I've worked in primary teaching for over 10 years and specialise in creating fun and engaging educational resources, particularly for Geography and History.
I've worked in primary teaching for over 10 years and specialise in creating fun and engaging educational resources, particularly for Geography and History.
Understanding Latitude and Longitude is a Geography unit designed for students in upper KS2 and KS3.
The unit contains a sequence of four lessons which are carefully designed to help students understand the key concepts of latitude and longitude and learn the skill of reading coordinates on a world map.
The planning overview and topic title page can be downloaded for free here. Lessons include:
L1 – Introduction to latitude and longitude
L2 – Finding latitude and longitude coordinates on a world map
L3 – Reading latitude and longitude with greater accuracy
L4 – Locating world capital cities using latitude and longitude
Each lesson includes a presentation and differentiated activities/worksheets.
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
This set of resources is designed for teaching the Great Fire of London KS1 History unit. You can download the planning for free here. It is suitable for Year 2 children and more able Year 1 children.
The presentation introduces key vocabulary and then takes children through the main events of the Great Fire of London in 1666. The follow-up activity helps children chronologically order these events over the five days of the disaster.
It is recommended that children do the sequencing activity in mixed ability pairs. If necessary, it is possible to stick the activity into an exercise book.
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
This resource is designed for teaching the Great Fire of London KS1 History unit. You can download the planning for free here. It is suitable for Year 2 children and more able Year 1 children.
The presentation explores how the Great Fire of London gave birth to the very first fire brigades in the late 17th century. It also looks at how fire safety has improved, including changes in our homes and innovations in fire fighting equipment.
There are two differentiated worksheets which challenge children to sort fire safety related pictures and vocabulary into ‘Now’ and ‘Then (1666)’. They include:
a standard activity sheet with eight words/phrases for children to draw and label
an easier activity sheet (with stickers) with ten words/phrases for children to label
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
Exploring Spain is a Geography unit suitable for KS2 (Y4-6).
The planning overview, topic title page and vocabulary page can be downloaded for free here. Lessons include:
L1 – Writing a Spain fact file
L2 – Identifying human and physical features of Spain
L3 – Using 8 points of the compass to locate cities in Spain
L4 – Using 4-figure grid references in Spain
L5 – Investigating Spain’s weather and climate
L6 – Taking a tour of Madrid
Optional lesson – Identifying the countries and capital cities of Europe
Each lesson includes a presentation and differentiated activities/worksheets.
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
This lesson is part of Exploring Brazil, a Geography unit designed for students in KS2 (Y4-6), but can also be taught as a stand alone lesson.
It takes students on a tour of the geographical features of Brazil. First students investigate a satellite photo of South America. They then look at a map of Brazil itself to see what human and physical features they can spot (e.g. Brazilian cities, Amazon rainforest).
In the activity students identify human and physical features of Brazil. It is differentiated three ways:
Easier – Students label 10 physical features of Brazil.
Medium – Students draw in arrows and label 10 physical features of Brazil.
Harder – Students stick a map of Brazil into their book, draw in arrows and label 10 physical features.
Extension – Students use atlases to also identify 8 Brazilian cities.
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
This lesson is part of Mountain Environments, a Geography unit designed for students in upper KS2 (Y4-6).
First the presentation introduces some of the most famous mountain ranges from around the world.
The differentiated activity then challenges students to locate the world’s mountain ranges and encourages them to use and explore atlases. It is recommended that students do the activity in pairs.
Easier – Students identify the world’s famous mountain ranges (less writing).
Medium – Students identify the world’s famous mountain ranges (first letter clues)
Harder – Students identify the world’s famous mountain ranges (no clues)
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
This lesson is part of Understanding Latitude and Longitude, a unit designed for students in upper KS2 and KS3. It can also be taught as a stand-alone lesson.
This lesson gives students a chance to consolidate the skills the have learned in the unit so far. The presentation first encourages students to estimate latitude and longitude and then challenges them to work out the coordinates of several capital cities.
The activity can be used as an assessment tool for the unit or done in partners to promote discussion and sharing of ideas. There is also an extension activity.
Activity – Students identify world capital cities using latitude and longitude clues.
Extension – Students locate and label 6 more capital cities on their world map and answer further challenge questions.
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
This lesson is part of Investigating Rivers, a unit designed for upper KS2 (Y4-6).
It investigates rainfall patterns in the UK and how flooding can occur when too much rain falls in a short period of time. Students also explore the consequences of too little rain – i.e. drought – and the effects this can have.
In the comprehension activity, students answer questions based on a text called ‘Floods and Droughts’. It is differentiated two ways:
Easier - Students answer standard comprehension questions.
Harder - Students answer trickier comprehension questions.
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
This lesson is designed for KS2 children. It can be taught as a stand alone lesson but is also available as part of two wider units, both of which are available on TES:
-Earthquakes
-Volcanoes & Earthquakes
The presentation investigates the five deadly features of earthquakes including ground shaking, tsunamis, landslides, raising/lowering of land and liquefaction.
It is followed up by an activity which is differentiated four ways:
Easier – Students match pictures of the five features of an earthquake to descriptions.
Medium – Students complete cloze procedure sentences. They then match pictures to each description.
Harder – Students complete cloze procedure sentences. They then match pictures to each description and add a title for each section.
Hardest – Students stick pictures of the five features of an earthquake in their books and write their own description next to each one.
Extension – Can students unscramble the jumbled up earthquake facts?
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
This lesson is part of Understanding Trade, a Geography unit designed for students in upper KS2 (Y5-6).
The presentation starts by recapping what imports and exports are. It goes on to look at the UK’s top ten exports – mainly manufactured products – and the human and physical factors which help UK exports in this area.
In the activity, students use Microsoft PowerPoint to create a table of the UK’s top ten exports. They then use an online chart maker to produce either a pie chart or bar graph to illustrate this data. It is differentiated three ways:
Easier – Students use step-by-step instructions with some data already filled in
Medium – Students use step-by-step instructions
Harder – Minimal instructions – IT experts only!
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
Volcanoes is an exciting Geography unit designed for students in KS2.
The planning overview, topic title page and vocabulary page can be downloaded for free here. Lessons include:
L1 – Understanding the structure of the Earth
L2 – Investigating the structure of a volcano (FREE)
L3 – Locating the world’s famous volcanoes
L4 – Investigating the five deadly features of a volcanic eruption
L5 – Understanding tectonic plates
L6 – Exploring the effects of volcanic eruptions on Montserrat
L7 – Why do people live near volcanoes?
Each lesson includes a presentation and differentiated activities/worksheets.
A FREE newspaper report template is also included in this unit.
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
This resource is part of Tropical Rainforests, a Geography unit designed for students in KS2, but can also be taught as a stand alone lesson. All resources are compatible with both Microsoft Office and Google Workspace.
This lesson is a great introduction to the world’s largest rainforest, the Amazon. First, the presentation introduces students to the Amazon and its incredibly biodiverse flora and fauna. It then goes on to look at the geography of the Amazon in more detail, specifically its location within the continent of South America.
The activity challenges students to identify a range of human and physical geographical features within South America, including the nine countries in which the Amazon rainforest is located.
In follow up extension activities, students identify the capitals of those countries and then complete a cloze-procedure paragraph about the Amazon.
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
Exploring the UK is a Geography unit suitable for KS1 and lower KS2 (Y2-4).
The planning overview, topic title page and vocabulary page can be downloaded for free here. Lessons include:
L1 – Identifying the countries and capitals of the UK & Ireland (FREE)
L2 – Locating UK cities using compass directions
L3 – Identifying human & physical features of the UK
L4 – Investigating satellite photos of the UK
L5 – Comparing the city and the countryside
L6– Identifying famous features and characteristics of countries of the UK
L7 – Identifying flags of the United Kingdom
L8 – Identifying the four seasons of weather in the UK
Optional lesson – Identifying the countries and capital cities of Europe
Each lesson includes a presentation and differentiated activities/worksheets.
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
This resource is designed for teaching the Great Fire of London KS1 History unit. You can download the planning for free here. It is suitable for Year 2 children and more able Year 1 children.
The presentation introduces the context of the Great Fire of London and challenges children to find reasons for the rapid spread of the fire. The literacy-based activity reinforces this learning .
Two differentiated worksheets challenge children to match reasons for the Great Fire of London with sentence starters:
- the standard activity sheet gives five possible reasons
- an easier activity sheet gives just two reasons to choose from per sentence starter
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
This lesson is part of Exploring the United Kingdom, a Geography unit designed for KS1 and lower KS2 (Y2-4).
This lesson encourages students to identify geographical features found in the city/countryside and think about the similarities and differences between urban and rural areas in the UK.
First the presentation shows small segments of images from around the United Kingdom and challenges students to work out whether they are from the city or countryside.
Children then complete a Venn diagram-based activity which can be done in two ways:
Group activity:
In pairs or trios, children sort images of the city and countryside using a Venn diagram. This can also be done using two PE hoops and makes a nice classroom display.
Individual activity:
Students sort city and countryside vocabulary using a Venn diagram:
Easier – Students sort 12 city/countryside words
Harder – Students sort 18 city/countryside words
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
This lesson is part of Mountain Environments, a Geography unit designed for students in upper KS2 (Y4-6).
First the presentation recaps the structure of the Earth and how its crust is split into tectonic plates. It then investigates the different ways tectonic plates can move and how two tectonic plates colliding can form fold mountains (e.g. the Himalayas).
The differentiated activity challenges students to work out which tectonic plates formed different fold mountain ranges around the world.
Easier – Students have to find one tectonic plate.
Medium – Students have to find two tectonic plates.
Harder – Students find the name of each mountain range and two tectonic plates.
Extension – Students complete a cloze procedure paragraph about fold mountains.
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
This resource is part of Exploring Australia, a Geography unit designed for students in upper KS1 and lower KS2 (Y2-Y4). All resources are compatible with both Microsoft Office and Google Workspace.
First the presentation investigates how Australia’s position closer to the Equator impacts its climate. Next, students are introduced to Australia’s three climate zones (tropical, arid and temperate) and find out how this effects weather in different parts of the country.
The activity challenges students to identify the climate zones of different Australian towns and cities:
Easier - Students identify the climate zones of 12 towns/cities.
Harder - Students identify the state and climate zones of 12 towns/cities.
Extension - Students investigate which climate zone has the most towns/cities and what this indicates about Australia’s population.
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
This lesson is part of Understanding Latitude and Longitude, a unit designed for students in upper KS2 and KS3. It can also be taught as a stand-alone lesson.
This lesson is specifically devised to help students read latitude and longitude with greater accuracy. Initially it scaffolds the learning of this skill with the use of guidelines, then encourages students to have a go without any aids.
The activity is differentiated two ways and includes an extension:
Easier – Students find the latitude and longitude of 12 points on a world map with guidelines.
Harder – Students find the latitude and longitude of 18 points on a world map with guidelines.
Extension – Students have a go at finding the coordinates of 12 points without guidelines.
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
This lesson is part of Exploring Brazil, a Geography unit designed for students in KS2 (Y4-6), but can also be taught as a stand alone lesson.
The presentation first locates Brazil in the world’s climate zones and asks children to infer what the country’s weather and climate might be like.
Next, students look at three areas of Brazil in more detail – Manaus in the Amazon, Teresina in the caatinga desert region and Porto Alegre in the south of the country – and investigate a climate graph.
There are two activities:
Activity 1:
Students first investigate three climate graphs, looking at temperature and rainfall. Their challenge is to match each graph to an area of Brazil, explaining their reasoning for their choices. It is differentiated 2 ways:
Easier – Students match two statements to each climate graph, then match each graph to one of the three cities/regions.
Harder – Students write sentence describing the temperature and rainfall patterns in each climate graph, then match each graph to one of the three cities/regions.
Activity 2:
Students create their own Brazil climate graphs in Microsoft Excel using step-by-step instructions.
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.
This lesson is part of Exploring Spain, a Geography unit designed for upper KS2 students (Y4-6), but can also be taught as a stand alone lesson.
Students first learn about the Iberian peninsula. They then explore some of the main geographical features of Spain itself and categorise these into human (e.g. cities) and physical (e.g. mountains).
The activity challenges students to identify these features on a map of Spain. It is differentiated two ways:
Easier – Students identify human & physical features of Spain using a colour-coded map and word bank
Harder – Students identify human & physical features of Spain using a map & word bank
Extension – Students complete a cloze procedure text about the human and physical geography of Spain.
If you like this resource, we would appreciate a review! We will happily send you a free resource in return for a review or useful suggestions/feedback. Contact us at ed@teachitforward.co.uk.