The Development of Castles - How and why did castles change over time?

This lesson looks at the development of castles from the earliest Motte and Bailey style castles to the sophisticated concentric castles of the 15th century. The lesson is aimed at students in KS3 and focuses on the main features of attacking and defending castles and how this influenced the development of castles over time. The lesson begins with an engaging starter which introduces the students to different types of castles. Students then acquire knowledge of how and why castles changed over time before moving onto the main task of the lesson. This is an active learning task which involves the students designing their own castle based on their understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of various castle features. The final task involves students debating the effectiveness of their castle designs to evaluate the success of their creations.