The British Empire The aim of this lesson to investigate the causes and consequences of the Boer War (1899-1902) for the British Empire and the character of Lord Horatio Kitchener, appointed Commander of the British Army in South Africa. Students are required to analyse and make judgements on his character by deciding how heroic he was, before, during and after the war by rating each of his actions. They are soon shocked to find his underhand tactics of trying to win the Boer War through initial incompetence to devastating ruthlessness as the war progressed with his scorched earth policy and the setting up of concentration camps. They also learn how the war impacted upon the Government at the time, culminating in the Liberal Reforms and evaluate how these measures helped improve public health which left a lasting legacy on Britain. The lesson comes with retrieval practice activities, suggested teaching and learning strategies, differentiated materials and is linked to the latest historical interpretations, video clips and debate. The lesson is enquiry based with a key question posed at the start of the lesson and revisited at the end to show the progress of learning. The lessons are fully adaptable in PowerPoint format and can be changed to suit.

The French Revolution The aim of this lesson is to investigate if Napoleon was a hero or villain. Students are introduced to Napoleon and make some initial judgements with reference to his upbringing and his early life. The main task is to analyse some giebn evidence which is focused on his career, personal life, his reforms in France and how he became Emperor of France. They are required to complete their analysis with some extended writing, complete with key words and a writing frame if required. The plenary questions whether we should regard him as a legend with links to people in the modern era. The lesson comes with differentiated materials, suggested teaching and learning strategies and is linked to the latest historical interpretations, video clips and debate. The lesson is enquiry based with a key question posed at the start of the lesson and revisited at the end to show the progress of learning. It is fully adaptable in PowerPoint format and can be changed to suit.

AQA A Level 1C The Tudors: England 1485-1603 The aim of this lesson is to assess the success of Mary’s marriage to Philip of Spain and the significance of the Wyatt rebellion. Students begin by deciding the pros and cons of marrying Philip and what Mary should consider before entering a union and alliance with a powerful Catholic ally. Furthermore they will be given details of the marriage and all its clauses and evaluate who benefited more from it both personally and politically. Students will also analyse the consequences of the marriage with the subsequent Wyatt rebellion and decide how significant and threatening it really was by plotting their thoughts on a grid. The plenary uses some differentiated questioning to check understanding and challenge their understanding in the wider context of the political situation at the time. There is an enquiry question posed at the start and revisited throughout to show the progress of learning throughout the lesson and subsequent unit of work. The lesson comes in PowerPoint format and can be changed and adapted to suit. The lesson is differentiated and includes suggested teaching strategies.

GCSE Germany 1890-1945: Democracy and Dictatorship This lesson focuses on the difficult topics of proportional representation and the new Weimar constitution. The lesson centres around how the Weimar Government was formed out of the chaos of the end of World War 1 and how the politicians decided to meet in the quieter town of Weimar. Setting up a new constitution was the first step toward democracy but as the students find out through second order concept skills there were many similarities as well as differences to that of the Kaiser’s government. Included in the lesson are a number of diagrams and information sheets for group work, an AFL sheet and links to the main GCSE question asked on the first slide. The students are introduced to the GCSE question on political and economic problems that the Weimar Government faced but this question spans a number of lessons before they can attempt it. The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited to show the progress of learning. The resource includes suggested teaching strategies, differentiated materials and comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.

Germany 1890-1945: Democracy and Dictatorship This lesson focuses on Weltpolitik and the dangers for the Kaiser faced with increasing industrialisation in the country and his pursuit of creating an Empire abroad so that ‘Germany could have its place in the sun’. Included in the lesson are a number of sources and charts, links to videos and information for the students to analyse and evaluate to decide the strength of Germany under the Kaiser and its weakenesses/ Some GCSE exam question practice is included with help given to answer them if required. The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited to show the progress of learning. The resource includes suggested teaching strategies, retrieval practice, differentiated materials and comes in PowerPoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.

Germany 1890-1945: Democracy and Dictatorship The aim of this lesson is to judge whether the Munich Beer Hall Putsch was a success or a disaster for the Nazis The start of the lesson focuses on what Hitler wanted and students have to decide why he instigated a Putsch in the first place in Bavaria. With reference to text, source analysis and video clips, students then have to prioritise the short term consequences for Hitler and his followers and the main reasons why it failed. The final part of the lesson focuses on what we now see as his success. Students again have to give reasons why he came out of this episode unscathed and to some extent even bolstered his reputation in the long term. In the plenary, students have to relay what they have learnt in a summarising pyramid. The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited to show the progress of learning. The resource includes suggested teaching strategies, retrieval practice, differentiated materials and comes in PowerPoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.

Germany 1890-1945: Democracy and Dictatorship This lesson looks at how Hitler transformed himself and the Nazi Party to be able to secure enough votes to become Chancellor by 1933. Many GCSE questions centre around why people voted for the Nazis before 1933. This lesson shows how he was able to do this focusing on four main areas: his beliefs, organisation, leadership skills and voters. How he dressed, spoke, acted and performed in public were crucial in his propaganda assault on the German people. Students write this up and evaluate the success of this transformation using worksheets, video footage and visual aids. The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited to show the progress of learning. The resource includes suggested teaching strategies, retrieval practice, differentiated materials and comes in PowerPoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.

What happens at a slave auction? How are the slaves prepared? Who attends the auction? Who is chosen and why? This lesson attempts to answer these questions and more; from branding to advertisements and the auction itself. Students also learn of the heartache and pain of those who are sold and how and why slaves are sold at different prices. They are also challenged in a task to think who would be more expensive and why. By the end of the lesson, students have to give examples in a true or false quiz of what they have learned in the lesson, including having to decide the worst aspects of the slave auction. The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited to show the progress of learning. The resource includes suggested teaching strategies, retrieval practice, differentiated materials and comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.

World War I The aim of the lesson is to understand why alliances and rivalries at the beginning of the Twentieth Century led to the outbreak of war. This lesson sets out the long term causes of the First World War based on four underlying principles: Nationalism, Imperialism, Alliances and Militarism. The lesson asks the students who and why were countries arguing with each other based on their geographical as well as their historic national rivalries. Students then have to decide who could sit next to each other at a dinner party after they have justified their reasons for distrust and paranoia. The alliances are plotted and colour coded on maps, culminating in a task prioritising and linking the reasons as to why the world was ready for war in 1914. The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited throughout to show the progress of learning. The resource includes suggested teaching strategies and differentiated materials, and comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.

World War I This lesson is split into two parts: The aim of the first part of this lesson is to focus on the roles women played in World War 1 and how significant a contribution they made to the war effort. Students have to prioritise which jobs also contributed the most to the war effort. The second part looks at the Woolwich Arsenal weapons factory as a case study, using documentary and audio evidence from the time as students consider how frightening it was to work in an arms factory. Furthermore, students decide how significant women were in the short, medium and long term. They have a chance to justify their ideas with a differentiated extended writing task, with help given if required. A plenary Bingo tests and challenges students’ understanding at the end. The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited throughout to show the progress of learning. The resource includes suggested teaching strategies and differentiated materials, and comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.

American Civil Rights This lesson questions how far the African American community in America has come since the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The lesson starts with focusing on the inspirational actions of two American athletes during the Mexico Olympics of 1968. The students are questioned on the symbolic nature of their protest and how their message had far reaching implications. Seven case studies are investigated by the students from the achievements of Michael Johnson and Barak Obama to the tragic incidents surrounding Rodney King, James Byrd and George Floyd. There is much accompanying video footage as well as differentiated tasks to enable students to make a judgement at the end. The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited to show the progress of learning. The resource includes suggested teaching strategies, differentiated materials and comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.

AQA GCSE 9-1 Britain: Health and the People, c.1000 to present This lesson aims to assess how much the medical knowledge doctors and surgeons had. Surgery was of course limited without effective painkillers and bleeding whilst shock and infection were common. Students learn the various treatments on offer from wise women, quacks and barber surgeons and in turn rate each treatment and its effectiveness, justifying and concluding why this is. The lesson also includes a thinking quilt and a GCSE practice question where students critique an answer and suggest ways to improve it, using specific skills when answering a ‘usefulness’ 8 mark question. The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited at the end to show the progress of learning. The resource comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change. I have also included suggested teaching strategies to deliver the lesson and there are differentiated materials included.

AQA GCSE 9-1 Britain: Health and the People, c1000 to present The aim of the lesson is for students to understand how attitudes towards Public Health finally changed in the Twentieth Century with a ‘new liberalism’ approach which recognised that being poor was not always the fault of the poor and that the government had to do something. Students begin by analysing the source, 'unqualified assistance’, evaluating its significance and then prioritising the main reasons for this new approach, as the Government reforms aimed to create a fitter and healthier Britain. Students have to fill in a grid which link the main reforms to the different groups in society and also evaluate the limitations of the reforms. The plenary focuses on a scrabble game and literacy skills to recap the learning of the lesson The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited at the end to show the progress of learning. The resource comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change. I have also included suggested teaching strategies to deliver the lesson and there are differentiated materials included.

The Holocaust The aim of this lesson is to understand why we should remember the holocaust and why we commemorate it every year. Some misconceptions are given at the start, such as what the holocaust actual means and the differences between concentration and extermination camps. Throughout the lesson the students build up their ideas and add them around a lightbulb to focus on the central aims of the lesson. Students are also given numbers and have to decide the significance of each from 6 million to 2 minutes and 2 seconds or 90cm by 90cm for example. The final part of the lesson refers to the powerful and moving story of Erica, thrown off the train by her parents before she reached Auschwitz and therefore knowing very little about herself. The plenary focuses on some odd ones out exercises and recent genocides to emphasise the importance of remembering the holocaust. There is some excellent video footage to accompany the lesson. The resource comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change. I have also included suggested teaching strategies to deliver the lesson.

The Suffragettes The aim of this lesson is to assess the impact of World War 1 on the Suffragette movement. The lesson analyses the changing perceptions as women took on the jobs the men left behind to fight on the Western Front in France. Students prioritise the most important roles women took as well as discovering through source analysis what they did. There are some excellent case studies of four women and what they did during the war, which provide a great insight into many of the roles women undertook and the resistance and prejudice they faced. The final part of the lesson looks at the main reasons why women gained the vote and judge if the impact of the war was the main and fundamental reason for this. The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited to show the progress of learning. The resource includes suggested teaching strategies, differentiated materials and comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.

The Tudors The aim of this lesson is to understand why Henry VIII is always judged to be larger than life. It focuses on four portraits of Henry VIII from the early years until his death. Students will aim to write a descriptive piece about Henry by using each other to write it. When they finish, they will have a masterful descriptive paragraph which has been co-constructed by a number of them (with help from a word list). This activity is great for differentiation and team work. The lesson also attempts to banish the perception that Henry was always a large person who ate a lot. This is shown through video evidence and a thinking quilt. The plenary gets the students to summarise Henry’s match statistics and what he ‘should’ be remembered for. The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited to show the progress of learning. The resource includes suggested teaching strategies, retrieval practice, differentiated materials and comes in PowerPoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.

This is a fun, entertaining as well as a challenging lesson, designed to question and evaluate the causes of the Great Fire of London in the summer of 1666. The hook is Samuel Pepys; why did he bury his cheese and why did he bury it alongside items that were surely more valuable? The lesson comes complete with differentiated resources as students have to plot the causes and consequences of the fire on a visual display using logs,flames and smoke. Notes have been put on each slide on how to deliver the activities and answers to some of the questions posed as well as suggested teaching strategies. This lesson is active, exciting and engaging and would also suit a non specialist. It is aimed at key stage 3, but can be delivered to key stage 2 pupils also. The lesson comes with suggested teaching and learning strategies and are linked to the latest historical interpretations, video clips and debate. The lesson is enquiry based with a key question posed at the start of the lesson and revisited at the end to show the progress of learning. The lessons are fully adaptable in PowerPoint format and can be changed to suit.

The Tudors The aim of this lesson is to discover why the Elizabethan Poor Law was introduced and to assess its impact on Elizabethan society and beyond. Students first of all have to analyse the causes of poverty and prioritise which has been the main reason for its increase whether that be the actions of local landowners and Henry VIII in his break with Rome or the debasement of the coinage. They are also required to write to the local landowner, using suggested key argument words, to express their sympathy for the poor which was in sort supply in the Elizabethan era. As well as source analysis, students learn the so called tricks of the trade for begging and how Tudor propaganda shaped these negative views of the poor. Students subsequently have to assess the details of the new Elizabethan Poor Law, the reasons for a change in attitude towards the poor and assess its significance and impact upon society as a whole. The final task is to talk like an historian and answer the questions in a quiz picking up points for the harder questions. The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited to show the progress of learning. The resource includes suggested teaching strategies, retrieval practice, differentiated materials and comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.

AQA GCSE 9-1 Britain: Health and the People, c.1000 to present This lesson focuses on the power of the church over medieval society and medicine and why it became so involved in helping the sick. Students explore the different types of care on offer from the Christian Church in the Middle Ages and learn why care not cure was the priority. They are required to analyse sources, reconstruct sentences and complete a key word summary question sheet to challenge their understanding. They are finally asked to fill in an efficiency rating of the Church and then predict its potential (as with a house energy efficiency rating). The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited at the end to show the progress of learning. The resource is differentiated and gives suggested teaching strategies. It comes in Powerpoint format which can be amended and changed to suit.

The British Empire The aim of this lesson is to discover who the Zulus were and how and why their fighting left a lasting legacy on the British Empire. Students will also find out why the British army, allegedly the best and most disciplined fighting force in the world at the time be defeated and humiliated at the Battle of Isandlwana? They will also analyse how within hours they were heroically defending their lives at Rourke’s Drift in one of the most unlikely ‘victories’ in British military history. Students evaluate both battles, creating headlines and writing articles, using argument words and second and third tier vocabulary. They finally appraise the events of 1879, concluding how both battles should be viewed overall in history and their legacy. The lesson comes with retrieval practice activities, suggested teaching and learning strategies, differentiated materials and is linked to the latest historical interpretations, video clips and debate. The lesson is enquiry based with a key question posed at the start of the lesson and revisited at the end to show the progress of learning. The lesson is fully adaptable in PowerPoint format and can be changed to suit.