This activity serves to introduce the ‘big story’ of the unit. You could use it in the first lesson of the unit, to help give students an overview of this fascinating unit about Kievan Rus.. Or, it would be a great homework activity: students could be tasked with reading the[…]
Download this knowledge organiser for the eighth unit in the HRC Year 7 Diverse Curriculum. The unit is centred around the question: The unit is centred around the question: Is Martin Sixsmith right about the ‘culture, beauty and embryonic democracy’ of Kievan Rus? This knowledge organiser provides your students with[…]
This lesson is the first in an 8-lesson unit of the medieval state of Kievan Rus, and the Principality of Moscow (Muscovy) that emerged after the decline of Mongol influence in the region. Taken as a whole, the unit aims to give students some historical context to the modern-day conflict[…]
This lesson – the second in the unit on Kievan Rus – focuses on one of the early rulers of the state: Oleg, who is often known as ‘Oleg the Wise’. Students first use Russian writer Alexander Pushkin’s poem ‘The Song of Wise Oleg’ to find out about the deeds[…]
This lesson helps to deepen students’ understanding of an essential first-order concept: namely, ‘democracy’. Students are challenged to work out how democratic the state of Kievan Rus was, using a set of criteria to help make their judgements. They look at key aspects of life in Kievan Rus, including the[…]
This lesson focuses on the second-order concept of significance,. It develops students’ ability to judge an individual’s significance through a focus on the 11th century queen, Anne of Kiev. Students are first briefly introduced to the current conflict between Russia and Ukraine. They also find out about a recent Twitter[…]
This lesson focuses on a key moment in the history of Kievan Rus. Namely, the Mongol invasion, which was triggered by Batu Khan’s conquest of various Kievan cities in 1240. Students are introduced to an historical interpretation in the form of Nikolai Karamzin’s claim that the Mongol invasion caused the[…]
This lesson focuses on a key event in the history of Kievan Rus. Namely the attempted invasion in 1241 of the Teutonic knights, who were on a crusade to convert as many parts of the world as they could to Catholicism. Students use an interpretation: Sergei Eisenstein’s famous film, Alexander[…]
This lesson moves the story of Kievan Rus on, introducing students to the Principality of Moscow (or Muscovy) which emerged in the 13th and 14th centuries. In the lesson, students are invited to take a ‘tour’ of the Moscow Kremlin. They take in some of its famous sites – palaces,[…]
This lesson is the final in a series of eight lessons on Kievan Rus/Muscovy, and focuses on one of the better-known figures associated with this period of Russian history: Ivan the Terrible. Students are first introduced to two contrasting interpretations of Ivan, and they are challenged to work out what[…]
Some of you may well use tarsias to consolidate your pupils knowledge of a unit of work. You can find out about them here. This tarsia has been designed to check out your classes knowledge of the Year 7 diverse curriculum: Kievan Rus unit. This unit tracks the early years[…]
Download this free substantive knowledge test for this 6 lesson unit on Kievan Rus history. Just sign up as basic member. This unit tracks the early years of Kievan history, the ‘democratic’ nature of Kievan society, the Mongol invasion and then the growing influence of Moscow under Ivan. This resource[…]
This final assessment asks your students to plan and write a short, informative video clip about Kievan Rus. This assessment helps students structure their work by providing them a chronological sorting exercise. They are then given a set of 17 images. They need to select the relevant images that tell[…]
This activity serves to introduce the ‘big story’ of the unit. Overviews are crucial in helping your pupils make sense of your curriculum. You could use it in the first lesson of the unit, to help give students an overview. Or, it would be a great homework activity: students could[…]
Download this knowledge organiser for this first unit in the HRC Year 8 Diverse Curriculum. The unit is centred around the question: Did the changes during the years 1500 to 1900 really cause people to ‘redefine themselves’? This knowledge organiser provides your students with the core substantive knowledge and key[…]
This unit introduces you to the Early Modern Period and takes it right up to 1900. It brilliantly asks you students to decide if they agree with historian James Collins who said that during this time Europeans ‘re-defined’ themselves. Your students will look at the ways people’s attitudes changed, using[…]
This lesson is the first in an introductory unit on the period 1500-1900. It provides students with an overview understanding of the big changes that took place during these years. It begins with an engaging image activity, which gives students the chance to draw on their existing knowledge of some[…]
This lesson focuses on ideas. It gives students the chance to consider the extent to which people’s attitudes and beliefs changed during the period 1500-1900. What might well appear to be a fairly abstract concept is made accessible through the use of case studies, as students are challenged to[…]
This lesson takes the big topic of the Renaissance, and encourages students to consider how such a large, European-wide ‘movement’ might have actually impacted on ordinary people in England. First, students are supported in coming up with definitions for ‘the Renaissance’. Then they consider information relating to five different aspects[…]
This lesson takes the form of a game of ‘Snakes and Ladders’, although the game has been adapted for historical purposes! Students are challenged to take on the role of a key individual from the period 1500-1900, to try to increase their power and influence in society – and ultimately[…]
This lesson offers an exciting opportunity for students to find out more about six of the major ‘voyages of discovery’ that were undertaken in the period 1500-1900. They are challenged to identify ways in which these voyages helped to identify new routes, gain new riches, and forge new relationships overseas.[…]
This lesson is a bit different: it’s all about the processes of studying history, and the benefits of different approaches to the study of the past. It’s pretty high level stuff, but made manageable for KS3 students through the use of a case study. First, students reflect on their favourite[…]
Download this free substantive knowledge test for this overview unit for to the diverse year 8 curriculum – just sign up as basic member. It tests your students’ core knowledge from this 6 lesson enquiry. The second page shows you the teacher answers. Use it alongside the interpretation assessment. This[…]
This written diverse assessment gives your year 8 classes the chance to encounter historical scholarship head on. This fits with good assessment practice at KS3. First, students are introduced to a fascinating interpretation by James Collins who explains how Early Modern Europeans re-defined themselves. He discusses how explorers discovered new[…]
This activity serves to introduce the ‘big story’ of this fascinating unit on Revolutionary England. Overviews are crucial in helping your pupils make sense of your curriculum. You could use it in the first lesson of the unit, to help give students an overview. Or, it would be a great[…]
Download this knowledge organiser for this fascinating second unit in the HRC Year 8 Diverse Curriculum. The unit is centred around the question: How did revolutions change early modern England? This knowledge organiser provides your students with the core substantive knowledge and key terms they will need to know to[…]
This lesson introduces students to the ‘rollercoaster’ of religious change that took place under the Tudor monarchs. It serves as a foundation for the next couple of lessons in this unit. Students are challenged first to organise key information about the approaches of the different Tudor monarchs into chronological order.[…]
This lesson conveys the significant impact wrought by the Reformation on the lives of ordinary people in Tudor England. It does this by focusing on villagers from Morebath, a small village in Devon. Historian Eamon Duffy conducted a detailed survey of the Reformation and its local ramifications, making use of[…]
This lesson takes a classic Ian Dawson enquiry format. Students are tasked with working out why the wealthy and influential Baron Hungerford of Heytesbury was executed in 1540. Evidence is gradually revealed to students. They are supported in forming and amending their hypotheses as more clues are given to them.[…]
This lesson takes as its focus the fascinating story of Civil War-era spy Elizabeth Alkin. Elizabeth supported the Parliamentarian cause by ‘spying’ on Royalist sympathisers. She then reported them back to the Parliamentarian authorities. It is a great opportunity to add some diversity to your early modern period lessons. You[…]
