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.
This lesson is designed for KS2 students and is a great introduction to any volcanoes or earthquakes topic. It can be taught as a stand alone lesson but is also available as part of three wider units, all of which are available on TES:
-Volcanoes
-Earthquakes
-Volcanoes & Earthquakes
The presentation investigates the structure of the Earth and looks into the basic composition of the inner core, outer core, mantle and crust.
Students then complete an activity which is differentiated three ways:
Easier – Students label layers of the Earth and complete cloze procedure paragraph (6 gaps).
Medium – Students label layers of the Earth and complete cloze procedure paragraph (10 gaps).
Harder – Students label layers of the Earth – including drawing arrows – and complete cloze procedure paragraph (10 gaps).
Extension – Students think about what they would like to find out about volcanoes or earthquakes or both, depending on which topic you are doing.
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 Austalia’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 designed for KS2 students. 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:
-Volcanoes
-Volcanoes & Earthquakes
The presentation investigates the five deadly features of a volcanic eruption including volcanic ash, lava flows, volcanic bombs, pyroclastic flows and mud flows (or ‘lahars’).
The activity challenges students to match pictures of each feature to a description. It is differentiated four ways:
Easier – Students match pictures of the five features of a volcanic eruption to the 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 – Children stick pictures of the five features of a volcanic eruption in their books and write their own description next to each one.
Extension – Which feature of a volcanic eruption do children think is the most deadly? Can they explain their answer?
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 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 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.
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).
In the lesson, students learn about the four seasons and characteristics associated with each. First they have to guess each season using different clues. They then find out about the different types of weather associated with each season.
The colourful activity is differentiated three ways:
Easier – Students match 16 pictures (with labels) to the seasons.
Medium – Students match 20 pictures (with labels) to the seasons.
Harder – Students match 20 pictures to the seasons and label them.
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 looks at features of a mountain climate including lower temperatures and increased rainfall. It then focuses in more detail on the climate of Mount Everest.
There are two activities:
Interpreting climate graphs
In this activity students look at and answer questions about temperature graphs for both the summit and base camp of Mount Everest. It is differentiated two ways:
Easier – Students answer questions about temperature graphs for Mount Everest (suitable for Year 4 and 5).
Harder – Students answer questions about temperature graphs for Mount Everest (suitable for Year 6).
Creating a climate graph in Excel
In this ICT activity, students create their own climate graph, including temperature and rainfall, for the summit of Mount Everest using Microsoft Excel.
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 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.
Exploring St Lucia is a Geography unit designed for students in KS2.
As a tropical island in the Caribbean, St Lucia is great for teaching about a contrasting non-European country.
The planning overview, topic title page and vocabulary page can be downloaded for free here. Lessons include:
L1 – Locating St Lucia in the Caribbean
L2 – Identifying the human and physical features of St Lucia
L3 – Investigating satellite photos of St Lucia
L4 – Using compass directions to locate places in St Lucia
L5 – Comparing the weather of St Lucia and the UK
L6 – Comparing St Lucia with the UK
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 The Seaside, a Geography unit designed for students in KS1 and lower KS2, but can also be taught as a stand alone lesson.
This lesson has a PSHE/writing focus and complements the other Geography skills based lessons in this unit.
The presentation asks students to think about what they would take on a seaside holiday. Students are particularly encouraged to think about items linked to sun safety (e.g. sun cream, sun hat).
The activity then challenges students to draw or stick the items they would take in their suitcase on a seaside holiday:
Easier - Students have three designated items to write sentences about.
Harder - Students choose three of their own items to write sentences about.
Extension - Students can label the items they have drawn/stuck in their suitcase.
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.
Our World is a comprehensive Geography topic about Planet Earth, suitable for KS1 and lower KS2 (Y1-3).
The planning overview, topic title page and vocabulary page can be downloaded for free here. Lessons include:
L1 – Completing a world map jigsaw
L2 – Identifying the continents and oceans of the world (FREE)
L3 – Where do we live?
L4 – Identifying human and natural features of the world
L5 – Investigating satellite photos of famous world landmarks
L6 – Introduction to compass directions
L7 – Identifying world climate zones
L8 – Identifying the countries and capitals of the UK (FREE)
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 Samuel Pepys and extracts of his diary which recorded his eyewitness account of the Great Fire of London . The activity challenges children to investigate this primary source to find out more about the events of September 1666.
There are two differentiated worksheets:
- one has an extract from Pepys’ diary and comprehension questions
- one has an extract from Pepys’ diary and comprehension questions with coloured text to help children find the answers
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.
This lesson is part of a wider Geography unit called Great Missenden – A Village Settlement which is designed for students in upper KS2 (Y4-6).
The presentation introduces students to the concept of settlements and asks them to categorise them by size (e.g. hamlet, village, town, city, conurbation). It then introduces them to a range of human geographical features found in settlements (e.g. post offices, sports stadiums).
In the activity students identify a variety of human geographical features found in settlements. It is differentiated two ways:
Easier – Students identify the features of settlements with normal clues.
Harder – Students identify the features of settlements with jumbled up clues.
Extension – Students identify which types of settlements these features are usually found in.
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 challenges students to think about all the different ways we use water and where we get it from. Are these necessary (needs) or luxury (wants)?
Students then categorise these uses of water as agricultural, recreational, commercial/industrial or community. Lastly, they consider how we can balance human water requirements with those of Earth’s wildlife.
In the activity students sort photos of different water uses into six different categories:
Household
Commercial/industrial
Recreational
Agricultural
Community
Wildlife
In the extension activity, students classify each water use as either necessary or luxury and explain their reasoning.
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 KS2 Stone Age History unit. It includes an engaging presentation, differentiated worksheets and stickers. The activity helps children categorise foods into those ‘hunted’ and those ‘gathered’. This reinforces the idea that Stone Age humans were primarily ‘hunter-gatherers’.
There are three differentiated worksheets:
- one with vocabulary for less able children
- one with fill-in-the-blank sentences using commas in lists
- one which extends more able children by asking them to explain how Stone Age humans hunted
The stickers will print out on Avery address labels (21 per page).
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.
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.