3. Overview: How much change did Britain see between 1500 and 1900?

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 of the better-known events that took place in these years. They are asked to think about: Henry VIII’s famous marriages, the abolition of slavery and the coronation of Queen Victoria.

Next, students work in pairs to complete a card sort activity, as they are challenged to match up the ‘before’ images with the correct ‘after’ images.

Contextual information is then provided to help students make sense of the changes that have been explored.

A bank of questions is then drawn upon to help students verbalise and articulate the ways in which these changes might have impacted on the lives of ordinary people between 1500 and 1900. You can see the questions here:

The final activity gives students the chance to test out some of the new knowledge they’ve gained in the lesson.

A fast-paced enquiry, which provides a lot of the key contextual information that will help them to explore some of the main themes and concepts in more detail in later lessons.