I am a History Teacher with a love for producing high quality and easily accessible history lessons, which I have accumulated and adapted for over 20 years of my teaching career. I appreciate just how time consuming teaching now is and the difficulty of constantly producing resources for an ever changing curriculum.
I am a History Teacher with a love for producing high quality and easily accessible history lessons, which I have accumulated and adapted for over 20 years of my teaching career. I appreciate just how time consuming teaching now is and the difficulty of constantly producing resources for an ever changing curriculum.
AQA GCE A Level Democracy and Nazism: Germany 1918-45
I have produced this bundle of resources on the Nazi racial state and the impact of war 1933-45 to help A Level students gain a deeper understanding of Germany’s changing policies during the war years.
The enquiry question throughout these lessons will be evaluate the reasons why the Nazis committed mass murder and assess the impact of total war on Germany.
Students will learn about the development of anti-Semitic policies and the radicalisation of the state with its social Darwinism and race theories.
They will study how the events of the Anschluss, Kristallnacht and the invasion of Poland sparked a sea change in how the Nazi regime reacted towards undesirables as well as Jewish people.
Students will evaluate the effectiveness of propaganda in maintaining morale during the war years and the changing impact of war on German society such as the appointment of Albert Speer and the mobilisation of the German economy for armaments production.
They will also assess how effective opposition was to the Nazi regime and how different groups resisted the totalitarian state.
Finally students will analyse the origins of the ‘Final Solution’, the key figures involved and the role of the Einsatzgruppen and extermination camps in Poland. They will also decide who should take responsibility for the holocaust and why.
The lessons are as follows:
L1 Radicalising the State
L2 Undesirables
L3 Nazi policies towards the Jewish people, 1933-37
L4 Nazi policies towards the Jewish people, 1938-40
L5 Nazi policies towards the Jewish people, 1940-41
L6 Impact of war (free resource)
L7 Speer and the war economy
L8 The changing impact of war on German society
L9 Opposition
L10 The final solution
The lessons include the two types of exam question used, with examples of how to tackle them, using model answers, helpful hints and tips, structuring and scaffolding as well as markschemes. However, please refer to the AQA website for further assessment materials as they are subject to copyright.
The lessons are also differentiated and fully resourced and allow students to reach the very top marks.
If you have any questions about the lessons, please email me via my TES shop, or any other information about the course.
I would also welcome any reviews, which would be gratefully appreciated.
This bundle follows the Key Stage 3 National Curriculum - challenges for Britain, Europe and the wider world 1901 to the present day with a focus on the Second World War and the wartime leadership of Winston Churchill.
The aims of this bundle are to know and understand how people’s lives in Britain were affected by World War 2 under the guidance of Winston Churchill.
I have created, readapted and used these lessons to challenge and engage students, but also to show how much fun learning about this part of history really is.
Students will learn and understand key historical skills throughout such as continuity and change in the role and use of propaganda in World War II, the causes and consequences of the policy of appeasement, breaking the Enigma Code or the evacuation of children, the similarities and differences of life on the Home Front, the significance of Winston Churchill and interpretations about whether there really was a Blitz spirit.
The lessons are as follows:
L1 Adolf Hitler
L2 Causes of World War II
L3 Appeasement
L4 Winston Churchill
L5 The Home Front - preparations
L6 The Home Front - propaganda
L7 The Home Front - rationing
L8 The Home Front - women (free lesson)
L9 Evacuation of children
L10 The Blitz
L11 The Enigma Code
L12 Prisoners of war (free lesson)
L13 Occupation of the Channel Islands
This bundle includes retrieval practice activities, suggested teaching strategies and differentiated materials.
All lessons come in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.
I have also included two free lessons in the bundle to give an idea of what is being offered.
I would also strongly recommend you assess students on this unit of study based on GCSE style questions from your chosen exam board.
With the National Curriculum in mind, I have created a set of resources which focus on the study of an aspect or theme in British history that consolidates and extends pupils’ chronological knowledge from before 1066.
This bundle includes significant events such as the abolition of Capital Punishment in Britain after the high profile cases of Derek Bentley and Ruth Ellis.
It makes connections between crime and punishment through the ages such as between Roman and Modern periods.
Students will be introduced to key concepts of change and continuity between Anglo-Saxon and Norman Crime and Punishment as well as the causes and consequences of the Christian Church and its influence on punishments.
Students will analyse sources in the Stuart period and analyse different interpretations of terrorism through the ages.
They will be able to use historical terms and concepts in more sophisticated ways such as retribution and rehabilitation.
Finally they will be able to provide structured responses and substantiated arguments, giving written evidence and context to their extended writing.
The 11 lessons are broken down into the following:
An introduction to Crime and Punishment
Roman Crime and Punishment
Anglo-Saxon Crime and Punishment
Norman Crime and Punishment
Tudor and Stuart Crime and Punishment
Crime and Punishment in the 18 and 19th Century
The Whitechapel Murders
Modern Crimes
Modern Punishments
The case of Derek Bentley
The case of Ruth Ellis
Each lesson comes with suggested teaching and learning strategies, retrieval practice activities and are linked to the latest historical interpretations, video clips and debate.
The lessons come in PowerPoint format and can be adapted and changed to suit.
These lessons are ideal as a way of introducing Crime and Punishment if you are teaching it at GCSE or if you wish to add an interesting unit of work to engage and challenge the students to encourage them to take History further in their studies.
The Norman Conquest
This lesson explores the role of monks and nuns in Medieval society and questions their importance.
Students learn how people joined the monastic community and how they helped the local community.
Students also analyse their dress code and the reasons behind it, before engaging in literacy tasks such as linking their daily life to particularly headings and writing a narrative account.
There are accompanying worksheets and video links to reinforce the learning.
The plenary of ‘find and fix’ challenges the students to rewrite and correct a number of statements made.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited at the end using a rate ‘o’ meter to show the progress of learning.
The resource is differentiated and gives suggested teaching strategies.
It comes in PowerPoint format which can be amended and changed to suit.
Norman Conquest
The aim of this lesson is to challenge and question the role of the Church in Medieval Society.
On face value, the power it had over people was enormous and with power came great wealth, often at the expense and help of the population.
But was it all corrupt and how much did people willingly give over their goods in return for salvation? These questions are explored through statistics, facts and video evidence.
Students are ultimately required to justify if the Church was corrupt by colour coding and rating batteries (linked to a final post it note challenge) and evidencing their choices.
There are also introduced to a number of key words which they are required to recall in the plenary.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited at the end using a rate ‘o’ meter to show the progress of learning.
The resource is differentiated and gives suggested teaching strategies.
It comes in PowerPoint format which can be amended and changed to suit.
The Tudors
This is the second in a series of lessons I have created on the Tudors, which is an introduction.
The key skill of chronology is introduced from the start as students decide which Tudor came first to which came last.
Key questions floating past the screen as well as the wall of mystery give clues and answers to some interesting and gruesome facts on the Tudor family.
Students have the chance to create their own timelines, factual displays, key question and answer quizzes or an A-Z of Tudor facts.
The lesson finishes which two plenaries to choose from which both test their new found knowledge.
The resource comes in Powerpoint formats if there is a wish to adapt and change. I have also included suggested teaching strategies and differentiated resources to deliver the lesson.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited to show the progress of learning.
AQA GCSE 9-1 Elizabethan England, 1568-1603
The overarching aim of this and the subsequent bundle of lessons is to question and explore how Elizabeth tried to assert and establish her authority in the early years of her reign.
The lessons are therefore linked together to build up a picture of her difficulties in trying to overcome this.
I devised this lesson not long into teaching my Year 11 groups about Elizabeth, as they soon became confused with all the advisors, favourites and ‘Roberts’ in her life.
This lesson attempts to clarify and simplify the role of these men and why she needed them.
This is an independent research task as the students find out key information and record it on a grid. The ‘significance’ question in the exam is also addressed as they evaluate their importance to Elizabeth.
The plenaries at the end of the lesson include canalysing a video clip as well as testing their knowledge and challenging their thinking skills.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited to show the progress of learning.
The resource includes suggested teaching strategies, differentiated materials and comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.
AQA GCSE 9-1 Elizabethan England, 1568-1603
The overarching aim of this and the subsequent bundle of eleven lessons is to question and explore how Elizabeth tried to assert and establish her authority in the early years of her reign.
The eleven lessons are therefore linked together to build up a picture of her difficulties in trying to overcome this.
This lesson aims to explain how Elizabeth approached the sensitive subject of religion in a calm and pragmatic fashion.
The first part of the lesson concentrates on the differences between Protestants and Catholics and why Elizabeth should take a different perspective on religion compared to her predecessors.
The second part of the lesson describes and explains the Elizabethan Settlement using a text mapping activity before students answer a GCSE question on the significance of the Settlement in the context of her reign. The lesson is also linked to video footage from the film Elizabeth.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited to show the progress of learning.
The resource includes suggested teaching strategies, retrieval practice, differentiated materials and comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.
Any reviews will be greatly appreciated
American Civil Rights
I have always been fascinated by the contribution Martin Luther King made to the Civil Rights Movement and his leadership which was inspired by Gandhi to promote non-violent struggle.
This lesson focuses on five main events in his life, from his speeches and letters, to his marches and boycotts.
Students are given information about each of them and they have to evaluate their significance and make a judgement in numerical form.
Students then conclude their findings and present them to the class.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited to show the progress of learning.
The resource includes suggested teaching strategies, differentiated materials and comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.
AQA GCSE 9-1 Britain: Health and the People, c1000 to present
The aim of the lesson is for students to understand the role of war in medicine and how many strides are made due to investment made by Governments to treat its wounded soldiers.
The lesson begins with the students linking war and its effects on medicine before they have to distinguish which advances have been made in both world wars.
The second part of the lesson is based on the wonderful information given by BBC I Wonder on the plastic surgeon Harold Gillies and his attempt to focus on the physical appearance of soldiers affected by war.
This part of the lesson is differentiated and requires students to analyse, prioritise and evaluate their judgements.
The plenary requires the students to find and fix the statements from what they have learned during the lesson.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited at the end to show the progress of learning.
The resource comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.
I have also included suggested teaching strategies to deliver the lesson and there are differentiated materials included.
The French Revolution
The aim of this lesson is to investigate how rotten Robespierre was.
At first, students have to decide and discuss makes a good leader, with suggested answers given
They are given some context of the Revolution before they are introduced to Robespierre.
The main task of the lesson is to decide whether he was an outstanding leader and a ‘champion of democracy’ or rotten to the core and a ‘depraved monster.’
Students will work through the evidence, which is differentiated, before completing this an extended piece of writing with argument words and a writing frame to help if required.
An odd one out plenary to finish aims to challenge what they have learnt in the lesson.
The lesson comes with differentiated materials, suggested teaching and learning strategies and is linked to the latest historical interpretations, video clips and debate.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question posed at the start of the lesson and revisited at the end to show the progress of learning.
It is fully adaptable in PowerPoint format and can be changed to suit.
The Tudors
This lesson aims to explore how Elizabeth approached the difficult subject of religion.
Students are given the context of the religious situation left to Elizabeth by her predecessors, which will then give them answers as to why she took a calm and pragmatic approach to it.
Furthermore they have to decide through a colour coding exercise which were the smallest and major problems she faced with religion before deciphering her religious settlement using a text mapping activity.
Key questions can be used to understand the decisions she took.
A sequencing activity reinforces the learning of the lesson and its significance
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited to show the progress of learning.
The resource includes suggested teaching strategies, retrieval practice, differentiated materials and comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.
The aim of this lesson is to understand the causes and consequences of Harold Hardrada’s invasion of the north of England.
Students learn through narrative and video evidence of the forthcoming battle of Stamford Bridge and how Harold was able to win, despite the hurdles Hardrada’s army put in front of him.
Furthermore students have to analyse how much power Harold’s army had and efficiency rate (as with a house) why Hardrada eventually ran out of energy.
The resource is differentiated and gives suggested teaching strategies.
It comes in PowerPoint format which can be amended and changed to suit.
The aim of this lesson is to understand why Britain was such a good place to invade.
Students are given a thinking quilt to link words and meanings together and challenge their reasoning skills.
Further information will help them understand what Britain had to offer to invaders giving context to its cities, markets and population as well as natural resources and weather.
Students are then required to justify why England was a good place to invade in 1066, with prompts and help given if required.
The resource is differentiated and gives suggested teaching strategies.
It comes in PowerPoint format which can be amended and changed to suit.
The American West 1835-1895, GCSE 9-1 Edexcel
The aim of this lesson is to explore the challenges faced by Homesteaders in moving onto the Plains and setting up farms.
Students begin by deciding how different inventions could lead to improved farming techniques.
They also have to complete a true or false quiz, before using a thinking quilt to match up key facts with the correct questions.
The plenary is based around the ‘are you a robot?’ idea which is becoming all too familiar when we are trying to log into a specific website.
There is some follow up exam question practice using the ‘importance’ question worth 8 marks, with help given if required.
The resource is differentiated and gives suggested teaching strategies. Some recall retrieval practice is also included using a spider diagram.
It comes in Powerpoint format which can be amended and changed to suit.
The American West 1835-1895, GCSE 9-1 Edexcel
The aim of this lesson is to analyse and evaluate the effectiveness of the new inventions introduced in the 19th Century to the Great Plains to aid the Homesteaders and tackle the problems they faced.
Students have to decide what a Homesteader would need with up to $1000 and use images to piece together how inventions would help them settle in the Plains.
There is an effective rating activity using a battery in which they have to rate the most and least effective of all the inventions (or not if they take into account natural disasters).
Some GCSE question practice focuses of the narrative account question with key exam skills attached as well as some help if required.
The plenary involves students deciding on the answers to 12 answers.
The resource is differentiated and gives suggested teaching strategies. Some retrieval practice using the odd one out is also included.
It comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.
The American West 1835-1895, GCSE 9-1 Edexcel
This lesson aims to understand and evaluate the impact of the US Government policy on the Plains Indians.
Students recall previous Government policy pre 1860 and analyse how this started to encroach on the Plains Indians way of life.
They then have to analyse four areas of impact; the coming of the railroad, cattle, reservations and the discovery of gold. Using a cauldron, they have to decide which facts (or ingredients) are the most significant to mix into it. These ingredients are placed on the shelves. The higher the shelf, the more significant the impact of the ingredient.
The plenary uses images (the linkee game) to decipher and recap further problems faced by the Plains Indians . Students then have to decide what happened at a consequence.
There is some follow up exam question practice using the ‘consequences’ question worth 8 marks.
The resource is differentiated and gives suggested teaching strategies.
It comes in Powerpoint format which can be amended and changed to suit.
World War II
The aim of this lesson is to evaluate the reasons why the RAF won the Battle of Britain.
With Hitler having conquered France, he soon began his preparations to invade Britain. But with a numerical advantage in planes and skilled fighter pilots, how were the RAF able to defend Britain so effectively? How were they able to overturn another certain disaster into a victory?
Students analyse video footage and a ‘top secret report’ to evaluate how the RAF gained an advantage.
They also judge how effective the Government’s poster campaign was to convince the public they were in safe hands with the RAF.
Ultimately students decide and explain why the RAF won, be it through pilot skill, fuel advantage, the technology of radar, winning the propaganda war or through sheer determination and grit.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited throughout to show the progress of learning.
The resource includes retrieval practice activities, suggested teaching strategies and differentiated materials, and comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.
World War II
This lesson was borne out of a necessity to explain the theatres of war in World War 2 after teaching this unit of study at Key Stage 3.
Having taught this unit last year without this lesson, I found students were getting confused as to where World War 2 was being fought on a global stage, whether it be fighting in Europe, in the Atlantic, North Africa or in the Far East.
Therefore this lesson aims to simplify the geographical locations covered. Using a world map, they have to plot which countries were involved and who they were fighting for, be it for the Allies or the Axis powers.
This map will also appear throughout this unit of study to pinpoint where in the world the lesson is focused on.
Students will also analyse and study famous photographs of World War 2 and try to explain why they are significant, such as Hitler at the Trocadero in France, the image of St. Pauls in London during the Blitz or the Soviet flag being waved on top of the Reichstag.
Students are also required to plot a timeline of events using information provided and subsequently noting whether each event was a success or failure for each side.
The subsequent plenary tests students’ general knowledge about the war in an ‘odd one out’ activity.
This lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited throughout to show the progress of learning.
The resource includes retrieval practice activities, suggested teaching strategies and differentiated materials, and comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.
World War II
The aim of this lesson to analyse and evaluate the part played by women in World War 2.
Students will analyse a number of propaganda posters used at the time, with particular reference made to the use of headings, colour, messages and the images used.
Traditional teaching has always focused on work undertaken by women such as nursing, the W.A.A.F. or the Women’s Land Army.
Although the students will learn the about the vital role women played in these jobs, they will also learn about the Special Operations Executive set up by Churchill as he recruited sixty women to operate behind enemy lines to ‘set Europe ablaze’.
There are four case studies to unpick as well as some great video links to accompany the lesson.
The plenary requires the students to match the key word to the images shown.
It is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited throughout to show the progress of learning.
The resource includes retrieval practice activities, suggested teaching strategies and differentiated materials, and comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.
