Welcome to RA Resources. I have an extended range of fully resourced, high quality History lessons for KS2, KS3 and GCSE aimed at schools, tutors and home learning. Having taught History abroad and then in Cornwall for 20 years, these lessons reflect my creativity and teaching experience.
Please feel free to email me with any enquiries about the resources on offer. You can keep up to date with my latest published lessons using the Facebook link in my shop.
Welcome to RA Resources. I have an extended range of fully resourced, high quality History lessons for KS2, KS3 and GCSE aimed at schools, tutors and home learning. Having taught History abroad and then in Cornwall for 20 years, these lessons reflect my creativity and teaching experience.
Please feel free to email me with any enquiries about the resources on offer. You can keep up to date with my latest published lessons using the Facebook link in my shop.
This is the final lesson for the unit. It cover the events that led to the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the following consequences. It will also ask the students to explain the importance of the fall of the Berlin Wall for the end of the Soviet Union by 1991.
The lesson resources include:
1 x A4 Workbook Style Fact Sheet (PDF & PPT) – Included in every Cold War lesson!
1 x Main Power Point Lesson
The main PowerPoint includes:
RECAP 1: A 10 question multiple choice quiz about why the Berlin Wall was built to help recap prior knowledge from an earlier lesson. Answers revealed on the following slide (see image).
RECAP 2: Students are presented with 5 images which they must use to identify the actions that Mikhail Gorbachev had taken from the previous lesson to bring about the end of the Cold War (Brezhnev Doctrine, Afghanistan, Perestroika, Glasnost, INF Treaty). Students prompted into discussion and explanation to recap his actions.
STARTER: Students given two sources (written and visual) and have to infer what each tells them about the immediate impact of the fall of the Berlin Wall on the citizens of East Berlin.
BACKGROUND SLIDES: Gives a stage by stage overview of the events which led to the fall of the Berlin Wall.
TASK SHEET: Students prompted through a series of tasks which lead to explaining the main consequences and the importance of the fall of the Berlin Wall. Extension tasks given.
EXAM QUESTIONS: Three types of exam questions given for this topic.
FACT SHEETS: A fact sheet has been included for this lesson but also the previous lessons about the erection of the Berlin Wall for any students who may need this catch up.
PLENARY/EXTENSION: From all of Gorbachev’s actions, students score or shade on a graph, which had the biggest impact on bringing about the end of the Cold War and the collapse of Communism.
All images used in this lesson are in the public domain and are therefore copyright free. Images which require attribution have been attributed in the notes section of each slide where the image appears. If you feel any errors have been made, please contact me at raschoolresources@gmail.com in the first instance to resolve any issues. My lessons are completed using PowerPoint and designed on widescreen formatting. Thank you.
This resource is for personal use only and for copyright reasons should not be copied/amended for commercial use.
This lesson covers the actions and policies of Mikhail Gorbachev from 1985-1991 along with his significance for US-Soviet relations and the fall of the Soviet Union.
The lesson resources include:
1 x A4 Workbook Style Fact Sheet (PDF & PPT) – Included in every Cold War lesson!
1 x Main Power Point Lesson
The main PowerPoint includes:
RECAP: Missing terms quiz about the actions of President Reagan from lesson 16.
STARTER: A discussion question about the forms of technology available in the West by the 1980s and how this might show the difference between capitalism and communism.
STARTER: A cartoon for the students to discuss showing Mikhail Gorbachev and the ‘breaking up’ of the Soviet Union. Students have to interpret the cartoon as a way into the lesson.
STARTER: 3 sources. Students should read each one and ‘infer’ what they can about the actions of Gorbachev.
BACKGROUND: Various, clear slides to outline the events and actions taken by Gorbachev in this time before the students read further.
TASK: Students are asked to complete a fact file about Gorbachev. Students are given an outline of suggested headings for this fact file from basic facts to a description of each of his actions. They will then be prompted to examine his importance and such turning points in the Cold War.
PLENARY: Key term ‘Who/what am I?’
FACT SHEET: All of the information needed for the students on one sheet.
All images used in this lesson are in the public domain and are therefore copyright free. Images which require attribution have been attributed in the notes section of each slide where the image appears. If you feel any errors have been made, please contact me at raschoolresources@gmail.com in the first instance to resolve any issues. My lessons are completed using PowerPoint and designed on widescreen formatting. Thank you.
This resource is for personal use only and for copyright reasons should not be copied/amended for commercial use.
NEW 2025/6 SPEC. This lesson examines the reasons for and significance of Francis Drake’s circumnavigation of the globe.
The lesson resources include:
1 x A4 Workbook Style Fact Sheet (PDF & PPT)
1 x 17 slide powerpoint lesson with printable worksheets
The main powerpoint slides include:
Slide 1: Title Slide
Slide 2: Define the term circumnavigate activity with answer.
Slide 3-4: Francis Drake recap multiple choice quiz with answers.
Slide 5: Starter discussion questions
Slide 6: An outline of Drake’s circumnavigation of the globe.
Slide 7: Class clip link with questions
Slide 8-10: Task 1 - Fact sheet worksheet with instructions and choice of two printable worksheets.
Slide 11: Follow up challenge questions
Slide 12-14: Learning review crossword with answers and printable versions.
Slide 15-16: Example exam/assessment questions
Slide 17: Lesson fact sheet
This lesson has been updated in line with the amended specification and exam questions ready for the 2025/6 examinations.
All images used in this lesson are in the public domain and are therefore copyright free. Images which require attribution have been attributed in the notes section of each slide where the image appears. If you feel any errors have been made, please contact me at raschoolresources@gmail.com in the first instance to resolve any issues. My lessons are completed using PowerPoint and designed on widescreen formatting. Thank you.
This resource is for personal use only and for copyright reasons should not be copied/amended for commercial use.
This lesson covers the actions and Presidency of Ronald Reagan during the time known as the Second Cold War. Students will examine his tougher policy towards the Soviet Union and focus their attention on his ‘Star Wars’ Programme (Strategic Defence Initiative) and its importance and consequences at the time.
The lesson resources include:
1 x A4 Workbook Style Fact Sheet (PDF & PPT) – Included in every Cold War lesson!
1 x Main Power Point Lesson
The main PowerPoint includes:
Starter: Students are given 10 technological developments of the 1980s and from the descriptions, have to identify what they were. This will give the students historical context to the 1980s and the amount of technological and scientific progress at the time.
Background: Students will then be briefly taken through the background developments which cover Reagan’s main policies towards the Soviet Union and the increasing ‘war of words’ between the two sides.
Task Sheet: (See image) this sheet questions the student’s understanding of the main developments of Reagan’s Second Cold War and specifically the Strategic Defence Initiative. There are 13 questions in total on the worksheet which require a variety of skills such as source analysis and explanation of importance and consequences.
Recap: Students are given a table of 8 key terms from the lesson. Their task is to write a suitable question to achieve the key term as an answer. This task can be printed off for a written worksheet or simply displayed on the board.
Extension Tasks: Two political cartoons are shown about the Strategic Defence Initiative. Students need to analyse their meaning.
Exam Questions: Exam questions have been written for the students on this topic (consequence, narrative and importance).
Information Fact Sheet: A printable fact sheet has been provided for the students to use in place or or in addition to the text book.****
All images used in this lesson are in the public domain and are therefore copyright free. Images which require attribution have been attributed in the notes section of each slide where the image appears. If you feel any errors have been made, please contact me at raschoolresources@gmail.com in the first instance to resolve any issues. My lessons are completed using PowerPoint and designed on widescreen formatting. Thank you.
This resource is for personal use only and for copyright reasons should not be copied/amended for commercial use.
This lesson covers the period of detente during the 1970s. By the end of the lesson, students will be able to understand this period of time and how it led to an easing of the Cold War tensions. They will then be able to explain the factors that led to the end of detente.
The lesson resources include:
1 x A4 Workbook Style Fact Sheet (PDF & PPT) – Included in every Cold War lesson!
1 x Main Power Point Lesson
The main PowerPoint includes:
RECAP: A chart showing all of the key events which caused tension since 1945. The students are asked to rate/shade in their graph to identify how much tension each event caused between the two sides of the Cold War.
STARTER: Students discuss 4 questions about WHY there was a call for peace during this time in history from: the USA, the Soviet Union, the world, the public.
BACKGROUND: Key terms such as detente and MAD covered to give a brief overview of the topic.
TASK 1: Students should be able to explain WHY there was a call for detente in this time by filling in the peace symbol with their facts. (see image).
TASK 2: A choice of two worksheets which can also be printed if needed. Students should now use BBC Bitesize/the fact sheet or their text book to explain why there was detente in this time. The differentiated fact sheet outlines the key events already for the students.
TASK 3: Students now identify the various reasons why detente ended by 1979.
EXTENSION TASK: Asks higher ability students to think about the propaganda used during this time and asks if detente really did happen.
FACT SHEET: A fact sheet crammed full of information about the causes, events and consequences of detente.
All images used in this lesson are in the public domain and are therefore copyright free. Images which require attribution have been attributed in the notes section of each slide where the image appears. If you feel any errors have been made, please contact me at raschoolresources@gmail.com in the first instance to resolve any issues. My lessons are completed using PowerPoint and designed on widescreen formatting. Thank you.
This resource is for personal use only and for copyright reasons should not be copied/amended for commercial use.
This is a 44 page word document which includes all of the content needed for the Edexcel Paper 2 ‘Superpower Relations and the Cold War 1941-91’. The Unit has been divided into 20 main topics along with example exam questions and revision tasks at the end of each topic.
I have included the content page along with the resource so you can view the topic list for yourself, along with an image of a typical page of the revision guide.
**This lesson covers how developments in science and technology have helped the care and treatment of patients in hospitals with the example of the impact of the magic bullet, development of antibiotics and mass production of drugs. **
As always, the lesson contains all of the information, resources and material needed to teach the lesson without the use of a text book.
This lesson includes:
Clear learning aims/targets
Provoking starter tasks and discussion activities
Printable worksheets
Challenge tasks
Exam links
Learning Review
Fact Sheet linked to the GCSE specification
All images used in this lesson are in the public domain and are therefore copyright free at the time of publishing. Images which require attribution have been attributed in the notes section of each slide where the image appears. If you feel any errors have been made, please contact me at raschoolresources@gmail.com in the first instance to resolve any issues. My lessons are completed using PowerPoint and designed on widescreen formatting. Thank you.
**This resource is for personal use only and for copyright reasons should not be copied/amended for commercial use. **
This final lesson of the Crime and Punishment unit looks at the treatment, laws and punishments of Conscientious Objectors during and after World War One and World War Two.
Slide 1: Title slide - The Treatment of Conscientious Objectors
Slide 2: Starter Task - students watch a short documentary clip taken from the BBC One Show and write down three facts about Conscientious Objectors.
Slide 3-6: Poster inference activity-students examine World War One propaganda posters to infer what the attitudes towards these men were at the time.
Slide 7-8: Background information
Slide 9: Option Task sheets
Slide 10-14: Sheets which will help students learn about the Conscientious Objectors using their preferred learning style.
Slide 15: Challenge question - which other groups from the study have been persecuted in law because of their beliefs and/or actions?
Slide 16: Example exam questions
Slide 17: Lesson Fact Sheet
To take into account copyright, all photographic and illustrative images have been attributed where appropriate and/or are all in the public domain. Clipart/vector images are all creativecommons.publicdomain.zero.1.0 which do not have to be attributed. If you have any issues regarding copyright please email me in the first instance.
This lesson examines the case study of Derek Bentley, with a focus on the public reaction to his sentence and how his punishment led to the abolition of the death penalty.
Slide 1: Title slide - To explain the controversy of Derek Bentley’s execution in 1953
Slide 2-4: Learning recap - key terms, with printable version for students and answers revealed.
Slide 5: Starter Task - Students read and listen to the lyrics of Elvis Costello’s Let him Dangle’ in order to infer information about the Derek Bentley case.
Slide 6: The story of the Derek Bentley case, written in a student friendly format.
Slide 7: Explanation practice table
Slide 8: Activity - students imagine they are on the side of the defence and the prosecution and write down what their arguments would be.
Slide 9: Learning Task questions with challenge
Slide 10 - 11: Practice 12 and 4 mark questions
Slide 12: Lesson Fact Sheet
To take into account copyright, all photographic and illustrative images have been attributed where appropriate and/or are all in the public domain. Clipart/vector images are all creativecommons.publicdomain.zero.1.0 which do not have to be attributed. If you have any issues regarding copyright please email me in the first instance.
This lesson examines how prisons have developed, especially with their specialisation and focus on the reform of young people.
Power Point 1:
Printable A4 Worksheets
Power Point 2:
Slide 1: To explain the development and specialisation of the prison system in modern Britain
Slide 2-3: Prison chronology recap activity
Slide 3: Key terms to help with the lesson
Slide 5-7: Discussion about the case of Vicky Pryce and Chris Huhne
Slide 8: Source inference about the prison population in Britain
Slide 9: Discussion - why has the prison population rapidly increased?
Slide 10: Source inference about the prison population of age and gender
Slide 11: Background information about the changing attitudes towards children in prison.
Slide 12: The main changes to the penal system after c.1900
Slide 13-17: A variety of short clips about young people in prisons. This will go along with the worksheets provided.
Slide 18-19: Practice exam questions
Slide 20: An additional activity which looks at the public attitudes towards prisons in modern Britain.
Slide 21-22: Key term crossword with answers revealed
Slide 23: Lesson Fact Sheet
To take into account copyright, all photographic and illustrative images have been attributed where appropriate and/or are all in the public domain. Clipart/vector images are all creativecommons.publicdomain.zero.1.0 which do not have to be attributed. If you have any issues regarding copyright please email me in the first instance.
This lesson helps students to explain the reasons that led to the abolition of the death penalty in the later years of the 20th century.
Power Point Presentation 1: Two A4 worksheets to go along with the main power point lesson
Power Point Presentation 2:
Slide 1: Title slide - To explain the reasons for the abolition of the death penalty in Britain
Slide 2: Topic Recap Quiz
Slide 3: Topic Recap Quiz answers
Slide 4: Starter Task - what can students infer from the graph about the impact of the abolition of the death penalty?
Slide 5: Discussion - why do students think the death penalty was abolished in this time (prompt questions also given)
Slide 6-8: Background information about the events which led to the abolition.
Slide 9: How to structure a point, evidence and explain paragraph
Slide 10: A table from which students can note down the Point, evidence and explain for each factor that caused the abolition of the death penalty.
Slide 11: Two challenge tasks
Slide 12-13: Practice exam questions
Slide 14: The lesson fact sheet
Slide 15: The factors that cause change sheet
To take into account copyright, all photographic and illustrative images have been attributed where appropriate and/or are all in the public domain. Clipart/vector images are all creativecommons.publicdomain.zero.1.0 which do not have to be attributed. If you have any issues regarding copyright please email me in the first instance.
This lesson examines the newly defined crimes of the 20th century such as race related crimes, driving crimes and rape with the aim of explaining their creation. It also looks at why some acts have been decriminalised.
Slide 1: Title slide - To explain the changing definitions of crime between c.1900-Present Day
Slide 2-3: A recap quiz which asks students to match the creation of a crime with the era it was created in. Answers revealed for self assessment.
Slide 4: The wider historical context of the period c.1900 = Present. An activity sheet which students use to think about why aspects of crime have changed.
Slide 5: Discussion Task - What are our modern attitudes towards crime?
Slide 6: Discussion Task - Why do students think attitudes towards some crimes have changed in the modern era?
Slide 7-8: Task Sheets to help students make notes on the various crimes and how they have changed.
Slides 9-13 - Fact Sheets for each crime which can be printed and then swapped between students.
Slide 14: Challenge Tasks
Slide 15-16: Practice exam questions
Slide 17-18: Two lesson fact sheets
Slide 19-20: Learning Review with answers revealed.
To take into account copyright, all photographic and illustrative images have been attributed where appropriate and/or are all in the public domain. Clipart/vector images are all creativecommons.publicdomain.zero.1.0 which do not have to be attributed. If you have any issues regarding copyright please email me in the first instance.
This lesson examines who the main opposition groups in Nazi Germany were as well as why opposition towards the Nazi Party was limited.
All resources and factual information are included with the lesson.
This lesson includes:
- Clear learning aims/targets
- Provoking starter tasks and discussion activities
- Printable worksheets
- Engaging background information
- Challenge tasks
- Exam links
- Learning Review
- Fact Sheet linked to the GCSE specification
All images used in this lesson are in the public domain and are therefore copyright free at the time of publishing. Images which require attribution have been attributed in the notes section of each slide where the image appears. If you feel any errors have been made, please contact me at raschoolresources@gmail.com in the first instance to resolve any issues. My lessons are completed using PowerPoint and designed on widescreen formatting. Thank you.
This resource is for personal use only and for copyright reasons should not be copied/amended for commercial use.
This lesson specifically examines the way culture in Nazi Germany was censored by the Nazi authorities.
This lesson includes:
- Clear learning aims/targets
- Provoking starter tasks and discussion activities
- Printable worksheets
- Engaging background information
- Challenge tasks
- Exam links
- Learning Review
- Fact Sheet linked to the GCSE specification
All images used in this lesson are in the public domain and are therefore copyright free at the time of publishing. Images which require attribution have been attributed in the notes section of each slide where the image appears. If you feel any errors have been made, please contact me at raschoolresources@gmail.com in the first instance to resolve any issues. My lessons are completed using PowerPoint and designed on widescreen formatting. Thank you.
This resource is for personal use only and for copyright reasons should not be copied/amended for commercial use.
This lesson takes a look at three main questions:
- Why did Hitler have to think very carefully about his policies towards the Christian faiths in Germany?
- What did the Nazi regime do? (The concordat and the Reich Church)
- What was the outcome for the Christian Churches in Germany.
This lesson includes:
- Clear learning aims/targets
- Provoking starter tasks and discussion activities
- Printable worksheets
- Engaging background information
- Challenge tasks
- Exam links
- Learning Review
- Fact Sheet linked to the GCSE specification
All images used in this lesson are in the public domain and are therefore copyright free at the time of publishing. Images which require attribution have been attributed in the notes section of each slide where the image appears. If you feel any errors have been made, please contact me at raschoolresources@gmail.com in the first instance to resolve any issues. My lessons are completed using PowerPoint and designed on widescreen formatting. Thank you.
This resource is for personal use only and for copyright reasons should not be copied/amended for commercial use.
**This lesson looks at the various methods and organisations used by the Nazi Party to create a police state (SS, SD, Gestapo, the legal system and concentration camps). Students encouraged to explain how successful each method was with the eventual completion of a 12 mark question. **
This lesson includes:
Clear learning aims/targets
Provoking starter tasks and discussion activities
Printable worksheets
Engaging background information
Challenge tasks
Exam links
Learning Review
Fact Sheet linked to the GCSE specification
All images used in this lesson are in the public domain and are therefore copyright free at the time of publishing. Images which require attribution have been attributed in the notes section of each slide where the image appears. If you feel any errors have been made, please contact me at raschoolresources@gmail.com in the first instance to resolve any issues. My lessons are completed using PowerPoint and designed on widescreen formatting. Thank you.
This resource is for personal use only and for copyright reasons should not be copied/amended for commercial use.
**In this lesson, students will create a timeline to explain how Hitler was able to manipulate events to help him achieve the dictatorship of Germany by 1934. **
This lesson includes:
Clear learning aims/targets
Provoking starter tasks and discussion activities
Printable worksheets
Engaging background information
Challenge tasks
Exam links
Learning Review
Fact Sheet linked to the GCSE specification
All images used in this lesson are in the public domain and are therefore copyright free at the time of publishing. Images which require attribution have been attributed in the notes section of each slide where the image appears. If you feel any errors have been made, please contact me at raschoolresources@gmail.com in the first instance to resolve any issues. My lessons are completed using PowerPoint and designed on widescreen formatting. Thank you.
This resource is for personal use only and for copyright reasons should not be copied/amended for commercial use.
This lesson specifically looks at tracking the treatement of Jews in Germany between 1933-39. Care has been taken not to go beyond this date as the exam specification states, but one of the documentary clips will touch upon post 1939.
This lesson includes:
Clear learning aims/targets
Provoking starter tasks and discussion activities
Printable worksheets
Engaging background information
Challenge tasks
Exam links
Learning Review
Fact Sheet linked to the GCSE specification
All images used in this lesson are in the public domain and are therefore copyright free at the time of publishing. Images which require attribution have been attributed in the notes section of each slide where the image appears. If you feel any errors have been made, please contact me at raschoolresources@gmail.com in the first instance to resolve any issues. My lessons are completed using PowerPoint and designed on widescreen formatting. Thank you.
This resource is for personal use only and for copyright reasons should not be copied/amended for commercial use.
This lesson has a particular focus on the treatment of minority groups other than the Jews who will be covered in more depth in lesson 27.
This lesson includes:
Clear learning aims/targets
Provoking starter tasks and discussion activities
Printable worksheets
Engaging background information
Challenge tasks
Exam links
Learning Review
Fact Sheet linked to the GCSE specification
All images used in this lesson are in the public domain and are therefore copyright free at the time of publishing. Images which require attribution have been attributed in the notes section of each slide where the image appears. If you feel any errors have been made, please contact me at raschoolresources@gmail.com in the first instance to resolve any issues. My lessons are completed using PowerPoint and designed on widescreen formatting. Thank you.
This resource is for personal use only and for copyright reasons should not be copied/amended for commercial use.
This lesson looks at the various methods used by the Nazis to reduce unemployment but also questions the usefulness of these statistics by taking into account the ‘hidden unemployed’.
This lesson includes:
Clear learning aims/targets
Provoking starter tasks and discussion activities
Printable worksheets
Engaging background information
Challenge tasks
Exam links
Learning Review
Fact Sheet linked to the GCSE specification
All images used in this lesson are in the public domain and are therefore copyright free at the time of publishing. Images which require attribution have been attributed in the notes section of each slide where the image appears. If you feel any errors have been made, please contact me at raschoolresources@gmail.com in the first instance to resolve any issues. My lessons are completed using PowerPoint and designed on widescreen formatting. Thank you.
This resource is for personal use only and for copyright reasons should not be copied/amended for commercial use.