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.

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.

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.

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 Ancus was appointed and why, what Livy says about him in his History of Rome, and his religious, military and building reforms / projects. 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 contains various useful embedded video clips (hence the large file size) - the first ones recap Romulus, Numa and Tullus’ reforms as kings of Rome - since it is difficult to understand the significance of Ancus without looking at the actions of his predecessors. There is also a short entertaining video clip detailing the extent to which we can trust Livy as a source.

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 and reduces cognitive load. It tells the story of the trials and tribulations Rome’s new Consuls Brutus and Collatinus went through in trying to establish the new Republic in Rome after the exile of Superbus. The story and Livy / Dionysius are also analysed throughout, and this lesson sets up the next one on the origins of the Conflict of the Orders nicely. On each slide are pertinent questions posed to students that they can answer verbally or in writing and are great for AfL - summative and formative depending on how you want to use them. 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 challenges and details of the establishment of Rome’s new Republic that exists at the moment - it’s why I made it because there was hardly anything accessible out there for me and my students… Thanks for taking a look!

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 by recapping Gnaeus Genucius’ murder which gives Volero Publilius the platform he needs for his uprising and reforms - this story is then told and analysed throughout, allowing connections to be made to the broader Conflict of the Orders between Plebeians and Patricians that was going on during the early years of the Roman Republic. On each slide are pertinent questions posed to students that they can answer verbally or in writing and are great for AfL - there is also a 6 mark exam question at the end so that students can apply their knowledge in one of the more low stakes questions they will get on the paper. 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 Volero Publilius Uprising and his legislation that exists at the moment - it’s why I made it because there was hardly anything accessible out there for me and my students… Thanks for taking a look!

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 Priscus was appointed and why, what Livy says about him in his History of Rome, and his religious, military and building reforms / projects. 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 contains various useful embedded video clips (hence the large file size) - the first ones recap Romulus, Numa, Tullus and Ancus as kings of Rome - since it is difficult to understand the significance of Lucius Tarquinius Priscus without looking at the actions of his predecessors. There is also a short entertaining video clip detailing the extent to which we can trust Livy as a source - plus a more detailed one later on where students can add to their notes.

Any students trying to study the origins of Rome are met with the difficulty of marrying mythology and archaeology. The mythology of Aeneas and Romulus and Remus often takes precedent, leaving students without any contextual knowledge about what Italy was actually like at the time. This lesson helped my students address this issue. By teaching this lesson in between an ‘Aeneas’ and a ‘Romulus and Remus’ lesson, they could much more easily recall the key details of both stories - thanks to the contextual knowledge of Italy that this lesson provides. Students are introduced to all the different prominent cultures and peoples of Bronze Age Italy, including many like the Sabines and the Latins who Rome will come into conflict with shortly afterwards. this lesson provides a snapshot of Italy in 1000 BCE, which provides the handle students need to hang their subsequent learning about early Rome on. The lesson is dual coded to reduce cognitive load and videos are included (hence the large file size) at appropriate points to provide extra exposition.

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 Tullus was appointed and why, what Livy says about him in his History of Rome, and his descent into villainy throughout his reign, looking at his military achievements and religious incompetence too. 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 contains various useful embedded video clips (hence the large file size) - the first ones recap Romulus and Numa’s reforms as kings of Rome - since it is difficult to understand the significance of Tullus without looking at the actions of his predecessors. The final video clip details the extent to which we can trust Livy as a source.

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 and reduces cognitive load. It tells the story of the how the Plebeians and the Patricians argument with each other at the beginning of Rome’s new Republican era ended with the Plebs leaving the city for the second time - in addition to the role the Decemvirs played in all this. On each slide are pertinent questions posed to students that they can answer verbally or in writing and are great for AfL - summative and formative depending on how you want to use them. There’s a 15 mark exam question to finish off the lesson for those teaching the OCR Ancient History GCSE - including a passage from Livy and sentence starters. 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 Second Secession (Secessio Plebis) that exists at the moment - it’s why I made the lesson because there was hardly anything accessible out there for me and my students… There is also a summary video clip at the start to tell the story so far. Thanks for taking a look!

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 and reduces cognitive load. It tells the story of the how the Plebeians and the Patricians came to argue with each other at the beginning of Rome’s new Republican era. On each slide are pertinent questions posed to students that they can answer verbally or in writing and are great for AfL - summative and formative depending on how you want to use them. There’s a 6 mark exam question to finish off the lesson for those teaching the OCR Ancient History GCSE. 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 challenges and details of the origins of the Conflict of the Orders in Rome that exists at the moment - it’s why I made it because there was hardly anything accessible out there for me and my students… Thanks for taking a look!

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 and reduces cognitive load. It tells the story of the how the consuls Valerius and Horatius attempted to bring an end to the bickering between the Patricians and Plebeians that had characterised the Conflict of the Orders for such a large part of Rome’s early Republican period. On each slide are pertinent questions posed to students that they can answer verbally or in writing and are great for AfL - summative and formative depending on how you want to use them. There’s a10 and 15 mark exam question to finish off the lesson for those teaching the OCR Ancient History GCSE - including a passage from Livy. 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 this time period in Rome’s history that exists at the moment - it’s why I made the lesson because there was hardly anything accessible out there for me and my students… Thanks for taking a look!

This resource spans two lessons and is designed to give students the understanding they need to answer a 'Who do you admire more...' 8 mark exam question at the end of it (Student friendly mark scheme and guidance provided) for the new OCR Classical Civilisation GCSE. Students are introduced to 'ethical dilemmas' and encouraged to define what 'philosophy' is. They are then introduced to Socrates, Plato and Aristotle through fact files and use this information to answer their exam question, using sources (included) as a starting point. The final video can be found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CyIKayNXTPY&t=148s

This lesson is designed with the new OCR Ancient History GCSE in mind. The lesson starter involves a memory drawing game that is meant to draw out the theme of exile (a Q&A can then ensue regarding Lucretia and the circumstances of Tarquin’s exile form Rome). A quote from Livy is then included with students encouraged to reflect on what it tells us about Brutus’ character (and how he was motivated -challenge). There is then a missing words exercise (one expected, one challenge) which introduces students to the story of how Superbus went about trying to keep hold of his property once exiled. Two 6 mark exam questions are included (with help on structure and content) which take 6 minutes each as per the ‘mark a minute’ nature of the GCSE exam. One is based on a passage from Livy that students are encouraged to summarise into 5 parts before they beign their answer. There are a number of handouts included within the .ppt file as slides which are located in the place within the lesson they need to be used and can be easily printed out from here and given to students. It is also clearly signposted within the lesson slides when each handout needs to be used and how. The lesson ends with a series of abstract images, with students having to link the images to what they have learnt in the lesson.

There are two lessons included within this bundle. The first is a lesson examining the story of the contest between Athena and Poseidon for the Patronage of the city of Athens. This includes, among other activities, a storyboard activity which allows students to be creative in exhibiting what they have learnt. The second is a detailed look at how the story is represented in art; on the Eastern pediment of the Parthenon and in a Roman visual interpretation of the story. Students can be very much encouraged to compare and contrast the two interpretations of the story in art as a challenge task, with a view to looking at which is the more accurate according to the myth. There are a number of worksheets contained within the .ppt file which are located as slides in the appropriate place that they be used in the lesson. These can be printed straight from Power Point itself. Links to videos which help to consolidate students learning are also included.

This lesson is designed with the new 9-1 GCSE Ancient History Spec in mind. It seeks to give students a clear understanding of the chronology of how Tarquinius Superbus tried to reconquer Rome after his family’s expulsion in 509 BC. The lesson focuses on three battles: The Battle of Silvia Arsia Lars Porsena’s invasion of Rome The Battle of Lake Regilius The lesson is also designed to make it clear who is fighting on which side in which battle (as this can be a little unclear) and key individuals have their own dedicated part of the lesson. maps of the area are also included so students can get a visual understanding of what happened and where. Storyboard tasks are mixed with exam questions to ensure students can prove their understanding of each battle. Students then finish with a discussion of which battle was the most significant and why. This powerpoint will probably span approximately 2+ hours depending upon the speed you work through it.

This lesson is designed to be a succinct and clear lesson that provides enough detail for the Ancient History OCR 9-1 GCSE Foundations of Rome Unit. Including the exam question at the AfL questions - this lesson would ideally run over two hours. It goes through how Tarquinius Superbus became king and why, what Livy says about him in his History of Rome, and his various disastrous political tyranny and cronyism. There is also a clear and detailed explanation of Tarquin’s exile and his family tree - complicated issues but made as simple as possible here and easy for all students to access. 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 contains various useful embedded video clips (hence the larger file size) - a short entertaining video clip detailing the extent to which we can trust Livy as a source and one summarising Tarquin’s reign. There is also a 10 mark OCR exam question at the end with a variety of model answers which students can analyse before attempting their own with the help of sentence starters.

This booklet is written in such a way that it can act as a teacher’s guide to the main events during the reigns of each king of Rome, or as a student guide. My students found it super useful because it brings what they have learnt about the kings together into an easy to understand, clear narrative. This is really useful for students to read both before and after they have studied each king individually, as it helps provide context for more detailed work and a useful summary to help embed learning. As a firm believer that story telling can aid knowledge retention, I created this for my students so that even the weakest can have a mental picture of all seven kings and their successes and failures. This document was created with OCR Ancient History 9-1 GCSE in mind (Foundations of Rome) but equally could be used by anyone needing a concise and engaging summary of the Roman Regal Period from Romulus through to Tarquinius Superbus.

These Graphic Organisers are ideal for Ancient History 9-1 GCSE. Quality resources for the GCSE seem scarce and this is me trying to rectify that a bit. My students really appreciate these. The organisers give enough ‘knowledge’ or ‘information’ for students to get a good grade at GCSE - a 4/5/6 depending on how much information they can retain. We print these out A5 size and stick them in the middle of our books and as I am teaching students will annotate these sheets according to how much extra information they need to get above a 4/5/6. The visuals are a huge help and icons and schemas are repeated as and when appropriate across the organisers which makes pupils feel secure and build a mental image of all the content - something I had found challenging to help them create before using these. The GOs really help tell the ‘story’ of Cambyses’ reign as king of Persia Topics included: Early Cambyses and Succession Background to Cambyses’ invasion of Egypt Cambyses conquest of Egypt Cambyses positives as ruler of Egypt Cambyses’ negatives and 'madness as ruler of Egypt Cambyses’ military failures after conquering Egypt (Carthage, Ammonia, Ethiopia) Smerdis’ the usurper and death of Cambyses

These Graphic Organisers are ideal for Ancient History 9-1 GCSE. Quality resources for the GCSE seem scarce and this is me trying to rectify that a bit. My students really appreciate these. The organisers give enough ‘knowledge’ or ‘information’ for students to get a good grade at GCSE - a 4/5/6 depending on how much information they can retain. We print these out A5 size and stick them in the middle of our books and as I am teaching students will annotate these sheets according to how much extra information they need to get above a 4/5/6. The visuals are a huge help and icons and schemas are repeated as and when appropriate across the organisers which makes pupils feel secure and build a mental image of all the content - something I had found challenging to help them create before using these. The GOs really help tell the ‘story’ of Cyrus the Great’s reign Topics included: Cyrus’ birth and early life Cyrus’ conquest of Astyages and the Medes / Media Cyrus’ conquest of Croesus and the Lydians / Lydia Cyrus’ conquest of Nabonidus and the Babylonians / Babylon The importance of the Nabonidus Chronicle, Cyrus Cylinder and Herodotus as sources The foundation of Cyrus’ city at Pasargadae Cyrus’ death at the hands of Queen Tomyris and the Massegatae