Diamond 9: Why did Spain go to war with Elizabethan England?

This outstanding diamond 9 activity is designed to help students understand the political, economic and religious causes of the war between Spain and England in 1585. This fun and engaging lesson is suitable for higher ability students. If you are looking for a resource more suitable for middle and lower ability students, then please check out my card sort on this topic.

When you purchase this resource you will be able to download a fully editable Microsoft Word documenth. The resource includes instructions for the activity and nine diamond shaped cards which include each of the nine main reasons which explain why Spain went to war with Britain in 1485. I have also included a PowerPoint which is designed to help facilitate the activity. It includes aims, objectives, differentiated outcomes, information slides, links to video clips and tasks and activities to support the main diamond 9 activity. Please see the detailed preview for more information:

At each stage students should be feeding back to their group or the class to explain their choices. This is absolutely critical if you are going to develop the critical thinking skills that you are looking to develop via a diamond 9 activity. Once students have sorted the cards, you can extend their understanding of the topic further by discussing or explaining in an extended piece of writing which problem was the most significant or important.

The aims and objectives for this lesson are:

Theme: Elizabethan England
Know: Why did tensions between England and Spain increase in 1585?
Understand: What were the political, economic and religious causes of the war?
Evaluate: Which factor was the most important?
Skills: Source Analysis, Cause, Consequence & Collaboration

WILF – What Am I Looking For?
Identify & describe: Why did tensions between England and Spain increase in 1585?
Explain: The political, economic and religious causes of the war with Spain
Analyse: Which factor was the most important?

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Kind Regards

Roy