Card Sort: Why did Henry VIII break with Rome?

This fun and engaging activity delves into the primary factors influencing Henry VIII’s break with Rome, offering students a comprehensive exploration through a card sort exercise and a critical thinking review triangle activity. It has been refined and field tested in the classroom for over 30 Years.

The resource “Card Sort - Henry VIII’s Problems” presents students with four key headings: power, religion, money, and personal, under which they can categorize the 14 accompanying cards, each representing different aspects of the historical context.

Following the card sorting activity, students are encouraged to participate in the review triangle exercise, ideally in pairs or groups. Each group selects a representative to share and justify their categorizations on the Interactive Whiteboard (IWB), fostering discussion and critical thinking.

The insights gained from both the card sort and review triangle activities can be leveraged alongside existing classroom materials to inspire students to craft essays or extended pieces of writing on the complex topic of Henry VIII’s separation from Rome, encouraging deeper reflection and analysis.

This multi-faceted approach not only enhances students’ understanding of history but also cultivates their analytical skills and ability to construct well-reasoned arguments based on historical evidence.