This is an ‘outstanding’ lesson that was devised for a performance management observation. It is aimed at Key Stage 4 and 5 students examining Winston Churchill’s personal contribution to Britain’s survival in the Second World War. It was designed for use with students who possess some background knowledge of this topic although it could be used equally successfully as an introductory lesson with those new to this subject area. It consists of three main activities and an extension task for more able, gifted and talented students. The lesson is structured around an independent source investigation that involves students studying authentic primary sources in order to develop their own evaluation of Churchill’s contribution as wartime leader. A PowerPoint presentation, primary source pack and worksheet are included, along with a detailed, step-by-step guide on how to deliver the lesson effectively. All of the lesson resources can be fully customised to meet your pupils’ learning needs.

This resource provides a comprehensive guide to best practice in observing teaching and offering constructive feedback to colleagues. Based on the most recent research on facilitating teacher improvement, this 5 page document contains practical, hands-on advice that is suitable for lesson observation in both secondary and primary settings. It offers a ‘coaching’ model for supporting colleagues in reflecting on their own practice through the use of a ‘guided’ questioning framework. This will prove helpful both for those who have just taken on responsibility for the performance management of other staff or more experienced middle or senior managers wishing to refresh and update their approach. Both a PDF and Microsoft Word version of the guide are provided so it can be fully customised to reflect the teaching and learning priorities of an individual school.

This complete lesson is aimed at Key Stage 3 and GCSE students examining Elizabeth I’s strengths and weaknesses as queen. It is most suitable for use with students who are already familiar with the key themes of Elizabeth’s reign, although it could be used equally effectively with higher ability pupils as an introduction to Elizabeth’s achievements and failures as monarch. It’s made up of 3 separate activities (plus an extension task for gifted and talented students) each of which could be used in isolation. See the step-by-step lesson guide for further information on how to deliver each activity. All of the lesson resources can be fully customised to meet your pupils’ learning needs.

This is a complete lesson aimed at Key Stage 3 and 4 students examining how effective British recruitment propaganda was during the First World War. It’s made up of 5 separate activities, each of which could be used in isolation. It addresses 3 key topics: 1. What propaganda is and why the government used it to recruit men. 2. The persuasive techniques used in recruitment propaganda. 3. Evaluating the effectiveness of recruitment propaganda during the First World War. See the lesson guide document for further information on how to deliver each activity.

This lesson is aimed at pupils in year 9 and key stage 4 who have already studied the causes of the First World War. It has been designed to support them in developing their own interpretations of why war broke out in July 1914. Everything you will need to deliver the lesson is provided, including the lesson PowerPoint presentation, worksheet and a detailed, step-by-step guide on teaching it successfully. This lesson would be an ideal preparation for writing an essay on the origins of the Great War and would also be a helpful revision resource. It consists of 4 separate learning activities and an extension task for more able, gifted and talented students.

This is a useful card sort activity that helps Year 7 pupils to assess the variety of reasons for William’s victory at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. Each card provides a brief summary of a factor that contributed towards William’s victory and is illustrated by a colourful image to act as a memory aid for students. This activity would work effectively as the final part of a lesson, or sequence of lessons, on the Battle of Hastings. Pupils would also benefit from completing this as a revision exercise. The cards can be used in their own right or combined with the two different worksheets provided for a more innovative approach to this topic. The card sort, two worksheets and a detailed guide to delivering this activity are included.

This 'outstanding' Ofsted lesson includes 4 activities and an extension task that allow pupils to develop their own interpretation of why Becket was killed in December 1170. Aimed primarily at Year 7 and 8, this resource contains everything you need to deliver a highly effective and engaging sequence of lessons about one of the key events in medieval history. In addition to the lesson PowerPoint presentation, worksheet and card sort (which can be edited) there is also a detailed step-by-step guide to teaching each part of the lesson.

This ‘Disappearing Squares’ activity is a simple yet highly engaging way of reviewing the key factors that led to Hitler’s appointment as Chancellor in January 1933. It has been designed primarily for GCSE and A Level students, although with some adaptation it could equally be used with students in key stage 3. This resource can easily be customised for use with any topic area. A detailed, step-by-step guide on how to deliver this activity is also included.

This resource provides a detailed summary of the key trends in the historiography of slavery since the publication of Philip Curtin’s seminal work, 'The Atlantic Slave Trade: A Census' in 1969. Designed for use with A Level students, this PowerPoint presentation takes as its central theme the tension between ‘quantitative’ and ‘cultural’ approaches, a defining theme in the subject’s historiography. The presentation is fully illustrated and the information is presented in an accessible and easy-to-digest format, including short quotations from the key texts discussed. Both a PowerPoint and PDF version of the resource is provided so it can simply be printed out as a useful set of notes for students or used as a lesson presentation on the historiography of the Atlantic slave trade. The following areas are discussed in detail in the resource: Philip Curtin’s 'The Atlantic Slave Trade: A Census' (1969) and the beginnings of revisionism Stephen Behrendt and David Eltis’s 'Voyages: The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database' and a quantitative approach Toby Green’s critique of the quantitative approach Marcus Rediker’s 'The Slave Ship: A Human History' (2007) Gregory E. O’Malley’s 'Final Passages: The Intercolonial Slave Trade of British America, 1619-1807' (2014) Philip Misevich and Kristin Mann’s 'The Rise and Demise of Slavery and the Slave Trade in the Atlantic World' (2016) There is a sufficient amount of challenging content in the resource to stretch even the most able A Level student.

This is a fun and engaging way of introducing Mary Tudor to key stages 3 and 4 which always proves popular with students. Pupils analyse the contents of Mary's hypothetical 'handbag' to discover what she was like as queen. They look at a series of objects which represent various aspects of Mary's reign. For example, the box of matches in her handbag symbolises her penchant for burning Protestants while her rosary reflects her strong Catholic faith. Pupils complete a worksheet recording their explanations of each object. This activity could work equally well as an independent learning task set for homework or as a revision exercise at the end of a unit of work on the Tudors.

This lesson explores the role of slave auctions in the transatlantic slave trade and is aimed primarily at Key Stage 3 students. It assumes no prior knowledge of the topic but could be used successfully with both students new to this subject area or those who have studied it already. The lesson involves very little writing and has proved particularly successful with lower ability groups. However, it can easily be adapted for use by higher ability students. The lesson consists of four main activities and is based around a source investigation that involves students sequencing and analysing a series of image-based sources. A PowerPoint presentation, set of source cards and a lesson worksheet are included, along with a detailed, step-by-step guide on how to deliver the lesson effectively.

A complete, 35-page revision guide for the ‘War in Vietnam, 1954-1975’ depth study in Unit 2 of the AQA GCSE History B course. It covers every part of the prescribed content for this depth study and has been used successfully by GCSE students over the last few years. There are also links included to video clips that neatly summarise the content being revised. The guide is divided into 5 sections which reflect the ‘key issues’ the subject content is organised around in the AQA specification: 1. The origins of the Vietnam War and the French defeat at Dien Bien Phu 2. US policy and intervention following the French defeat 3. How effective were guerrilla tactics during the Vietnam War? 4. How did the coverage of the Vietnam War in the USA lead to demands for peace? 5. Why were the US actions to end the Vietnam War unsuccessful?

This innovative and popular activity provides everything pupils will need to create their very own finger puppet show of the murder of Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral in December 1170. It includes a set of 10 easy-to-make finger puppets that simply need to be printed onto card and cut-out, a 'script' of the murder to be read by a narrator and a set of instructions. This engaging, interactive and highly memorable activity is always a hit with students in Year 7 or 8 and can be filmed to create a learning resource pupils can revise from. It is aimed primarily at pupils in Key Stage 3 although it could be used equally effectively with older students.

This lesson explores the impact of the First World War on the Liberal Party and is aimed primarily at key stage 5 or high ability key stage 4 students. It assumes no prior knowledge of this topic but could be used successfully with both students new to this subject area or those who have studied it already. It consists of three main activities and an extension task for more able, gifted and talented students. The lesson is structured around an independent source investigation that involves students studying authentic primary sources in order to develop their understanding of the political impact of the war. A PowerPoint presentation, source investigation pack and worksheet are included, along with a detailed, step-by-step guide on how to deliver the lesson effectively.

Two sets of revision notes for the ‘Origins of the Cold War, 1945-1960’ topic in Unit 1 of the AQA GCSE History B course, covering the Hungarian rising of 1956, the nuclear arms race and the space race. All the prescribed content for these parts of the specification is covered and these guides have been used successfully by GCSE students over the last few years. There are also links included to video clips that neatly summarise the content being revised. The guides are divided into the following sections to support students in structuring their revision: The Hungarian Rising of 1956 1. How peaceful was Khrushchev’s policy of ‘peaceful co-existence’? 2. The causes of the uprising 3. The key events of the uprising 4. How the USSR dealt with the uprising 5. The consequences of the crisis for Europe and the Cold War The Space Race and the Nuclear Arms Race 1. Why was space so important in the Cold War? 2. Key events in the early space race 3. The important link between the space race and the nuclear arms race 4. The ‘nuclear deterrent’ 5. ‘Mutually Assured Destruction’ (MAD)