This is a fully resourced KS3 unit of lessons which looks to simplify and bring to life the complexity and turmoil of the English Reformation. The scheme walks students through many complex issues: who the Tudor monarchs were and how they came to power; what the European Reformation was and what the differences between Catholics and Protestants were; what each Tudor monarch did to either advance the Reformation or stop it in its tracks (often through very violent actions) and what impact this had on normal people. It covers Henry VIII’s break with Rome, the Dissolution of the Monasteries and Elizabeth’s famous victory over the Spanish Armada. The skills focus of this unit is on explanation. It therefore has lots of activities to help students develop their critical thinking and explanation skills. The unit contains two assessments which focus on explanation. All lessons include three progress questions to monitor progress and although scaffolding is already included they will be easily differentiated. If students are seen once a week, this unit should be around a term’s work. The unit is part of a scheme of work that looks to develop students’ understanding of the nature of change. Therefore I have also included the introductory lesson to that scheme which gives students a framework through which to judge all historical developments they come across. The lessons can be used with or without this framework. I have included a zip file to show how the unit fits together.

Through a range of imaginative and exciting activities, this fully resourced lesson looks closely at life in a medieval village. This resource is aimed at KS3 and all activities are easily differentiated. Students will work together to create a medieval village from memory, use a medieval poem to construct a picture of a medieval family and finally gather detailed information on the day to day lives of peasants. The lesson’s overall purpose is to highlight the unfairness of the feudal system and at the end students will complete a perfect paragraph coming to a substantiated judgment on medieval villages. It is very likely that this lesson will run across at least 2 hour long periods.

This is a fully resourced and challenging unit of lessons which seeks to develop in students an understanding of both the complex events of the Russian Revolution and the political and economic concepts surrounding it. The unit was planned for a high ability year 9 class but could easily be used for 14-16 year olds or scaffolded for lower ability groups. The unit starts with an examination of both Tsar Nicholas’ feudal Russia of the 1890s and Lenin’s communist Russia of the 1920s. It then examines all of the events in between - exploring the 1905 revolution, the causes and events of February Revolution, The October Revolution and the Russian Civil War. The unit ends with a lesson on Stalin’s rise to power and the unit could easily be extended to look at the terror of the 1930s and the USSR’s experience of WW2. The skills focus of this unit is on the evaluation of historical interpretation and the unit contains two formative assessments to develop these skills. This unit is part of a broader scheme of work that looks to develop in students an understanding of change through placing events on a spectrum of change. Therefore included is the introductory lesson to this scheme which gives students a framework to understand change. The unit can be used with or without this framework. Also included is a zip folder to show how all documents should fit into folders.

This is a highly varied and engaging KS3 (age 11-14) lesson which illuminates to students what motte and bailey castles were and also why they were an effective way for the Normans to take control of a hostile Anglo-Saxon population after 1066. Students will start by consolidating prior learning - reflecting on why William the Conqueror might have needed castles. They will then get to grips with the features of motte and baileys by working in groups to create a fully labelled castle from memory against the clock! In the rest of the lesson, in groups and as a class, they will think carefully about why motte and bailey castles had their specific features and why they were such a good idea at the time. At the end of the lesson they will consolidate their learning by writing as a Norman noble experienced in castle building, advising how and why a motte and bailey castle should be built. Heavy scaffolding is included for the task and can be tweaked for different abilities. This lesson is part of a larger scheme called Medieval England:The Making of the Feudal System This can be found on TES.

This is a fully resourced KS3 (11-14 years) lesson that brings to life the horrific events of the Harrying of the North. Included is a formative assessment which could be used in a follow up lesson. The lesson is structured around three progress questions. Students begin by working out what features about the North meant that it posed such a problem to William in the years after 1066. They will then use a series of primary sources to piece together what was inflicted on the north of England by the Normans. The final part of the lesson seeks to build students’ skills in questioning how useful sources are, based on content and provenance. Students are introduced to this by thinking about the uses and problems evidence might pose to a police investigation (this can of course be skipped if students already have worked on advanced source skills). They then apply this thinking to the sources they have already examined. These skills could be assessed in the formative assessment included. The lesson is part of a bigger unit called Medieval England: The Making of the Feudal System which can also be found on TES.

This is a fully resourced and highly engaging lesson that that aims to build a deep understanding of the events of the Spanish Armada. It could be used with either KS3 or KS4 (11-16 years). The lesson is structured in three progress questions. First students have to place the causes of the Spanish Armada into a ven diagram in order to work out whether Philip sent to Armada because he was personally angry with Elizabeth, because he was a devout Catholic, or because he wanted to increase his power. After this students will get to grips with the events of the Spanish Armada by using a map of the Armada’s route to put the events of the conflict into chronological order. Finally, students will be guided to reflect on the events in order to come to a reasoned judgement as to why the Armada failed; whether it was bad luck, bad planning, or the skill of the English and their Dutch allies. The lesson ends with a write up of this decision which could be used as a formative assessment. The lesson contains both lots of scaffolding and lots of challenge questions. It will be very easily tweaked for different abilities. This lesson is part of a larger unit called The Reformation which can also be found on TES.

This is a short set of lessons which covers life in medieval England under the feudal system. Through a range of exciting and engaging group and individual activities, it takes a close look at life in both villages and in towns. Both lessons seek to highlight the difficulties of medieval life and particularly the unfairness of the feudal system. Activities include: creating a medieval village from memory; using a medieval poem to draw a medieval family; and searching for evidence in a picture to prove a number of points about medieval towns. All activities should be easily differentiated and lots of challenge activities are included on the slides. This is aimed at KS3 and also includes a small scale formative assessment asking students to create an organised summary of medieval life. Including the assessment, this should take 4 hour long periods to teach.

This is a complete unit of work on the American Revolution aimed at KS3 including detailed and activity led powerpoints and resources. Learning objectives are clearly displayed throughout the unit. It covers everything from the features of the American colonies before the Revolutionary War, the War itself and the government set up in its aftermath. It goes on to examine whether America lived up to the promises made by its founding fathers by examining slavery, the Civil War, Reconstruction and the experience of Native Americans. It introduces students to a spectrum of change through which to consider how much change the revolution brought about. Throughout it contains engaging skills based tasks that could be easily differentiated. It also contains two source based assessments which will be of particular use in building up the source skills required at GCSE. I have included all resources individually so they can be previewed but also the entire unit in a zipped file to show how it all fits together.

This is a fully resourced and easy to use KS3 (11-14 years) lesson on the Black Death which should take at least two hours to teach. Through imaginative and varied activities, students will cover the three objectives of this lesson. They will examine the horrific symptoms of the Black Death, drawing several pictures as they do. They will work out where the Black Death came from, what caused it, and how it spread. Finally, students will explore a range of evidence in order to engage in the debate surrounding whether or not the Black Death was a disaster for medieval society. The scaffolded writing task on this final objective could be used as a formative assessment. This lesson is part of a unit of lessons published on TES called Medieval Life: The Unmaking of the Feudal System

This is a fully resourced KS3 unit of work which explores the injustices of the feudal system and how and why it began to be challenged in the late medieval period. It firstly explores the difficult lives lived by peasants. before examining how the Black Death acted as a catalyst for the feudal system being challenged through the Peasants’ Revolt. It also explores how the feudal system was challenged by Magna Carta - beginning - albeit in a very limited fashion - the shift of power from King to Parliament. Through a range of imaginative and varied activities, the unit looks not only to bring this period to life but also to develop students’ explanation skills. The unit includes lots of opportunities to develop these skills, particularly through two explanation based formative assessments. These lessons will be easily scaffolded and differentiated. In total this should work out as a term’s lessons if KS3 classes are seen once a week. This unit can be used after a second unit - the Making of the Feudal System - which explores the Norman invasion and their consolidation of power. A zip folder is included to demonstrate the order of the lessons. This unit is part of a bigger KS3 scheme of work which looks to measure the nature of change on a spectrum of change. Due to this, I have also included a lesson on the nature of change to allow students to get the most out of the lessons.

This is a fully resourced KS3 (11-14 years) unit of work that seeks to bring medieval England to life. It explores the Norman Conquest and how the Normans established and maintained power after their invasion in 1066. It firstly examines England before 1066, the rivals for the English throne in 1066, and the battles that took place in 1066. It goes on to examine how power was established and maintained through castles, terror (the Harrying of the North), and, most importantly, through the feudal system. Through varied and imaginative activities, the unit looks to develop students’ source skills. The unit contains many activities to scaffold these skills and two source based formative assessments. These lessons will be easily scaffolded and differentiated. In total this should work out as a term’s lessons if KS3 classes are seen once a week. This unit can be used alongside a second unit - the Unmaking of the Feudal System - which explores the injustices of the system and how it began to be challenged in the later medieval period. A zip folder is included to demonstrate the order of the lessons. This unit is part of a bigger KS3 scheme of work which looks to measure the nature of change on a spectrum of change. Due to this, I have also included a lesson on the nature of change to allow students to get the most out of the lessons.

This is a fully resourced lesson that explores the fascinating events of the Peasants’ Revolt of 1381. The lesson should take two hours to teach and is differentiated with lots of opportunities for challenge. Through a range of imaginative activities, students will examine three objectives. First they will explore the causes of the Revolt by working out how the causes were like a bonfire (this will require some prior knowledge of how hard peasants’ lives were and also of the Black Death - this could be found in my lesson on the medieval village and Black Death which are also published on TES). Secondly students use a video clip in order to get to grips with the complexities of the events. Finally, students will examine a range of evidence in order to decide how significant, the more able will be able to look at this through thinking about short term and long term outcomes. This lesson is part of a unit of lessons published on TES called Medieval Life: The Unmaking of the Feudal System