This is an activity designed to help pupils understand how tension mounts in the story Beowulf. Focusing on the scene where Beowulf journeys through the lake to battle Grendel's Mother, pupils should discuss where each card should be placed on the diagram to show how tension is built and relieved by the storyteller.

Lesson 7. Picturing the Kingdom: What was Benin Kingdom art like? In this lesson, pupils will consider what its surviving artwork tells us about Benin Kingdom. They will develop their ability to analyse art work and they will learn the technical vocabulary associated with it. Then pupils will prepare and record their own podcasts about one peice of art from Benin Kingdom and have the opportunity to use what they have learned to create their own works of art. The PDF file contains the full lesson plan and a pupil activity sheet. For upper KS2.

Lesson 2. Settling Down: What was it like in settlements around the Yellow River Plain? This lesson invites pupils to consider the problems faced by people in early Shang settlements. Pupils will discover how Shang people overcame issues of flooding and irrigation problems and they will find out how Shang cities were organised, with an opportunity to design their own Shang city. This PDF file contains the full lesson plan and two pupil activity sheets. For upper KS2.

Lesson 8. Who was Fu Hao?: Why is Lady Fu Hao's tomb significant to historians? Pupils will investigate who Lady Fu Hao might have been by looking at some of the artefacts found in her tomb. They will learn about how people in Shang times were often buried with a tomb full of treasures to take with them to the afterlife. Pupils will engage imaginatively with a scenario about a slave being taken to the grave with his master and they will write a persuasive letter to escape such an unfortunate destiny. The PDF file contains the full lesson plan and a pupil activity sheet. For upper KS2.

Lesson 3. Coming out of its Shell: What did the people of Benin Kingdom believe? This lesson addresses how important storytelling was in Benin culture. Pupils will discover some of the mythologies of Benin Kingdom and will look in detail at its creation story - a fabulous tale involving a snail shell and a talking hornbill! They will take on the role of storyteller and find their own ways of retelling the creation story. The PDF file contains the full lesson plan and two pupil activity sheets. For Upper KS2.

Lesson 9. Benin Bronze Debate: What was left after Benin Kingdom was destroyed? In this lesson, pupils will evaluate the types of evidence left that tell us about Benin Kingom. Then they will research the looting of the Benin bronzes and will take part in a class debate to decide whether or not the bronzes should be returned to Nigeria. The PDF file contains the full lesson plan and two pupil activity sheets. For Upper KS2.

Celebrate Chinese New Year with this mini history project on the Shang Dynasty of Ancient China. This bundle includes lessons plans, pupil resources and teacher's guide. It is designed for KS2 and includes cross-curricular activities like cooking Shang recipes, investigating ancient tombs and designing oracle bones with ancient Chinese messages on. This nine-lesson unit covers the following questions: 1. What was the Shang Dynasty? 2. What was it like in settlements around the Yellow River Plain? 3. How did Shang farmers provide food for their society? 4. What were the religious beliefs of the Shang Dynasty? 5. What was the Shang system of writing like? 6. What did the rulers of the Shang Dynasty do? 7. What do archaeological findings tell us about the Shang Dynasty? 8. Why is Lady Fu Hao’s tomb significant to historians? 9. Why did the Shang Dynasty fall in 1046 BC?

Performing Classic Poetry Edward Lear - 2 week unit A two-week literacy unit of work for K/1stGrade, containing lesson plans and pupil resources, looking at some of Lear's most funny and imaginative poems. In this unit pupils will: - listen to classic poems by Edward Lear - investigate the sounds and language patterns of the poem - make a comic version of 'The Owl and the Pussycat' - identify rhyming words and patterns - make a new version of the poem 'The Jumblies' - prepare and give a performance to an audience The poems include 'The Owl and the Pussycat', 'Calico Pie' and 'The Jumblies'.

This is a simplified version of the story of Boudica. You can use this to read aloud or for pupils to use their comprehension skills to read for themselves.

Lesson 1. Introduction: What was the Shang Dynasty? This lesson introduces the Shang Dynasty and encourages pupils to generate research questions about their new topic. Pupils will make a factfile after researching key facts to set the Shang Dynasty into its wider context of world history. This PDF includes the full lesson plan and two pupil worksheets. For Upper KS2

Lesson 7. Piecing it Together: What do archaeological findings tell us about the Shang Dynasty? Pupils will become familiar with the different types of artefacts that help us to know about life in the Shang Dynasty. They will be introduced to the concept of making deductions from evidence and they will fill in a table to show what information different artefacts give us about the Shang period. The PDF file contains the full lesson plan and two pupil activity sheets. For upper KS2.

Lesson 2. The Makings of a Kingdom: How was the Kingdom of Benin first established? This lesson invites pupils to discover how the Kingdom of Benin was born when a group of rainforest villages joined together as a conglomerate. Pupils will learn about some of the ways that the early kingdom protected itself so well and will research the famous Benin moat. The PDF file contains the full lesson plan and two pupil activity sheets. For Upper KS2.

Lesson 8. Lasting Legacy : What happened to Benin Kingdom after the period AD 900-1300? In this lesson, Pupils will consider how the period AD 900-1300 fits into a bigger picture of Benin's history. They will find out how historians classify Benin's history into three main periods. Pupils will discover what happened when British troops destroyed Benin City in 1897 and will develop an argument to show whether or not the invasion was justified. The PDF file contains the full lesson plan and two pupil activity sheets. For Upper KS2.

A template for pupils to plan their own storyboard.

This activity invites pupils to learn about some of the ways that the early kingdom protected itself so well through the famous Benin moat. Pupils will use the worksheet to help to focus their research and then they can use it as a planning template for a report.

This PDF contains an account of the Benin Kingdom creation story.

In this activity pupils will reflect on how things changed in Benin Kingdom after the last Ogiso king was exiled from the kingdom and the second dynasty of Obas took charge. The worksheet provides a Venn diagram sorting activity.

This activity allows pupils to set the period of Benin Kingdom 900-1300 AD into the wider context of British and World History by making their own timelines. The PDF file contains two pupil activity sheets.

This worksheet helps pupils to learn the vocabulary associated with the early Kingdom of Benin, when a group of villages joined to become a conglomerate. Pupils can use this worksheet to prepare a picture glossary of useful historical terms.

This is a recount of how the last Ogiso king was exiled from the Kingdom of Benin and how the second dynasty of Obas took charge. The PDF file also contains a storyboard template for pupils to record their own version of the story.