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How significant and how accurate is Herodotus?
This lesson is designed as a stand alone lesson for students of any age 13+ who studies Herodotus. It acts as a great introduction, covering who he was, what he was writing and why he was writing it.
The lesson begins with a series of images asking students to try and work out what the lesson will be about. In order to demonstrate progress the same images are used at the end in a plenary where students are encouraged to show how each image links to their learning.
The lesson proper begins with a discussion of what ‘accuracy’ means based on students coming up with their own synonyms.
Students are then introduced to who Herodotus was through a handout (included as a slide within the .ppt file) which has a literacy focus and some challenge questions attached.
A short passage from Herodotus’ History is then included with students being encouraged to draw inferences from the passage (with prompt questions down the side to promote discussion). Students then address issues such as ‘how could Herodotus possibly know this happened’? etc.
There is another handout (included as a slide) explaining the degree to which Herodotus is accurate and students plot Herodotus’ accuracy on a target (based on their own opinion, formulated throughout the lesson).
A link to the TEDed video discussing Herodotus is also included with encouragement for students to add to their notes and then finally (before the plenary) there is a task where students have to agree or disagree with a ‘verdict’ given by a Historian on Herodotus’ accuracy/reliability.
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Who were the Achaemenid (Persian) Kings?
And how well did each one rule the Persian Empire?
This lesson has been designed as an ‘opening’ or ‘overview’ lesson for OCR Ancient History GCSE students, embarking on their study of the Persian Empire/ Achaemenid kings (Cyrus, Cambyses, Darius and Xerxes).
It has also been used however as a stand alone lesson, for example as a lesson in a thematic unit on different empires throughout history.
The starter introduces students to the geography of the Persian Empire in relation to Europe and the rest of the world - giving students some context.
The main bulk of the lesson is based around an activity involving four A5 cards. Each A5 card has details about each king. Students identify positives and negatives of each king from the cards and then evaluate the relative success of each one in relation to the others. The information cars are included as slides within the PowerPoint, ready to be printed.
Students are then advised how to apply the knowledge they have gained to the June 2019 summer exam essay question through the use of visuals, followed by an effective plenary involving students judging their own progress (with your support) using ‘post-it’ notes.
This lesson is designed to last an hour, unless you elect for students to attempt the exam question, in which case it will run to nearer two.
The resources are very accessible are designed with the research behind ‘dual-coding’ in mind. The resources do not shy away from some ambitious vocabulary though and teachers may find spending some lesson time unpicking some of this vocabulary useful.
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How did Volero Publilius become Tribune of the Plebs and what reforms did he enact in 471 BC?
This lesson is designed with OCR Ancient History 9-1 GCSE spec in mind. Although it fits snugly into any study of the Roman Republic and plays a pivotal role in the ‘Conflict of the Orders’; the struggle between the Patricians and the Plebeians in Ancient Rome as the plebs struggled to secure more rights, freedoms and controls from their Patrician counterparts.
The lesson begins by studying a cartoon and trying to draw inferences about the story from it, after briefly looking at lictors and their job (since lictors play as big role in the first part of the story of Publilius’ ascencion to tribune of the Plebs). There is then a ‘gap fill’ exercise sheet to be printed off aimed at nailing key vocabulary.
Brief audio files (edited and adapted from the free Ancient Rome Podcast The Partial Historians are included along with relevant questions for students to answer based on these audio clips (each roughly 5 minutes in length).
It is important to note that the podcast is free and is available to download at https://partialhistorians.com/category/podcast/from-the-founding-of-the-city/
But the audio files are included for ease of use and obviously no copywright infringement is intended. I have found these podcasts really enjoyable and an invaluable resource as a teacher of this unit given the lack of available CPD and cannot recommend them highly enough :) I have also tried to point my students in their direction as a revision resource.
There is then a brief discussion about the reliability of Dionysius and Livy’s accounts of Volero Publilius’ reforms and then a comprehension sheet which can be printed off (included within the relevant point in the lesson) which has a 6 mark exam question as a challenge at the end.
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Aeneas: Why was he so important to the Romans & their identity?
This lesson seeks to explain, despite the existence of the Romulus and Remus Foundation Myth, that Aeneas remains an important figure for Romans in terms of the founding of their city. (It does also at the end explain how Romans got from Aeneas to Romulus story-wise!)
There are 3 short storyboard tasks, already filled with text (included as slides ready to print within the PowerPoint) which students need only draw quick images for. These are presented at 3 different points in the lesson in order to quickly get across the main parts of Aeneas’ story after his escape from Troy.
I have really only tried to include events which directly pertain to or foreshadow the founding of Rome - it was impossible to include everything!
In between these, scholarship is used in an accessible way (including one comprehension with a glossary for difficult to understand terms) to draw out the importance of Aeneas to the Romans, but also what his actions tell us about how the Romans saw themselves and their new emperor Augustus (Virgil was writing at the time of the new Imperial Age).
This lesson is designed to be engaging and academic in its approach, with appropriate support and challenge throughout to support all learners, but also to ‘teach to the top’ wherever possible.
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Sicinius and the First Secession of the Plebs - Conflict of the Orders
This lesson is part of a scheme of lessons I created to try and fill a gap in the OCR Ancient History GCSE available resources. I felt like this is quite a complex era in Roman history and the resources that exist are complicated too - leading to cognitive overload for many of my students.
This lesson is completely dual coded and my students loved it because it is clear and succinct. it starts with a couple of video clips recapping Sicinius’ reasons for calling for the First Plebeian Secession (Secessio Plebis) and it then tells the story of the Secession itself - followed by a debate surrounding whether it actually achieved anything meaningful.
Throughout there are pertinent questions posed to students on screen that they can answer verbally or in written form and are great for AfL - there is also a 15 mark exam question at the end (based on a passage from Livy that is included) with sentence starters and a suggested plan, looking at how the relationship between the Patricians and Plebeians had changed between the exile of Superbus and the First Secession - analysing the second order concept of Change and Continuity which is one of the key second order concepts that 15 mark questions look to address in the exam.
Even if you aren’t teaching the OCR AH GCSE, I’d argue this is probably the clearest and easiest to understand overview of the First Secession that exists at the moment - it’s why I made it because there was hardly anything accessible out there for me and my students…
There are also embedded video clips (hence the large file size) outlining the patron-client relationship in Rome, the origins of the Conflict of the Orders and a summary of the Plebeian Secession.
Thanks for taking a look!
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Rome 's Wars of Independence: Silvia Arsia, Lars Porsena & Lake Regilius
This lesson is part of a scheme of lessons I created to try and fill a gap in the OCR Ancient History GCSE available resources. I felt like this is quite a complex era in Roman history and the resources that exist are complicated too - leading to cognitive overload for many of my students.
This lesson is completely dual coded and my students loved it because it is clear and succinct. it starts with a couple of video clips recapping Superbus’ reasons for being exiled and it then tells the following three ‘stories’ that Livy outlines in his History of Rome:
The Battle of Silvia Arsia - where Rome’s exiled king Tarquinius Superbus teams up with members of the Latin League to try and regain Rome.
Lars Porsena’s siege of Rome - where Superbus persuades a powerful neighbouring king to try and get him back into power in Rome.
The Battle of Lake Regilius - Superbus’ last hurrah and ultimate failure to regain the Roman throne.
Throughout there are pertinent questions posed to students on screen that they can answer verbally or in written form and are great for AfL - there is also a 10 mark exam question at the end (with sentence starters) on the battle of Lake Regilius (with an accompanying passage from Livy to refer to) so students can apply their learning and hone their exam skills.
Thanks for taking a look!
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Who was Aeneas and why was he important to the Romans?
This lesson provided the perfect link for my GCSE pupils between the Trojan War and the founding of Rome.
It’s all dual-coded to ensure cognitive load isn’t an issue and this way of presenting information really helped the story to stick in the minds of my classes.
The slides take you through Aeneas’ escape from Troy and introduces students to the Aeneid by Virgil in quite a light way. The fact that it was commissioned by the emperor Augustus is also discussed.
Two useful and entertaining videos are embedded seamlessly within the PowerPoint which helps add colour to the slides and your other exposition.
The final task involves students creating images on 3 storyboards (all the writing is already there) which just tells the story of Aeneas’ journey to Italy, and why he many consider him the first Roman, in an interesting and very accessible way.
If you’re looking for a lesson that just tells students straight up how Aeneas got to Italy and why he is important to the Romans then this is perfect.
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Who were Romulus and Remus? What's their story?
This lesson tells what can be a relatively confusing story in a clear, step by step way. It’s dual coded to reduce cognitive load and take students through all the key details from who Ascanius was and why Romulus and Remus were outcast to the differing accounts of Remus’ death.
Short video clips are also included at appropriate places within the powerpoint (hence the large file size) which help to break up the ‘teacher talk’ and add colour to the story.
The final tasks involve storyboard creation and student explanation. My classes were big fans of the simplicity of the presentation and the clarity of the story - it really helped them retain all the information. There are a few quick quizzes included which are great for AFL.
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What impact did Numa have as king of Rome?
This lesson is designed to be a succinct and clear 1 hour lesson that provides enough detail for the Ancient History OCR 9-1 GCSE Foundations of Rome Unit.
It goes through how Numa was appointed and why, through his parallels with the Emperor Augustus in Livy’s History of Rome, and his extensive religious and political reforms.
The lesson is punctuated by pertinent questions which students can either verbally respond to or write out short explanations. these help to embed the knowledge and I’ve found them pretty useful for AfL.
My students liked these kind of lessons because they’re completely dual coded and as a result it massively reduces cognitive load, allowing pupils to easily access what is otherwise quite complex information.
The lesson is bookended by two embedded video clips (hence the large file size) - the first one details Romulus’ reforms as king of Rome - since it is difficult to understand the significance of Numa without looking at the actions of his predecessor. The final video clip goes into more detail about various acts Numa undertook in pursuit of making Rome a more pious society.
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What were the key features of a Greek Theatre?
This lesson is designed to be delivered in an hour and includes a range of handouts and video clips (hence the larger file size) included as slides within the PowerPoint.
Students are introduced to the key features a Greek Theatre and the role they played in Greek society and religion.
It is clear and concise and throughout there are numerous comprehensions and other opportunities to engage the students and embed their learning.
This lesson was ideal in our introduction to GCSE Classical Civilsation unit we did at the end of KS3 / beginning of KS4 as students are starting to discover the Classical World - it helps give them an excellent sense of period.
Thanks for taking a look :-)
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Nessus & The Death of Hercules
This lesson was designed for my GCSE Classical Civilisation class for their Myth & Religion Unit.
It’s fully dual coded to reduce cognitive load, increase engagement and aid knowledge retention. There are two handouts included as hidden slides for printing and each slide has a coloured overlay to help pupils with dyslexia / Irlen’s - which can be removed if you don’t need or want it.
The lesson picks up from where the last one (Hercules’ fight with Achelous) left off. It tells the story through Ovid of how Hercules came to meet Nessus on his way back to Tiryns with Deianira.
Students are then presented with a short passage from Ovid which they stick in their book, highlight and answer questions on (verbally or written - depending on how you want to run the lesson).
This is important as Nessus gives Deianira the cloak that will eventually kill Hercules - as is told in the next part of the lesson. Students are again presented with a (longer) passage from Ovid’s Metamorphoses which describes the lead up to Hercules’ death, and the death itself, in great detail.
Students are to highlight key information on their copy and use it to answer some written questions that gradually increase in the level of challenge posed - in order to stretch their thinking and allowing them to demonstrate the full extent of their understanding.
Finally, students are asked whether this is a fitting end to a hero such as Hercules, and what his death says about the relationships between the Olympian gods themselves.
Thanks for taking a look - it’s a really straightforward lesson which will fit into an hour if the first comprehension is done verbally, or can be stretched over two hours if the first comprehension is written (like the second) and you include the optional plenary at the end involving an obituary for Hercules :)
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Were the Plebeians better or worse off after the expulsion of the kings in the new Republic?
The lesson begins with a reminder of why the Plebeians had been unhappy under Tarquinius Superbus and should have had a lot to look forward to under the new Republican regime.
There is then a handout included within the .ppt file (as a slide to be printed out) defining the Plebeians and describing their daily lives, occupations and concerns. There are some literacy and comprehension based questions that go with this that students are to answer (along with a challenge question to stretch the more able).
Students are then presented, in turn, with the 6 concerns of the Plebeian class under the new Republican regime and reasons for this dissatisfaction. Students then fill in a table (included) with details of the concern and why each one caused such resentment towards the patrician class.
There is then discussion surrounding just how politically aware the plebeian class would have been in the 5th c. BC with trade links with Athens providing us with the scant evidence for this.
There is then finally an SMSC plenary looking at questions surrounding what people can do when they are oppressed and how ‘people’ can change/ have changed their societies for the better. Students are then encouraged to link this to the Roman Plebeians in a discussion.
This lesson acts as a ‘scene-setter’ for the ‘Conflict of the Orders’ and the resulting publishing of the Twelve Tables and other reforms the plebeians managed to secure from the patricians.
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How did the consulship develop during the early Republic?
This lesson has been designed with the OCR GCSE Ancient History course ( ‘Rome and its neighbours’) Period study in mind.
The lesson begins with a drawing game where two consuls and a lictor are depicted and students are invited to infer this.
Students are then presented with an image of Scipio Barbatus’ sarcophagus and invited to make inferences. Its importance in terms of it being the earliest archaeological record of a ‘consul’ is then discussed.
This leads on to the ‘problem’ of the consulship in terms of when Romans say it developed vs what evidence we have for when it developed.
Mary Beard’s take on the situation from SPQR is then included (slightly adapted for easier understanding) and this is finally followed by a handout on the main political offices of the early Republic with accompanying information. There are then some comprehension questions based on this handout for students to answer.
The lesson finishes with students asked to match an image to their learning and the teacher can draw out explanations through these in order to check the progress of students.
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How did the Senate develop during the early Republic?
This lesson is aimed at getting students to understand the difference between the Roman Senate of the Regal Period and the Senate of the Republican Era.
Historical evidence is sketchy at best and students are made aware of this during the lesson. Students who are familiar with studying this period in Roman History (in GCSE Ancient History for example) will already be aware of the lack of evidence and also its unreliability.
Students are introduced to Cesare Maccari’s ‘Cicero denouces Catiline’ fresco and are asked to make inferences about the Roman Senate from it. This establishes the stock view of the Roman Senate that most people are familiar with. It gives students an anchor point from which to begin learning about how the senate was different earlier in Rome’s history.
There are then two handouts (both included as slides in the .ppt file at the relevant points) for printing out. Literacy and Comprehension questions follow based on these handouts. Students are then encouraged to summarise the difference between the senate under the Roman kings and the senate under the new Republic using this information.
The lesson ends with exploratory questions surrounding the extent of the Senate’s power.
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What signs of 'greatness' were there in Alexander's early life?
This lesson gives an introduction to Alexander the Great, his background and early life.
It begins with a map of his empire to give students an idea of the scale of his later conquest and leads with a comprehension on the story of his taming of Bucephalus according to Plutarch (adapted so secondary students can understand it).
It is then useful to show the scene from Alexander (2004) a link to which is attached and compare the interpretations of the event.
Another scene from Alexander the Great (1956) is linked to and a discussion and explanation of the influence of Aristotle on his life can then ensue.
Students are then introduced to his character at the beginning of his campaign (Plutarch again!) with the idea being that they need to understand that he was literate and intelligent. Students leave with an understanding that, like his hero Achilles, he died young.
A 'challenge' article on his life from the Telegraph (adapted) is also included.
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What do we know about the early life of Queen Cleopatra VII of Egypt?
This lesson was designed for GCSE students as an introduction to Cleopatra and the likely features of her early life/ childhood.
The lesson covers both her likely experiences but also the reasons for the lack of evidence available to us when examining her formative years. Scholarship from Weigall and Tydesley is included in various places with students asked to make inferences about her earliest experiences from the text.
Challenge questions are included throughout to encourage deeper thinking and both worksheets are included as slides within the .ppt file in the appropriate places ready to be printed out. All instructions are clear to both students and staff and it is a very straightforward, yet informative, lesson to teach.
A progress check activity in the middle of the lesson is included and the plenary at the end is more creative/cross-curricular in its focus.
There are multiple opportunities throughout for students to consider how her earliest experiences may have shaped her future actions as queen, without necessary prior knowledge of the events of her reign required.
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How did the Romans feel about 'foreigners'?
This lesson uses a range of primary and secondary sources to examine how Romans really felt about foreigners.
The lesson starts with a look at definitions of ‘foreigner’ to us today vs what ‘foreign’ meant to the Romans and discussion can ensue about potential reasons behind this difference.
Students are then provided with a worksheet (as a slide in the .ppt file ready to be printed out) where students examine evidence from the following sources:
Juvenal
Livy
Watts (secondary)
Cicero
Tacitus
Athenaeus
Ulpian
Beard (secondary)
Students have to infer from passages of the authors’ own writing (all included) what the Romans believed about foreigners living in their city, but also examine Romans’ own identity as ‘foreigners’ themselves from the beginning of the city’s foundation.
The progress check invites students to define Roman attitudes to ‘the other’ halfway through the lesson, but then revisit this answer at the end to see if their views have changed (they should be more nuanced by the end of the lesson).
There are a series of questions at the end of the lesson designed to allow students to exhibit their understanding. HA students are challenged by being asked to consider how Romans perceived foreign rulers, using Cleopatra as an example.
An SMSC plenary centring around whether the Romans are that much different than modern society (in terms of distrust of foreigners) using Brexit and Immigration controls as a parallel, rounds off the lesson.
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Why did Alexander set fire to Persepolis?
This lesson was designed with the OCR Ancient History 9-1 GCSE spec in mind.
The starter of the lesson offers 5 interpretations of Alexander’s motives for invading Persia, and 5 different characters. Students have to match the interpretation to the character. The point of this exercise is for students to realise there are a wealth of interpretations for Alexander’s motives at every stage of his journey.
The focus then turns to our sources. A passage from Plutarch is presented and students are directed to annotate it while discussing it’s implications.
Similarly, A passage from Arrian is then presented where students do the same.
Both passages, when compared to each other, show different motives for Alexander setting fire to Persepolis, based on their own bias/sources/moral point of view.
A discussion of that these implications then ensues, followed by a directed 20 mark exam question complete with sentence starters.
A model conclusion is then included to allow students to a) see before they begin answering to know what direction in which to take their essay, and b) to use to improve their own answers/conclusions in self-assessment.
The final plenary centres around the fact that Diodorus remains mostly silent on what, to the other authors at least, seems a turning point in Alexander’s Persian campaign.
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The Roman Regal period: How much can we really know?
This lesson has been created with the OCR Ancient History GCSE 9-1 spec in mind, but provides suitable challenge for any A Level students needing to confront the reliability of Livy and Dionysius of Halicarnassus as historical sources.
The lesson really tries to use scholarship in an accessible way. Summaries of journal articles are given to students initially in bite-sized formats. Students are questioned on these before completing some straightfoward comprehension questions to solidify their learning (on a sheet included as a slide within the .pptx file).
Students are then presented with summarised information sourced from another journal and academic book which looks at Dionysius’ and Livy’s motives for writing and key learning is then available for note-taking.
Students are then given a print out of an empty table where they fill in information about the two authors as the teacher goes through the information on the screen, with students having to guess whether the information belongs in their Livy table or their Dionysius table (teacher led - it’s made obvious on the screen at each point!). Students can then check their tables against a completed one on the screen at the end.
The plenary task asks students to come to a decision on who they believe is the most reliable author when it comes to learning about Rome’s earliest history, given all the limitations, biases and the political context constraining each author.
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Romulus and Tullus Hostlius: How do their kingships compare?
I have created this lesson due to the lack of resources available to secondary teachers above and beyond the standard trope of "Romulus was celebrated because he founded Rome and established the city among its neighbours’ and Tullus Hostilius was a bad king because he focused far too much on war and neglected religion’ This view is expounded by nearly all freely available information on the Roman kings online and in secondary text books.
This has arguably come about because Livy is the ‘go-to’ source for a history of the Roman regal period. This is fine but often other resources take his moral stances and opinions as fact. It is well known in academia (as the lesson points out using scholarship in an accessible way) that Livy uses the first four Roman kings as a vehicle for his messages regarding proper decorum from Rome’s public officials. He claims there are lessons to be learnt from History and shapes his narrative to do this.
This lesson therefore seeks to dig into the similarities between Romulus and Tullus, both war-like and easily compared, and to challenge the notion that Tullus’ kingship should be seen in the negative light in which school-level resources tend to (all too easily) paint him. It introduces the opinions of Dionysius of Halicarnassus and of Cicero in order to draw out the nuance in the ways Romans themselves interpreted Tullus’ reign in light of Romulus’ achievements.
There is suitable challenge in this lesson as you might imagine but I have also been careful to provide plenty of support in the way of glossaries of key terms and key questions teachers should be posing at each point within the lesson.