An extension / homework activity designed to help students understand a little more about the complex personality of Wilhelm II.

The assassination at Sarajevo was merely the flashpoint of a much deeper conflict between Serbia and Austria, as explained here…

A new resource for IGCSE history – Events of the Vietnam War.

The spark which started World War One. What happened?

I have put together a new section on the website covering “The Decline and Collapse of Soviet Control over Eastern Europe”, which is the compulsory sourcework paper for IGCSE History, Summer 2010. I plan to teach this unit to my students at the International School of Toulouse in the New Year as their final topic….

After watching the film, students should watch this Google Earth Tour and list the 10 key personalities shown in it based on what they learned from the film. As the tour progresses, give some clues / anecdotes about each character to maintain interest. Award merits to the best scoring students in the class. A full…

A three-minute video I put together to give students an overview of some of the main events and personalities of the 20th Century. The appropriate point at which to watch this video is made clear in the PowerPoint presentation above. Before students watch the film, warn them that there will be a quick factual test…

A completely overhauled version of the simulation game about the Wall Street Crash. Students are presented with historically accurate details about the events of the 1920s and decide whether to buy or shares at each stage. A great way of analysing the causes and events of the crash; complete with a worksheet.

A new decision-making simulation about Hitler’s Foreign Policy and the Origins of World War Two. By playing this game you will learn about how Hitler’s policies led to World War Two, and consider whether this war could have been prevented. There are three worksheets to go with this activity, which easily fills a full one-hour…

A new League of Nations worksheet for IGCSE to accompany the new decision making game.

A new League of Nations worksheet for IGCSE to accompany the new decision making game.

A new League of Nations worksheet for IGCSE to accompany the new decision making game.

A new League of Nations worksheet for IGCSE to accompany the new decision making game.

A new League of Nations worksheet for IGCSE to accompany the new decision making game.

A new League of Nations worksheet for IGCSE to accompany the new decision making game.

A new League of Nations worksheet for IGCSE to accompany the new decision making game.

A new League of Nations worksheet for IGCSE to accompany the new decision making game.

A new worksheet for IGCSE to accompany the new decision making game.

A new Fling the Teacher Quiz with 30 randomised questions for GCSE History.

Five cartoons, 10 questions: students provide their own answers using the writing framework provided, then they can compare their answers alongside model answers which I have written to help them revise. A great way to develop sourcework skills.

A new sourcework exercise complete with markscheme, to accompany the complete scheme of work designed to accompany the IGCSE compulsory sourcework paper for summer 2009.

A brand new release of this popular decision-making game for GCSE History. In this game you will be a British soldier who joins the army in 1914 to fight the Germans. You will have to make decisions in tough circumstances. At the end you will be given a score. By playing this game you will…

Students consider the purpose of commemoration and then design their own Holocaust memorial after looking at a wide range of examples from around the world.

Although the Causes of World War One will be tested in IGCSE History Paper 2 in Summer 2008, it will also be tested in Paper 1. Reading through this markscheme and the sample answers will be good way to start your history revision process.

This worksheet encourages students to consider how the Arab-Israeli conflict is in large part Hitler’s Third Reich’s most lasting legacy.

This worksheet explains not merely why Hitler hated the Jews, but also why the Jews have been persecuted throughout the ages in countries across Europe. Students connect these factors in a flow diagram and categorise them as religious, racial, economic and social. This worksheet is supported by this antisemitic propaganda for children, and antisemitic propaganda…

Paper 2 Sourcework Focus – Markschemes and Sample Answers Students can read through these sample answers and grade each one. For each question there is a good, average and below average answer. Can they spot which is which and explain why?

After looking at the different versions of the famous Niemoller poem in the powerpoint starter, Students use the main worksheet to compare how different social groups opposed the Nazis, and then use this information to complete one of several suggested tasks after completing a factual test. My own students produced “Hollywood Trailers” which can be…

With the main themes revised, students now have to connect the Causes of the Second World War together meaningfully and summarise three essential points of information about each theme using this flowchart.

Nazi Religious Policies: By means of a venn diagram, students investigate the various ways in which the Nazis tried to control replace and weaken the Catholic and Protestant Churches.

A new set of quizzes on Weimar Germany 1918-21 for GCSE-Level History. Choose from Manic Miner, Wordshoot, Cannonball Fun or Matching Pairs.

A new diamond 9 diagram for GCSE Historians studying the causes of World War Two. Get students to elaborate on each factor and rearrange them in an order that makes sense to them. They can then use it to answer the question “Why did Britain pursue a policy of appeasement?” Click here for full screen…

A one-sided summary sheet for GCSE History Revision.

An end of unit interactive test designed to accompany the IGCSE Sourcework scheme of work unit at www.activehistory.co.uk.

Students are provided with a list of essential points relating to the international consequences of the Spanish Civil War. These are analysed in terms of what Hitler’s objectives were, and what the actual results were – thereby keeping a close focus on the subject of the sourcework paper for 2009 (Germany Involvement in the Spanish…

Students should be provided with this interactive newsfeed covering the main events of the Spanish Civil War and then divide these into “Good news for the Republic” and “Bad news for the Republic”. They then have to use their own knowledge of international events in the 1930s to add a final column in the timeline…

The most notorious example of German involvement in the Spanish Civil War was when the Nazi Condor Legion bombed the Basque city of Guernica. This lesson investigates the event through a detailed analysis of Picasso’s painting provided by Simon Schama’s excellent documentary (available here).

A decision-making exercise. Students are asked a series of questions about how they think Hitler should have organised his help to Franco’s Nationalists. The teacher then tells the students what actually happened in each case so that the class can discuss the merits and drawbacks of each policy. Sourcework questions round the exercise off.

Students analyse a series of written sources – primary and secondary – to develop an understanding of why Germany got involved in the Spanish Civil War. By comparing, contrasting, organising points under key headings and summarising their findings, students will end this lesson with a sound grasp of Germany’s motives. Sourcework questions invite students to…

A series of pictorial and written sources with questions about the causes of the Spanish Civil War designed to familiarise students with the format of the IGCSE Sourcework examination.

In this worksheet, students use this interactive newsfeed to develop an understanding of the main events leading up to the Spanish Civil War, which they then categorise into social, economic, military and political factors. They produce a biased account from either a Republican or a Nationalist perspective, then consolidate their knowledge by producing a learning…

This worksheet outlines why the Spanish Civil War was so important in an international sense. The roles of the major powers are outlined and compared and cartoons relating to the non-intervention committee are analysed.

A complete scheme of work with interactive exercises and worksheets for IGCSE History. Nazi involvement in the Spanish Civil War is the sourcework paper for examinations in 2009!

A thorny subject, but an important one: were the German people “Hitler’s Willing Executioners”? GCSE History Students consider the evidence for both sides to reach their own judgement.

The development of the Final Solution in the Third Reich is examined and students produce their own classroom presentation.

Students consider whether each antisemitic policy in Hitler’s Third Reich was designed to threaten, humiliate or physically weaken the Jewish people. They consider how the international community responded to Nazi policies. They then consider what the law should really be regarding the treatment of immigrants and national minorities.

A new Fling the Teacher Quiz designed for GCSE History Revision.

An analysis of a whole range of Nazi propaganda techniques from Hitler’s Third Reich including sport, posters and cinema. For each, students have to assess evidence of success and failure.

Paper 1 Structured Questions focus – Interactive Cartoon Analysis A large range of cartoons covering the 1919-39 period. For each one, students are asked a sourcework question focusing on the message of the source, and then a three-part Paper 1 style question. When they have written their answer in timed conditions, the computer provides model…

In this worksheet GCSE history students analyse one of Hitler’s speeches to determine how the Third Reich justified the Nazi policy of “Kinder, Kirche, Kuche”. They then categorise his actions according to whether they encouraged women to stay at home or have more babies.

GCSE history students compare the Hitler Youth and the League of German Maidens by constructing a dialogue designed to highlight the positive and negative features about each.

Youth Policies: [1] Schools Students match entries from Nazi School Textbooks to the subjects they describe, then each student in the class has a “Napola” school report written for them by several people in the class.

Social Policies [3]: The Moral Maze: Students are presented with a logical defence of the principles of Eugenics and Social Darwinism as they existed in the Third Reich. They are then asked how they would nevertheless challenge some of its assertions both on rational and on moral grounds. One to get them thinking and debating!

A stimulating worksheet in which students are shown how many of Hitler’s ideas stemmed from social darwinism theories and practices in Europe and America which were popular at the time (and since). A crucial worksheet which helps students get away from the idea that Hitler was a peculiarly “German” problem.

Students are divided into groups to investigate Nazi social policies towards undesirables and untermenschen. They are instructed how to organise a PowerPoint show to give to the rest of the class and the findings are recorded in a grid.

Causes of World War Two: Past Exam Questions and Research Task This GCSE History handout outlines the main causes of World War Two: The Peace Treaties, the Weaknesses of the League, the Depression, Hitler’s Foreign Policy, Manchuria and Abyssinia, Appeasement, the Nazi-Soviet Pact. It also provides a list of past history examination questions. Students have…

Sourcework Exercise: The Causes of World War One Six important sources, each one looking at a different cause of the World War One, with GCSE History questions and suggested approaches.

Causes of World War One: Connecting the Factors: A diagram which helps students to connect the various causes together rather than simply list them.

This handout provides a breakdown of the most recent questions from the IGCSE History examination focusing on the Causes of the First World War. It then provides advice about how to prepare history revision notes for each area using this template.