American Civil RIghts This lesson analyses and evaluates the part Rosa Parks played in the Civil Rights Movement. Modest to the end, her one action inspired a generation and she is still talked about with reverence in American society today. (NB - Oprah Winfrey’s Golden Globe speech on 7th January, 2018.) Students learn about Rosa Park’s background and events leading up to her refusal to move seats on a bus, brilliantly shown through some video footage as well as documentary evidence. The learning tasks and the accompanying resources are differentiated to suit all abilities as students reflect and evaluate her most important significance to American society today. Students also have the opportunity to use a bus to show in the windows the problems she faced (at the front and in the doorway) and what she achieved (in the back windows). 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.

American Civil RIghts This lesson aims to explain how black people in America voiced their protests against their lack of Civil Rights in the 1950s and early 1960’s. Students are introduced to the various forms of protest they used which they have to research and ultimately decide how effective each form of protest was, from music to sits ins, to marches and changing the law for example. There are quite a few links to video footage at the time to reinforce the learning. Students use the key words at the end of the lesson to summarise their new found knowledge. 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.

The Tudors This is the first in a series of lessons I have created on the Tudors. This lesson is broken down into two parts. The first part describes and explains the events surrounding the Wars of the Roses. Students learn about the Kings involved and the battles fought through fun tasks, video evidence and role play of which they have to make choices on the victors. With this new found knowledge they have to explain what they have learnt through a ‘talk like an historian’ quiz. The second part of the lesson focuses on the previous Tudor perceptions of Richard III. Was he really a deceitful and cunning person, ‘a lump of foul deformity’ with a hunchback according to Shakespeare, More and Virgil? Archaeological evidence from King Richard’s remains is analysed by the students to prove or disprove some of these popular ‘misconceptions’ about his posture and character. Students are then challenged to write to the current Education Secretary to make sure correct history lessons are now taught about Richard III in secondary schools. 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. This lesson is fully resourced 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 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. This lesson aims to evaluate the threats posed by the Northern rebellion and the Ridolfi plot to Elizabeth. Students analyse these threats and dangers to Elizabeth both through video footage and written text before coming to their own conclusions based on the criteria set out for them. They complete an essay question on what they have learnt, using the structure provided and key argument words. Ultimately they will recognise the seriousness and therefore significance of the threats to Elizabeth in her early years. The lesson includes learning activities such as structuring an answer, analysing and evaluating the plots, the use of video evidence and using tier 2 and 3 vocabulary and argument words in an answer. 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.

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. The decision to be a Protestant country not surprisingly caused Elizabeth many problems from Catholics at home and abroad. The lesson therefore is in two parts. The first section deals with the Catholic threats at home, mostly from rebellions surrounding Mary Queen of Scots. Students plot the rebellions on a graph deciding how significant they were before being posed some challenging questions. The second part of the lesson focuses on the threats posed by Allen and Campion and the Jesuits. After analysing the evidence they decide on the most important ingredients for their threat to Elizabeth (also focusing on short and long term problems) and place them on shelves (prioritising the most important) ready to go into a cauldron. The final part of the lesson involves deciding how Elizabeth reacted to these threats and planning and completing a GCSE ‘write an account’ question. 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.

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. This lesson focuses on the threat posed by the Puritans and how Elizabeth dealt with this threat, despite prominent members in her Government, such as Walsingham, being Puritans. Students begin by understanding the nature of Puritanism and how they disagreed with the religious settlement. They are given information about a number of controversies raised in Elizabeth’s reign and by colour coding decide how much of a threat they posed. A threat’o’meter give an overall picture which they will have to justify where their judgement lies. This lesson also focuses on two GCSE questions with a ‘write an account’ and a ‘How convincing is the Source?’ question given for GCSE exam practice. Students can answer both or choose which one to tackle. The information is included in the lesson to assist in their answers. 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.

This lesson aims to introduce the main contenders to the vacant throne of England in 1066 with the deat hof Edward the Confessor. Students have to understand why a chair (a throne) would cause a war and read a script to understand who the main contenders were and the reasons they put forward for having a claim to the English throne. Diffetentiated bloom’s questions aim to deepen their understanding and get them to analyse who has the best claim and why (thus extracting fact from fiction). A brilliant video link to English heritage and extra work sheets will give them all the knowledge required to create a newspaper report or table to ultimately evaluate these claims of the contenders The resource comes in PDF and Powerpoint formats 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 accompanying script for the lesson can be found here: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/medieval-britain-script-for-the-normans-who-had-the-best-claim-to-the-english-throne-in-1066-11456418 If you like this resource, please visit my shop where I have created further resources on Medieval Britain which can be found here: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/PilgrimHistory

The Industrial Revolution This lesson aims to examine and assess factory conditions during the Industrial Revolution. The poor conditions and punishments are explored through the eyes of a pauper apprentice, whose story tells us the harsh discipline, rules and punishments for factory workers. Students have a chance to complete a diary entry and evaluate if life was bad for everyone including using causation equations in the plenary. The lesson alludes to factory owners like Robert Owen who built quality houses, schools, shops with cheap goods and parks for his workers (although factory reform and reformers is dealt with in another 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 Industrial Revolution The aim of this aim is to assess why coal became known as ‘black gold’. Students learn how important coal was to the Industrial Revolution and how it was used in a number of areas. However the interesting facts focus on its extraction and yet again the dangers involved for all concerned, especially children. Students have to rate how effective the various measures put in place were to overcome some of the problems They also have to tackle some historical hexagonals to get them thinking and linking all the information together. A find and fix plenary should test their recall and knowledge from 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 Industrial Revolution The aim of this lesson is to question how effective Victorian justice was. This is an interesting and engaging lesson for students as they decide who was a criminal (from their looks), which were the most common crimes in the early 1800’s and what you could expect at a public hanging though some source analysis. By the end of the lesson, students will be able to answer the following questions: Why was it so easy to commit crime in the Victorian period in the early nineteenth century and if you were unfortunate to get caught what could you expect from Victorian justice? What was the Bloody Code and why was the law so harsh to offenders irrespective in some cases of sex or age? There are also three case studies to unpick and students are left questioning the morality and effectiveness of the punishments inflicted. Please note that the reform of the criminal justice system is dealt with in other lessons such as the Victorian prison system and the setting up of the Metropolitan Police force by Sir Robert Peel and the abolition of the Bloody Code. There are a choice of plenaries from hangman to bingo and heart, head, bag, bin which get the students to prioritise the most ‘effective’ methods used to deal with crime. 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 British Empire This lesson aims to question whether Britain was in India for the right reasons. The subject matter is the East India Company and a study of how it slowly took over the country of India taking with it a precious diamond and making a fortune out of its trade. There are some great video links used here from the BBC and Dan Snow which help bring reasoning and clarity. Students are asked if we should return the Koh-i-Noor diamond to India, the jewel in the British crown, after analysing some important evidence. Students are also given key words to help them with their arguments as to whether the diamond should be returned to India or not. The final activity focuses on the legacy of the East India Company and who benefitted from their rule before the company’s eventual collapse. The lesson comes with retrieval practice activities, suggested teaching and learning strategies and are linked to the latest historical interpretations, video clips and debate. The lesson is enquiry based with a key question of who benefitted from the Empire posed at the start of the lesson and revisited at the end to show the progress of learning. The lesson is fully adaptable in PowerPoint format and can be changed to suit.

AQA A Level 1C The Tudors: England 1485-1603 The aim of this lesson is decide how much of a threat Lambert Simnel posed to Henry VII. Students are given the information about the role Simnel played and then have to categorise his rebellion into causes, consequences and events. They are also challenged to think and justify who would have likely joined the rebellion and why, using a number of given examples of disgruntled lords. Furthermore, they will be required to give a number of reasons for the lack of support for Simnel. There is some exam question practice, complete with scaffolding, key ideas and a generic markscheme supplied. There is an enquiry question posed and revisited to show the progress of learning throughout the lesson and subsequent unit of work. The lesson comes in PowerPoint format and can be changed and adapted to suit. The lesson is differentiated and includes suggested teaching strategies.

AQA A Level 1C The Tudors: England 1485-1603 The aim of this lesson is assess the threat Perkin Warbeck posed to Henry VII. Students are required to plot the causes, events and consequences of his rebellion(s) as well as discovering others such as those from De la pole, the Cornish and Yorkshire rebellions. They are also required to evaluate the biggest threat of all the rebellions to Henry, including Lamber Simnel, Lovell and Stafford rebellions studied previously. There is a key word literacy plenary to complete before students undertake some exam question extract practice, complete with scaffolding, planning ideas, the key information required as well as a generic markscheme. There is an enquiry question posed and revisited to show the progress of learning throughout the lesson and subsequent unit of work. The lesson comes in PowerPoint format and can be changed and adapted to suit. The lesson is differentiated and includes suggested teaching strategies.

AQA GCSE 9-1 Britain: Health and the People, c1000 to present The aim of this lesson is threefold; to understand the beliefs and treatments of the Black Death, to recognise why these had a detrimental affect on medicine and to understand the similarities between the Black Death of the 14th Century and the Plague of the 17th Century. This lesson can be delivered over two, owing to the content and challenge. There are numerous learning tasks for students to complete, from tabling the symptoms of the disease, using sources to map out the beliefs and treatments at the time, a thinking quilt, as well as plotting similarities on a skeleton hand and tackling two GCSE practice questions. A find and fix task at the end checks understanding and challenges student thinking. 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.

Germany 1890-1945: Democracy and Dictatorship This lesson focuses on the change in policy towards the treatment of the Jews by the Nazis. Students have to put events into chronological order and understand why the beginning of World War II changed everything. Students also learn about the Wannsee Conference and the experimental attempts by the Nazis to murder the Jews in Europe from shooting to mobile gas vans before deciding upon the use of Zyklon B crystals. Using numbers and figures they also discover the sheer scale of the atrocities involved in this genocide and what happened in the concentration camps. There are some excellent links to video evidence to accompany the lesson, which are suitable to show. 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 assess the validity of four claimants to the English throne in 1066. It also includes a script for those students who prefer a more kinaesthetic approach to this topic. Each contender is introduced and students have to assess who has the best claim to the English throne, which on the face of it is a difficult choice, which each having a strong argument and motive. This can also be completed by colour coding thermometers and rating them out of ten before making a substantiated conclusion. There are differentiated questions to ask the students once this task has been completed. The plenary asks them to think outside the box and link pictures to the issues and contentions raised. The resource is differentiated and gives suggested teaching strategies. It comes in PowerPoint format which can be amended and changed to suit.

The Tudors The aim of this lesson to find out about the hidden messages in Elizabeth I’s portrait paintings. Students learn about how Elizabeth manipulated her portraits and added symbols, each of which had a hidden meaning. The introduction to the lesson looks at anachronisms and modern day symbols put into portraits to get the students thinking how pictures should not always be seen and taken at face value. Thus inference skills are high on the agenda in this lesson. Students are then given information about each of her paintings and have to analyse and evaluate their meanings and various symbolic codes. 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 Industrial Revolution The aim of this lesson is for students to analyse the changes that were happening in the Industrial Revolution and then to question if these changes made peoples’ lives better or worse. (Thus focusing on the historical skills of change and continuity and cause and consequence) The students are given a picture as they walk into the room which describes an invention that has been introduced during the Industrial Revolution. They then organise themselves into chronological order before discussing who it affected, why it would affect them and how it could transform the lives of people. They also have to decide in a Britain’s Got Talent Quiz which invention is the most important and would win the Golden Buzzer. Furthermore they analyse further changes which occurred, how they link together and for extra challenge decide how many of the changes refer to economic, social, demographic, political or technological changes. 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.

Germany 1890-1945: Democracy and Dictatorship The aim of this lesson is to analyse Nazi policies towards women and then evaluate how effective they were at controlling them. The start of the lesson questions the qualities Hitler is looking for in women and then questions what makes the perfect Nazi woman using key words. Students then have some differentiated questions to complete, using text before evaluating how much certain women were controlled and explaining to what extent. A GCSE practice question focuses on ‘Which source is the most convincing?’, complete with simplified markscheme and notes on the slide for more guidance. The key words are then revisited in the plenary. 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 Industrial Revolution This lesson aims to evaluate the problems within Industrial towns and the impact they had on the growing population during the Industrial Revolution. The lesson starts by analysing the source from Punch in 1852, 'A Court For King Cholera’, which is later annotated to help aid discussion. Various images, video evidence and headlines allow students to build up a picture, which they then have to explain to a friend in a letter - using scaffolding and a writing frame if required. Students also evaluate how and why the living conditions became like this and question if this was the case across the country as they are given further evidence from the wealthy in Victorian England, comparing the dwellings of the rich and poor. Students will therefore be able by the end of the lesson be able to give an effective and balanced answer to this 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.