Category: 1900-2000 (GCSE History)

The Rise of Hitler – End of Unit Factual Test

To evaluate factual recall, students can then be set this test (30 questions) as a classroom exercise. Personally, I like to get them all playing this Fling the Teacher Quiz for the first 15 minutes of the lesson as “last minute revision”. The first person to finish this game successfully gets 10/10, the second person…

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Why did Hitler become Chancellor of Germany? – 3. Display Task

The final part of the exercise involves students approaching the question from a completely fresh perspective. Six – rather than three – factors are provided in the form of cards, each one of which contains essential pieces of factual information. Students have to arrange these on sugar paper, establish links between the factors by connecting…

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Why did Hitler become Chancellor of Germany? – 1. Skeleton Essay Exercise

In this exercise, students are given three “skeleton essays”, each one of which puts forward a different interpretation of Hitler’s rise to power. Students read through each interpretation, choose the one they agree with most, and then elaborate on each section using their classroom notes. It provides an accessible way of showing students how the…

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Stalin’s Five Year Plans – Test

A 20-question factual test designed to accompany the interactive simulation for IB / A2 History students investigating Stalin’s Five-Year-Plans

The Fatal Attraction of Adolf Hitler: Worksheet

After studying the Weimar Republic on its own terms, students should turn their attention in more detail to the activities of Adolf Hitler during the Weimar period. This worksheet is designed to accompany the first part of the excellent video documentary “The Fatal Attraction of Adolf Hitler (1989)” (30 mins). Sadly I don’t think it’s…

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The Culture of the Weimar Republic

The positive achievements of the Weimar Republic are easily overlooked. This project encourages students to investigate the cultural vibrancy of the Republic by producing a “virtual tour” around the Berlin of the 1920s.

Stalin’s Henchmen

Stalin’s Henchmen – A worksheet which gives students the opportunity to investigate the key characters at the Court of the Red Tsar: Mikoyan, Kaganovich, Kirov, Yagoda, Molotov, Voroshilov, Sergo.

Why did Stalin become leader of the USSR?

Essay Assignment: Why did Stalin become leader of the USSR? – Students are given a long list of factors which they have to categorise and then turn into a written piece to consolidate their understanding of Stalin’s rise to power.

Political Parties in Weimar Germany

Display Task: Useful as an extension or as a homework activity. Students are provided with a diagram of the main political parties in Weimar Germany. They use this as the basis for some propaganda posters for classroom display.

The Reichstag Fire

A paper version of an online interactive unit (coming soon!), developed in conjunction with John D. Clare. Students use information about the key characters involved to create a “courtroom drama” seeking to determine who was responsible for the Reichstag Fire.

Stalin’s Rise to Power – Lenin’s Testament

Lenin’s Testament – A worksheet which introduces the strengths and weaknesses of the Lenin’s possible successors. Designed to be used in conjunction with this primary source extract from Lenin’s Testament.

Stalin and the USSR: Study Guide

A printable study guide designed for A-Level / IB History students, designed to engage student interest by outlining the historical significance of Stalin’s rule of the USSR.

Korean War – Collapsible Notes

A summary of the main causes, events and consequences of the Korean War, which can be “collapsed” or “expanded” for levels of detail. Useful for revision.

Nazi Germany Simulation: Undercover in the Third Reich!

I have just launched a brand new simulation for students of Nazi Germany. This game is a brand new version of an activity which has been one of the most popular features of the site for a number of years. It has over three times as many locations, each of which highlights a different aspect…

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Origins of the Cold War – Cartoon Analysis

Analyse a series of cartoons by hovering over details and answering exam-style questions. When you have finished, the computer will provide you with a printout comparing your answer to a model answer. A great way to revise and develop sourcework skills.

Origins of the Cold War

https://www.activehistory.co.uk/fling/quizzes/gcse_cold_war_origins/quiz.htm with several sets of questions.

Manchuria and Abyssinia – GCSE Cartoon Analysis

Analyse a series of cartoons by hovering over details and answering exam-style questions. When you have finished, the computer will provide you with a printout comparing your answer to a model answer. A great way to revise and develop sourcework skills.

Hitler’s Foreign Policy – GCSE Cartoon Analysis

Analyse a series of cartoons by hovering over details and answering exam-style questions. When you have finished, the computer will provide you with a printout comparing your answer to a model answer. A great way to revise and develop sourcework skills.

Nazi Germany – GCSE Cartoon Analysis

Analyse a series of cartoons by hovering over details and answering exam-style questions. When you have finished, the computer will provide you with a printout comparing your answer to a model answer. A great way to revise and develop sourcework skills.

Weimar Germany – GCSE Cartoon Analysis

Analyse a series of cartoons by hovering over details and answering exam-style questions. When you have finished, the computer will provide you with a printout comparing your answer to a model answer. A great way to revise and develop sourcework skills.

League in the 1920s – Cartoon Analysis

Analyse a series of cartoons by hovering over details and answering exam-style questions. When you have finished, the computer will provide you with a printout comparing your answer to a model answer. A great way to revise and develop sourcework skills.

Political Cartoons – The Versailles Peace Treaty

Analyse a series of cartoons by hovering over details and answering exam-style questions. When you have finished, the computer will provide you with a printout comparing your answer to a model answer. A great way to revise and develop sourcework skills.

Opposition in Nazi Germany

A new Fling the Teacher Quiz, designed to test factual knowledge of this GCSE Modern World History topic.

The Nazis and Propaganda

A new Fling the Teacher Quiz, designed to test factual knowledge of this GCSE Modern World History topic.

Nazi Treatment of Jews

A new Fling the Teacher Quiz, designed to test factual knowledge of this GCSE Modern World History topic.

Nazi Religious Policies

A new Fling the Teacher Quiz, designed to test factual knowledge of this GCSE Modern World History topic.

Korean War Quiz

Korean War Fling the Teacher Quiz – 75 possible questions: I like to get all the students playing it simultaneously, and award 25 points for the first person to finish, 24 for the next, and so on; over the course of a few weeks you can build up a “Fling the Teacher Leaderboard” if you…

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Truman’s Dismissal of MacArthur

A new worksheet on the Cold War section of the website. Was Truman right to limit his policy of “rollback” in Korea, or should he have followed MacArthur’s advice to escalate the war at the risk of conflict with China and the USSR?

The Korean War – Escalation

The Korean War – Escalation After a successful invasion at Inchon led by MacArther, should the USA settle with “Containment” of communism, or pursue “Rollback” of the communist threat? Students examine the sources and reach their judgements.

The Korean War – Background and Significance

The Korean War – Background and Significance In this activity, students consider the early events in the war, assess why the Korean War is historically significant, and reflect on the arguments for and against the involvement of the US and the UN.

Interactive Newsfeed – The Korean War

A new activity for IGCSE History (The Korean War). Students complete a timeline of events by furiously jotting down events presented to them in an interactive newsfeed.

The Truman Doctrine and Marshall Aid

A new worksheet which introduces students to the concept of the Truman Doctrine and Marshall Aid, and then encourages them to compare various cartoons to reach their own judgements.

Agricultural Reform under Peter Stolypin

For IB / A-Level historians. Agricultural Reform under Peter Stolypin: In a similar exercise to that relating to Witte’s policies for industry, students consider what has caused each problem that is listed, they then suggest what should be done to solve it, then compare this to what Stolypin actually did to form an overall asessment….

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Wall St. Crash Simulation

A completely new version of this popular interactive simulation, which now focuses much more heavily on the historical events of 1929 for GCSE Modern World History students. A new history worksheet is also provided with the game.

Interactive Newsfeed – Cold War Origins

Students use this interactive newsfeed activity to record the main events of the origins of the Cold War. They then produce a “chat show” dialogue between a communist and a capitalist using the events in a timeline that is provided; each speaker will have a biased interpretation. As an extension, students produce a “living graph”…

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Interactive Quizzes – Roots of the Cold War, 1914-45

End of Unit Test: The Roots of the Cold War, 1917-45 A 20-Question “Fill the Gaps” exercise which gives a handy one-sided summary of the main events up to 1945. Students should be encouraged to play one of the following games prior to completing the test – either as a homework exercise, or as “last…

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Korean War – IGCSE Cartoon Analysis

Analyse a series of IGCSE History level cartoons by hovering over details and answering exam-style questions. When you have finished, the computer will provide you with a printout comparing your answer to a model answer. A great way to revise and develop sourcework skills ready for the IGCSE History Examination!

The Significance of the 1905 Revolution

For IB / A-Level historians. What was the significance of the 1905 Revolution? Why did it fail? These are important questions to consider, especially given the tendency of examiners to ask why the 1917 Revolutions succeeded when the 1905 Revolution failed.

The Yalta Conference: Online Simulation!

An artificial intelligence simulation, complete with a worksheet: students choose whether to play as Churchill, Roosevelt or Stalin at the Yalta Conference of 1945, and then pit their wits against their opponents to achieve their objectives. Complete with a worksheet, this computer lesson runs itself and is a great way of learning about the personalities,…

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Stalin’s Foreign Policy

This worksheet covers the period 1917-39. Students use a detailed timeline to produce a biased account from firstly a communist, then a capitalist perspective.

Hiroshima and Nagasaki

In this lesson, students consider the ethical implications behind the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by reconstructing a scientific debate chaired by Farrington Daniels in 1945. Some excellent multimedia materials are available at the Atomic Archive.

Nicholas II: Industrial Developments

For IB / A-Level historians. A PowerPoint presentation with an accompanying worksheet. Teachers may wish to use this if they are pressed for time and so prefer to simply deliver a lecture with students taking notes. It’s less fun that the “Witte’s Dilemma” worksheet above, though!

Yalta and Potsam: How similar were they?

Students answer the key question, then the class is divided into groups representing USA, USSR, UK, Germany and Poland. Each person in the group needs to produce a biased news report about the outcomes of the two conferences.

Overview of the Reign of Tsar Nicholas II, 1894-1917

For IB / A-Level historians. Students now spend a lesson researching different aspects of the reign of Tsar Nicholas II. Each topic area has a brief introduction, and individual students take responsibility for reporting back to the class with their findings. This helps to break the topic up nicely before they start to look at…

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Yalta and Potsdam: What really happened?

In this exercise, students learn about what really happened at Yalta and decide who got the most out of the conference; they then compare this to the results of the Potsdam Conference.

The Yalta Conference: Classroom Role Play!

The class re-enacts the debates at Yalta by dividing into three groups and campaigning to get their voices heard on key issues. A great way of familiarising students with the differences of opinion between the Big 3.

The Yalta Conference: Photographs as evidence

Students compare several photographs of the Big Three at Yalta, and produce a newspaper headline to accompany each one highlighting how different pictures can create sharply differing impressions.

Roots of the Cold War: Events (Historical Differences)

Students produce a “chat show” dialogue between a communist and a capitalist using the events in a timeline that is provided; each speaker will have a biased interpretation. As an extension, students produce a “living graph” using www.classtools.net.

Cold War Timeline

Students start the topic with an introduction to what the Cold War was, and then they conduct their own research to produce an illustrated timeline of the main events using this cold war work sheet.

Why Appeasement?

A worksheet to accompany the classic history documentary from the BBC.

When, Why, How Should We Oppose?

Originally designed as a PSHE lesson for Year 11, this worksheet would also fit well into studies of opposition within Nazi Germany.