I teach this lesson as part of my unit on 1920s USA and it always proves tremendously successful. Students are allocated one of seven detailed character cards - these include Sacco’s Defence Lawyer Fred Moore and the biased Judge Webster Thayer amongst others. From here students familiarise themselves with their character and work through 15 pieces of evidence ranging from ballistics documents to the hat that Sacco was reported to have worn (it did not fit). Once they have considered the evidence students then use the trial reenactment template provided to act out one of the most famous trials of the Twentieth Century. I get my class to shout out “Sono innocente!” upon news of the verdict and it is always a powerful lesson. I hope you enjoy this series of activities as much as my students do.

This lesson is titled “Why did the Mughal Empire collapse?” The lesson begins with a Blankety Blank style Starter Activity in which students are invited to fill in the missing word. This then leads to the Key Question and the introduction of aims and graduated objectives (all will/most will/some will). After this there are slides of background information to enable teacher exposition. Students are then placed in groups of six and given a one slide fact file on either regional fragmentation, external invasions, European powers, internal problems, weak succession, or economic decline. Their jigsaw activity is to research their topic using the cards as well as internet/library to then return to their group as an expert and convince them of the importance of their single factor. After this they are asked to work together to complete a piece of writing to answer the Key Question. The lesson objectives are revisited, and the lesson concludes with a plenary activity in which students vote on the most convincing reason. This lesson has been designed for high school students. I hope yours get as much from it as much as mine do. Please be aware this lesson is pitched to students who have reasonable research skills. Wishing you a terrific day.

This is a 43-slide PowerPoint presentation designed for Key Stage 3 high school students, composed in UK English. It begins with a Countdown-style Starter Activity where students unjumble letters to key things related to the period, such as paper and acupuncture. An introduction to the period is provided, followed by graduated lesson aims (all will/most will/some will). The slides delve into four different ways the period can be judged: government, culture, technology, and trade. The main activity involves students working in teams to cut out a 32-piece hexagonal card sort, provided in plain hexagons and color-coded ones for differentiation. They sort these into positive and negative columns and then arrange them into four categories. The lesson aims are revisited, culminating in a plenary where students fill in the quarters of a four-leaved clover labelled with the factors to answer the Key Question: Was the Han Dynasty the Golden Age of Ancient China? Crafted during my tenure teaching History in China, this lesson is adaptable for younger audiences.

Welcome to “Exploring Ancient Chinese Philosophy”, where we delve into the rich tapestry of thought from ancient China. In this session, we embark on a journey through the philosophical influences that shaped ancient Chinese society, including Legalism, Confucianism, and Daoism. Our class begins with a stimulating Starter Activity, prompting students to engage in discussion with a friend about images which stemmed from these philosophies, using three-word prompts. As we progress, our Graduated Aims guide us: all will/most will/some will. Through teacher exposition, we provide background information on Legalism, Confucianism, and Daoism. The main activity, introduced thereafter, takes the form of Blind Date Style Responses, where students, grouped in threes, prepare and share responses embodying one of the philosophies. Example responses serve as inspiration. It’s a creative way to develop real understanding on a complicated topic. A revisit to our objectives precedes the plenary, where students engage in a lively vote on the most compelling ‘date’. I’d be so grateful if you can find time to add a positive review if you enjoyed this lesson.

This 25-slide PowerPoint begins with an odd one out Starter Activity in which students pick out one misconception about the Han Dynasty. They are then introduced to the lesson title and graduated aims (all will/most will/some will). There is then some background information to enable teacher exposition. This is followed by a series of slides in which 12 people offer reasons for the collapse, some of which relate to internal problems (taxes, loss of traditional values, etc.) and some of which relate to external pressures (bandits on the Silk Road, attacks by nomadic tribes such as Xiongnu, etc.). Students act as journalists and jot down notes from these characters before using the information to create a newspaper to answer the Key Question. The lesson objectives are revisited, and the lesson concludes with a plenary in which the class is asked to come up with eight reasons for the collapse of the Han Dynasty and to write them on a flower with eight petals. I created this lesson while I taught History in China, and it was designed for high school students. It is written in UK English.

This is one of my most popular lesson activities. Students read detailed background knowledge before completing a hexagonal card sort to divide reasons up into belief systems, technology, geography and economics. Here students will make links between their factors to create a visual map which they can use for an extended piece of written analysis. I am especially proud of the level of precision and detail in the historical content here. The eighteen cards are broken down and color coordinated for differentiation purposes. I really hope you enjoy this activity and that your students get as much from it as mine do.

This thirty-nine-page pack is the incredibly detailed and complete set of notes I have written for my students. It is basically an entire course on the I.B. Paper 1 Move to Global War in one pack! Notes are broken down into the following sections: How can we explain Japanese expansion in the move to Global War? How did Japan move to Global War? How did Italy fit into inter-war European geopolitics? Why was the international response to the Abyssinian Crisis so weak? How and why did German foreign policy develop? I am confident you will love this resource because there is nothing on the Internet which I have found which offers the same level of breadth and detail on this topic. Your students will find the notes supremely useful and they will help them achieve examination success.

This forty six-page pack is the incredibly detailed and complete set of notes I have written for my students. It is basically an entire course on inter-war USA in one pack! Suitable for G.C.S.E, AP, A Level, and I.B. students. Notes are broken down into the following sections: What was the impact of the First World War on the USA? What were American attitudes towards immigrants? Prohibition: causes, events and consequences How did the US economy change? How did society and culture change? What was life like during the Great Depression and how did Herbert Hoover react? Why did FDR win the Nineteenth Thirty Two US election? How did Roosevelt’s New Deal change America? Who opposed the New Deal and why? I am confident you will love this resource because there is nothing on the Internet which I have found which offers the same level of breadth and detail on this topic. Your students will find the notes supremely useful and they will help them achieve examination success.

This activity includes twenty detailed cards which are shaded to show the political, social and economic impact of the Black Death. Students acquire exceptionally precise and carefully selected historical detail and learn about the impact on salaries, the creation of the British pub, and the growth of the perfume industry as well as the many negative aspects of the disease. Its one of the lessons my students really enjoy because they get the opportunity to question previously held assumptions which in turn gives their ability to argue a case greater texture and resonance. I really hope you enjoy this as much as I do - makes for a great debate preparation task as well as a precursor to an extended piece of assessed written analysis.

After reading through the background information students sift through the 21 evidence cards provided to create columns which show how skill, luck, mistakes, and technology explain the outcome of the Battle of Hastings. This is an ideal task to help scaffold student responses to a piece of extended written work or timed assessment. Cards are colour-coded for differentiation.

Students are given character cards, some pro and some anti dropping the bomb ranging from Einstein and Churchill to Hirihito and Stalin. In groups each side then works through 36 cards which are teeming with precisely selected historical detail, some of which support the dropping of the A-bomb and some of which argue against it. This activity prepares students exceptionally well for a debate about one of the most keenly argued historical topics - the dropping of the atomic bombs - and can also be used to help students structure an extended written response to this question. The cards are colour coded for students who require additional differentiation. This is one of my best lessons year on year and I hope it gets your students talking, evaluating, and arguing - especially in this nuclear world which we live in today.

This forty three-page pack is the incredibly detailed and complete set of notes I have written for my students. It is basically an entire course on Twentieth Century in one pack! Suitable for G.C.S.E, AP, A Level, and I.B. students. Notes are broken down into the following sections: What were the causes and events of the revolution? How was China ruled after the revolution? How significant was the May 4th movement? Why did Mao triumph? What changes did Mao make to the economy? What was life like in China under Mao? How successful were Deng’s reforms? Why were people killed on June 4? I am confident you will love this resource because there is nothing on the Internet which I have found which offers the same level of breadth and detail on this topic. Your students will find the notes supremely useful and they will help them achieve examination success.

I’ve designed this lesson as a History mystery to get your students to really engage with evidence handling and to think like Historians. I am confident that the level of detail and precision in my resources is much stronger than you will find elsewhere (because of the amount of pride I take in my own historical research). During this series of activities students read through background information before siphoning through 16 detailed evidence cards about Suffragette activity in the horse race known as the 1913 Epsom Derby. The class then complete a History mystery grid based on their findings. I hope you enjoy this lesson as much as my students do! It is an excellent lesson in helping students comb through evidence to form historical interpretations.

Over 200 revision flash cards based on key people and events from Weimar and Nazi Germany. Simply print, cut out, and fold. These took me forever to create but they are my number one ‘go to’ revision tool for my exam classes and have had wholly positive feedback. Also works extremely well as an end of unit activity whereby students can use the cards to create a visual mind-map / layout of the course. Give them to your students before exams to ensure their subject knowledge is spot on!

My students love playing this to introduce or recap subject knowledge. Simply cut out and laminate the forty-two dominoes and ask students to match the question up with the correct answer. I hope your students enjoy the activity as much as mine do. Works really well as a starter, plenary or stand-alone activity.

After reading through the background information students sift through the twenty four incredibly detailed evidence cards provided to create columns which show how power, politics and people explain the reasons Caesar was killed on the Ides of March. This is an ideal task to help scaffold student responses to a piece of extended written work or timed assessment. I hope your students enjoy this lesson as much as mine do!

This 52-page pack is the incredibly detailed and complete set of notes I have written for my students. It is basically an entire course on Weimar and Nazi Germany in one pack! Suitable for 16+ including GCSE, AP, A Level, and IB students. Notes are broken down into the following sections: What problems did the Weimar Republic face between 1919-23? How did the Weimar Republic recover between 1923-29? Why did the Weimar Republic collapse between 1929-33? How did Hitler consolidate his power between the years 1933-34? Through what methods did Hitler control Germany? Who benefitted from the Nazi state? How did the Nazis control the economy? Who supported and who opposed the Nazi state? What was the Holocaust? I am confident you will love this resource because there is nothing on the Internet which I have found which offers the same level of breadth and detail on this topic. Your students will find the notes supremely useful and they will help them achieve examination success.

This resource features a starter in which students compare two sources on life in 1930s USA using a VENN diagram. The PowerPoint then provides some background information before inviting students to break down 22 factor-led thought bubbles into columns (these are colour-coded into social, economic, cultural and political). Students then use this information to create a written account of what life was like before concluding with a fun singing plenary. I really enjoy delivering this lesson (partly because Hoover is my favourite US President!) and hope you find it useful!

This is a powerful lesson in causation. Students read through the detailed background information before arranging 17 extremely detailed and precise information cards into factors (economic, cultural, and people). This activity helps students scaffold a response to the key question which can then be used as the basis for a piece of assessed or extended written work. I hope your students find this as useful as I know mine have!

This is one of my most detailed and most enjoyable lessons. Students are issued with a suspect character card of their own (there are 21 including Druitt, Kosminski, and Chapman) and then have to siphon their way through 13 very detailed pieces of evidence to find information that suggests they might be the notorious serial killer. For example, Polish butcher John Pizer might argue that he is local (Evidence A), has an expert knowledge of anatomy (B), and came from Poland where there were a large number of Jews (Evidence L). Students then present their cases and the class vote on who makes the best case. This is an excellent lesson designed to engage students and get them to question evidence, structure, and present their findings. I hope you enjoy it as much as my students do!