Iran-Iraq War, 1980-88?
Why did the First Gulf War take place?
I am confident you will love this resource because there is nothing on the Internet which I have found which offers the same level of breadth and detail on this topic.
“My purpose is to engage students in dialogue so they can see others’ points of view – in a world that needs this more than ever. I do this by sharing lessons on this site which connect students with the past and inspire critical thinking.
Please read below to find details about this one.” Dan
This is one of my absolute favourite lessons. Students read through the background knowledge/notes before working their ways through a 21 piece evidence sort to answer the question ‘Who killed Kirov?’ Students then place the card sort information into piles which suggest Stalin was guilty of the murder and evidence that suggests he was not, before arriving at an opinion abotu why the 1st December Law and the subsequent purges and period of Yezhovschina occured. My students truly love this lesson and I really hope yours do too!
“My purpose is to engage students in dialogue so they can see other’s points of view – in a world that needs this more than ever. I do this by sharing lessons on this site which connect students with the past and inspire critical thinking.” Dan
These two sided front sheets look great when attached to student work. Moreover, they save teacher time and increase the level of precise feedback received by students.
They have been designed specifically for the IB History course.
I hope your students find them as useful as mine do.
“My purpose is to engage students in dialogue so they can see others’ points of view – in a world that needs this more than ever. I do this by sharing lessons on this site which connect students with the past and inspire critical thinking.
Please read below to find details about this one.” Dan
I couldn’t find a book on China 1900-89 which suited my high ability IGCSE students so I wrote one myself.
This is my 200-page PDF which covers all of the key parts of the EdExcel specification and which includes comprehension questions and activities at the end of each chapter. I give it to students to supplement the course. It also includes detailed revision menus.
“My purpose is to engage students in dialogue so they can see others’ points of view – in a world that needs this more than ever. I do this by sharing lessons on this site which connect students with the past and inspire critical thinking.
Please read below to find details about this one.” Dan
I couldn’t find a book on Russia 1905-41 which suited my high ability IGCSE students so I wrote one myself.
This is my 240-page PDF which covers all of the key parts of the CIE specification and which includes comprehension questions and activities at the end of each chapter. I give it to students to supplement the course. It also includes detailed revision menus.
“My purpose is to engage students in dialogue so they can see other’s points of view – in a world that needs this more than ever. I do this by sharing lessons on this site which connect students with the past and inspire critical thinking.” Dan
I couldn’t find a book on Germany 1918-45 which suited my high ability IGCSE students so I wrote one myself.
This is my 233-page PDF which covers all of the key parts of the CIE specification and which includes comprehension questions and activities at the end of each chapter. I give it to students to supplement the course. It also includes detailed revision menus.
If you prefer you can find it on Amazon in published form but am selling it here also in case anyone prefers a digicopy they can print.
Wishing you a great day, Dan
“My purpose is to engage students in dialogue so they can see others’ points of view – in a world that needs this more than ever. I do this by sharing lessons on this site which connect students with the past and inspire critical thinking.
Please read below to find details about this one.” Dan
I couldn’t find a book on Core Content Option B 20th Century: International Relations since 1919 which suited my high ability IGCSE students so I wrote one myself. This is my 355-page PDF which covers all of the key parts of the CIE specification and which includes comprehension questions and activities at the end of each chapter. I give it to students to supplement the course. It also includes detailed revision menus.
“My purpose is to engage students in dialogue so they can see others’ points of view – in a world that needs this more than ever. I do this by sharing lessons on this site which connect students with the past and inspire critical thinking.
Please read below to find details about this one.” Dan
I couldn’t find a book on USA 1919-41 which suited my high ability IGCSE students so I wrote one myself.
This is my 215-page PDF which covers all of the key parts of the CIE specification and which includes comprehension questions and activities at the end of each chapter. I give it to students to supplement the course. It also includes detailed revision menus.
If you prefer you can find it on Amazon in published form but am selling it here also in case anyone prefers a digicopy they can print.
Wishing you a great day, Dan
“My purpose is to engage students in dialogue so they can see others’ points of view – in a world that needs this more than ever. I do this by sharing lessons on this site which connect students with the past and inspire critical thinking.
Please read below to find details about this one.” Dan
This thirty-nine-page pack is the incredibly detailed and complete set of notes I have written for my students. It is basically an entire course on the I.B. Paper 1 Move to Global War in one pack! Notes are broken down into the following sections:
How can we explain Japanese expansion in the move to Global War?
How did Japan move to Global War?
How did Italy fit into inter-war European geopolitics?
Why was the international response to the Abyssinian Crisis so weak?
How and why did German foreign policy develop?
I am confident you will love this resource because there is nothing on the Internet which I have found which offers the same level of breadth and detail on this topic.
Your students will find the notes supremely useful and they will help them achieve examination success.
“My purpose is to engage students in dialogue so they can see others’ points of view – in a world that needs this more than ever. I do this by sharing lessons on this site which connect students with the past and inspire critical thinking.
Please read below to find details about this one.” Dan
This 52-page pack is the incredibly detailed and complete set of notes I have written for my students. It is basically an entire course on Weimar and Nazi Germany in one pack! Suitable for 16+ including GCSE, AP, A Level, and IB students. Notes are broken down into the following sections:
What problems did the Weimar Republic face between 1919-23?
How did the Weimar Republic recover between 1923-29?
Why did the Weimar Republic collapse between 1929-33?
How did Hitler consolidate his power between the years 1933-34?
Through what methods did Hitler control Germany?
Who benefitted from the Nazi state?
How did the Nazis control the economy?
Who supported and who opposed the Nazi state?
What was the Holocaust?
I am confident you will love this resource because there is nothing on the Internet which I have found which offers the same level of breadth and detail on this topic.
Your students will find the notes supremely useful and they will help them achieve examination success.
“My purpose is to engage students in dialogue so they can see others’ points of view – in a world that needs this more than ever. I do this by sharing lessons on this site which connect students with the past and inspire critical thinking.
Please read below to find details about this one.” Dan
This 36-page pack is the incredibly detailed and complete set of notes I have written for my students. It is basically an entire course on Stalin’s Russia in one pack! Suitable for 16+ including GCSE, AP, A Level, and IB students. Notes are broken down into the following sections:
How did Stalin come to power by 1928?
How successful were Stalin’s economic policies?
How did Stalin control the Soviet Union through purges?
How did Stalin control the Soviet Union through the cult of personality?
*What was the impact of the Second World War on the Soviet Union?
I am confident you will love this resource because there is nothing on the Internet which I have found which offers the same level of breadth and detail on this topic.
Your students will find the notes supremely useful and they will help them achieve examination success.
“My purpose is to engage students in dialogue so they can see others’ points of view – in a world that needs this more than ever. I do this by sharing lessons on this site which connect students with the past and inspire critical thinking.
Please read below to find details about this one.” Dan
This forty three-page pack is the incredibly detailed and complete set of notes I have written for my students. It is basically an entire course on Twentieth Century in one pack! Suitable for G.C.S.E, AP, A Level, and I.B. students. Notes are broken down into the following sections:
What were the causes and events of the revolution?
How was China ruled after the revolution?
How significant was the May 4th movement?
Why did Mao triumph?
What changes did Mao make to the economy?
What was life like in China under Mao?
How successful were Deng’s reforms?
Why were people killed on June 4?
I am confident you will love this resource because there is nothing on the Internet which I have found which offers the same level of breadth and detail on this topic.
Your students will find the notes supremely useful and they will help them achieve examination success.
“My purpose is to engage students in dialogue so they can see others’ points of view – in a world that needs this more than ever. I do this by sharing lessons on this site which connect students with the past and inspire critical thinking.
Please read below to find details about this one.” Dan
This forty six-page pack is the incredibly detailed and complete set of notes I have written for my students. It is basically an entire course on inter-war USA in one pack! Suitable for G.C.S.E, AP, A Level, and I.B. students. Notes are broken down into the following sections:
What was the impact of the First World War on the USA?
What were American attitudes towards immigrants?
Prohibition: causes, events and consequences
How did the US economy change?
How did society and culture change?
What was life like during the Great Depression and how did Herbert Hoover react?
Why did FDR win the Nineteenth Thirty Two US election?
How did Roosevelt’s New Deal change America?
Who opposed the New Deal and why?
I am confident you will love this resource because there is nothing on the Internet which I have found which offers the same level of breadth and detail on this topic.
Your students will find the notes supremely useful and they will help them achieve examination success.
“My purpose is to engage students in dialogue so they can see others’ points of view – in a world that needs this more than ever. I do this by sharing lessons on this site which connect students with the past and inspire critical thinking.
Please read below to find details about this one.” Dan
This book features 11 high scoring IB essays for the Paper 3 topic Imperial Russia, revolution, and the establishment of the USSR 1855-1924.
Teachers – this book is for you if you have high-performing students asking what a good one looks like (WAGOLL). Set an essay and staple the corresponding exemplar to your students’ effort for instant assessment for learning. Included are over 70 annotations by an experienced IB examiner offering tips and tricks to improve your students’ Paper 3 technique. Don’t just tell them what to do, show them.
Students - this book features high-performance essays for popular IB examination questions from real past papers. You’ll learn great essay mechanics and clever ways to dazzle the examiners. Learn how to apply Q SPEND, write an introduction using the DCO technique, and use fancy words like panegyric, quixotic, potentate and more to make your essays stand out from the rest. What is ‘snowballing’ and how is an essay like a Grand Prix? Look at real examples of how to evaluate perspectives effectively. Discover how topic sentences can help you and how anecdotal evidence can add colour to your response. Are you guilty of post hoc ergo propter hoc? How can you ensure you are more conceptual and when exactly should you challenge the premise of a question? If you are a student achieving Level 6 but want to reach for the very top grade in IB History this book is for you.
Parents - this book will help you support your child to think critically and to produce deluxe essays.
Essays include:
To what extent do you agree that Alexander II was the Tsar Liberator? (May 2021)
“Alexander III was a political reactionary, but an economic moderniser.” To what extent do you agree with this statement? (November 2013)
How significant were the weaknesses of Russia by the end of the Nineteenth Century? (May 2008)
Discuss the causes of the 1905 Revolution in Russia. (November 2018)
How effectively did Nicholas II respond to the 1905 Revolution? (November 2005)
Why did Russia lose the First World War? (May 2003)
Discuss the reasons for the final crisis of autocracy in February/March 1917. (November 2019)
How effectively did the Provisional Government rule Russia in 1917? (November 2017)
Evaluate the reasons for the overthrow of the Provisional Government in October/November 1917. (May 2021)
Why did the Reds win the Russian Civil War, 1918-21? (November 2001)
“The Bolshevik state under Lenin between 1918 and 1924 was a ruthless dictatorship, caring little for the Russian people.” To what extent do you agree with this statement? (November 2008)
This book features 12 high scoring IB essays for the Paper 3 topic:
The USSR and post Soviet Russia 1924-2000
Teachers – this book is for you if you have high-performing students asking what a good one looks like (WAGOLL). Set an essay and staple the corresponding exemplar to your students’ effort for instant assessment for learning. Included are over 70 annotations by an experienced IB examiner offering tips and tricks to improve your students’ Paper 3 technique. Don’t just tell them what to do, show them.
Students - this book features high-performance essays for popular IB examination questions from real past papers. It will teach you how to unpack popular Paper 3 IB questions and to write an introduction with a thesis statement which pivots your response perfectly, using the DCO technique. It will also give you ways in which to evaluate historians’ perspectives as well as schools of thought and teach you how to forensically dissect historical evidence. It will also introduce many of the world’s leading experts to you. You will learn how to effectively embed words such as martinet, kleptocracy, multivalent, panoply, dialectical, polity, nomenklatura, gerontocracy, encomium, casus belli, opprobrium, polemic, and quinquennial to make your essays stand out from the rest. You will also read about how to use topic sentences and how to challenge the very premise of a given question. It will also provide fun and creative ideas for IB projects. If you are a student achieving Level 6 but want to reach for the very top grade in IB History this book is for you.
Parents - this book will help you support your child to think critically and to produce deluxe essays.
Essays include:
Analyse the reasons for Stalin’s emergence as Lenin’s successor by 1929. (May 2012)
“Propaganda was not a major factor in Stalin’s maintenance of power between 1929 and 1953.” Discuss. (November 2020)
To what extent did the cult of personality contribute to Stalin’s maintenance of power more than terror? (November 2011)
“Stalin’s Five-Year Plans and the policy of collectivisation failed to improve the Soviet economy by 1941.” Discuss. (November 2017)
What were the consequences of the Second World War for Russia? (May 1994)
Analyse the successes and failures of Khrushchev’s domestic policies in the years 1955 to 1964. (November 2012)
Evaluate the success of Khrushchev’s foreign policy. (May 2014)
Examine the view that Brezhnev’s domestic policies had a very limited impact on the USSR. (November 2015)
“Brezhnev’s foreign policy was successful in reducing Cold War tensions.” To what extent do you agree with this statement? (November 2019)
Evaluate the impact of Gorbachev’s domestic policies on the USSR. (May 2021)
To what extent were Gorbachev’s policies responsible for improved East-West relations between 1985 and 1991? (May 2019)
Evaluate the impact of political and economic developments in post Soviet Russia between 1991 and 2000. (November 2020)
This product is titled “The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne – 25 lessons covering the whole book.”
This is a 126-page PowerPoint which includes 25 lessons on the excellent novel The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, by John Boyne. Based in Auschwitz, an unlikely friendship develops between Bruno, the son of the Commandant, and a Jewish prisoner, Shmuel. It is a journey of friendship and adversity which introduces students to the Holocaust and Nazi Germany. It is beautifully written and perfect reading material for high school English students.
Each lesson I have put together includes a starter activity, comprehension questions, extension thinking activities, a main activity, and a lesson plenary. Everything is in one PowerPoint so its easy for you to follow and reading homework is set at the end of each lesson. Every lesson comes with clear aims and objectives too.
Please note you do need to purchase a class set of the books (or a digital copy of the book) to accompany this set of English lessons.
Before you leave be sure to follow Dan’s History Highway for more info on hundreds of fully-resourced lessons for busy teachers!
Wishing you a terrific day.
This product is titled “Animal Farm by George Orwell – 20 lessons covering the whole book.”
This is a 108-page PowerPoint which includes 20 lessons on the excellent allegorical novel
Each lesson I have put together includes a starter activity, comprehension questions, extension thinking activities, a main activity, and a lesson plenary. Everything is in one PowerPoint so it’s easy for you to follow and reading homework is set at the end of every lesson. Every lesson comes with clear aims and objectives too.
Please note you do need to purchase a class set of the books (or a digital copy of the book) to accompany this set of English lessons.
Wishing you a terrific day.
This product is titled “The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne – 25 lessons covering the whole book.”
This is a 126-page PowerPoint which includes 25 lessons on the excellent novel The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, by John Boyne. Based in Auschwitz, an unlikely friendship develops between Bruno, the son of the Commandant, and a Jewish prisoner, Shmuel. It is a journey of friendship and adversity which introduces students to the Holocaust and Nazi Germany. It is beautifully written and perfect reading material for high school English students.
Each lesson I have put together includes a starter activity, comprehension questions, extension thinking activities, a main activity, and a lesson plenary. Everything is in one PowerPoint so its easy for you to follow and reading homework is set at the end of each lesson. Every lesson comes with clear aims and objectives too.
Please note you do need to purchase a class set of the books (or a digital copy of the book) to accompany this set of English lessons.
Wishing you a terrific day.
This product is titled “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon – 23 lessons covering the whole book.”
This is a 111-page PowerPoint which includes 23 lessons on the excellent novel The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, by Mark Haddon. Based in Swindon, UK, Christopher is an autistic boy who seeks to discover who murdered Wellington, a neighbour’s dog. He embarks on a journey of discovery which teaches students about learning difficulties and social justice. It is beautifully written and perfect reading material for high school English students.
Each lesson I have put together includes a starter activity, comprehension questions, extension thinking activities, a main activity, and a lesson plenary. Everything is in one PowerPoint so its easy for you to follow and reading homework is set at the end of each lesson. Every lesson comes with clear aims and objectives too.
Please note you do need to purchase a class set of the books (or a digital copy of the book) to accompany this set of English lessons.
Wishing you a terrific day.