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The National Archives Education Service

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The Education Service provides free online resources and taught sessions, supporting the National Curriculum for history from key stage 1 up to A-level. Visit our website to access the full range of our resources, from Domesday to Britain in the 1960s, and find out about more about our schools programme, including new professional development opportunities for teachers.

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The Education Service provides free online resources and taught sessions, supporting the National Curriculum for history from key stage 1 up to A-level. Visit our website to access the full range of our resources, from Domesday to Britain in the 1960s, and find out about more about our schools programme, including new professional development opportunities for teachers.
19th Century People
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19th Century People

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This lesson aims to give pupils the opportunity to use two historical sources to answer questions based on photographs of people of the 19th century.
Victorian Prisons
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Victorian Prisons

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Victorians were worried about the rising crime rate: offences went up from about 5,000 per year in 1800 to about 20,000 per year in 1840. They were firm believers in punishment for criminals but faced a problem: what should the punishment be? There were prisons, but they were mostly small, old and badly-run. Common punishments included transportation – sending the offender to America, Australia or Van Diemen’s Land (Tasmania) – or execution: hundreds of offences carried the death penalty. By the 1830s people were having doubts about both these punishments. The answer was prison: lots of new prisons were built and old ones extended. The Victorians also had clear ideas about what these prisons should be like. They should be unpleasant places, to deter people from committing crimes. Once inside, prisoners had to be made to face up to their own faults, by keeping them in silence and making them do hard, boring work. Walking a treadwheel or picking oakum (separating strands of rope) were the most common forms of hard labour.
Victorian Homes
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Victorian Homes

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A lesson plan on Victorian homes. Pupils are gradually introduced to sources on Hackney, starting with a small map section, then photographic evidence, concluding with the census.
Helyntion Beca (Cymraeg/Welsh)
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Helyntion Beca (Cymraeg/Welsh)

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Gellir defnyddio’r llun hwn gyda disgyblion cyfnod allweddol 3 ym mlwyddyn 8. Mae’n edrych ar hanes helyntion Beca drwy gyfrwng tystiolaeth ar natur y Mudiad, profiad rhai o’r bobl a oedd yn rhan ohonynt ac ymateb yr awdurdodau. Also available in English
Bussas Rebellion
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Bussas Rebellion

(1)
This lesson can be used with key stage 3 pupils in year 9. It looks at the story of the Bussa rebellion on Barbados based on evidence relating to the reaction of the British authorities.
Rebecca Riots
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Rebecca Riots

(1)
This lesson can be used with key stage 3 pupils. It considers the story of the Rebecca riots through evidence relating to the nature of the movement, the experience of some of those involved and the reaction of the authorities. hefyd ar gael yn Gymraeg
1833 Factory Act
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1833 Factory Act

(1)
A lesson to teach about the 1833 factory out where children can investigate how the far the act had solved the problems of child labour.
The French Revolution
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The French Revolution

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This lesson encourages pupils to examine and investigate the British reaction to the outbreak of the French Revolution through the use of primary source evidence.
1834 Poor Law
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1834 Poor Law

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This lesson can be used as a starting point for investigating the new Poor Law in more depth and discussing attitudes to the poor in 19th century Britain.
Slavery
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Slavery

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This lesson offers graphic evidence of the cruelty on which enslavement was based and considers details about the way enslaved African society worked and how they were punished.
Native North Americans
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Native North Americans

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This lesson asks pupils to investigate the early contact between Europeans and Native Americans. Using primary source diary extracts, pupils are able to understand and appreciate the first encounters between European settlers and the indigenous people of North America.
Elizabethan Propaganda
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Elizabethan Propaganda

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This lesson is intended for use either as part of a study of the use of propaganda over time, or within the context of work on Elizabethan England and the Spanish Armada.
Murder at Kirk o'Field
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Murder at Kirk o'Field

(1)
This lesson involves the pupils in detective work, using three crucial sources about the murder of Lord Darnley the husband of Mary Queen of Scots. Pupils can study individual sources and report back to the whole class to answer the mystery.
The Great Plague of 1665-6
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The Great Plague of 1665-6

(7)
A lesson plan which enables pupils to learn about the plague and to learn how the lives, beliefs, ideas and attitudes of people in Britain have changed over time.
William Shakespeare
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William Shakespeare

(0)
This lesson provides pupils with evidence about Shakespeare that differs from the traditional 'greatest playwright of all time' material that many will be used to. Pupils studying life in Tudor times both from a History and English perspective can learn about Shakespeare as a person rather than a world famous writer.