The Renaissance: End of unit self-marking factual test This is a great way to test knowledge at the end of the topic. Each student in the class is given 30 randomly selected questions from a database in mutliple-choice format. At the end of the exercise, the teacher can access all the scores at once to…

Design a Film Poster / Trailer about the Aztecs and the Conquistadors “You are a Hollywood director producing a film about the Conquest of the Aztec Empire by Cortes. You will produce a poster advertising your film, including:– A dramatic title for the film– 4 “Screenshots” from the film depicting the key events of the story– Captions under each screenshot…

A “Fling the Teacher” quiz and a range of ClassTools Arcade Games can be found at the end of this topic page.

End of unit factual test Thirty questions to test knowledge and understanding of this topic.

Interactive Simulation: Who was the Greatest Mughal Emperor? | Student Worksheet | Teacher Answers This simulation provides a detailed overview of the lives and careers of the first six Mughal Emperors. Students give their opinion on how they hope the emperors will react in various circumstances, and form their own judgement on which emperors deserve to be regarded as…

What do portraits of the emperors tell us about the Mughals? | Accompanying Images | Captions and Descriptions A number of portraits are chopped up and spread around the room. Students are placed in groups to reconstruct these in various stages, with a number of stimulating tasks to complete as they do so. Once the process is finished and…

Which emperor’s name do you think is the greatest? | Teacher answers Each emperor adopted a special name upon coming to power (Jehangir’s real name, for example, was Nur-ud-din Muhammad Salim!). “Rank the following names from your most favourite to your least favourite. As for the maps, give these scores of 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and…

Who do the maps suggest was the greatest Emperor? | Animated Map Working alone or with a partner, students decide – based on the information from a series of maps – which of the emperors deserves to be regarded as the greatest, and why. They then rank the emperors from 5 points (best) to 0 points (worst)….

How did the Mughal Empire compare to others of the time? | Teacher answers Students complete a gap-fill exercise providing an overview of the Mughal Empire, and then examine different maps comparing the Mughal Empire to other Islamic Empires of the period. Part of the new scheme of work on the Mughal Empire.

How do the Mughals still affect the shape of the region? This worksheet should be provided to students to fill in as the teacher delivers the introductory presentation. Part of the new scheme of work on the Mughal Empire.

I have created a Fling the Teacher Quiz and eight Arcade Games using my website www.classtools.net to this page of ActiveHistory for student revision purposes.

I have created a Fling the Teacher Quiz and eight Arcade Games using my website www.classtools.net to this page of ActiveHistory for student revision purposes.

I have created a Fling the Teacher Quiz and eight Arcade Games using my website www.classtools.net to this page of ActiveHistory for student revision purposes.

I have created a Fling the Teacher Quiz and eight Arcade Games using my website www.classtools.net to this page of ActiveHistory for student revision purposes.

I have created a Fling the Teacher Quiz and eight Arcade Games using my website www.classtools.net to this page of ActiveHistory for student revision purposes.

I have created a Fling the Teacher Quiz and eight Arcade Games using my website www.classtools.net to this page of ActiveHistory for student revision purposes.

I have created a Fling the Teacher Quiz and eight Arcade Games using my website www.classtools.net to this page of ActiveHistory for student revision purposes.

A 20-question paper-based factual test (along with teacher answers) to test knowledge and understanding gleaned from the ActiveHistory Renaissance Adventure Game.

A Time Machine Journey to Renaissance Florence | Student Workpack | Teacher AnswersA major multimedia simulation which can be played over several hours to provide students with a thorough grounding in the major personalities, events and developments in Renaissance Florence. In this simulation, your mission is to meet the artist Leonardo da Vinci, obtain his famous painting the Mona…

I have put together an extension worksheet for the popular “Interactive Castle Building Simulation” based around a documentary video that can be found on YouTube. My plan is to set this as an extension / homework assignment, especially as my students are lucky enough to have a school trip to Carcassonne as part of their…

Jebulon / Foter.com / CC BY-SA The Wars of the Roses In this activity students analyse a royal family tree to make deductions regarding the changing fortunes of the Houses of Lancaster and York. Further stimulus material leads into a research phase in which students try to determine whether other royals – all of whom…

The Princes in the Tower: Classroom Debate Students are organised into 6 teams to construct a case seeking to prove a particular fate for the Princes in the Tower. At the end of the exercise students write-up their findings declaring Richard guilty or innocent of the crime.

This worksheet provides students with an overview of the mystery relating to the Princes in the Tower. Students then organise a series of statements into evidence of guilt or innocence, then match up pairs of statements relating to similar themes / pieces of evidence.

Introductory Presentation / Video This presentation provides a series of ‘mystery’ images. Students are asked to raise their hands when they think they know what the topic is (but not to say anything!). Before showing the video clip and final slide, the teacher should ask students with their hands up what they think the images…

This presentation contains 21 images and several video clips, and should be used in conjunction with the introductory lesson on “Henry VIII: Hero or Villain?” that can be found in the Henry VIII section.

I’ve developed the resources for teaching Henry VIII to include a markscheme for the suggested essay, a helpsheet for writing the ‘storybook’ and a markscheme for the same project, as well as further instructions for how to run a joint lesson with primary school students.

To accompany the Gunpowder Plot History Mystery, I’ve produced this QR Code Treasure Hunt on the same topic. Whilst students are working on their essays as a two-week homework exercise, these codes are hidden around the school and students gain a point for every QR code they successfully decode, and another point for every QR…

This new “History Mystery” is designed as stand-alone projects which each last 3-4 hours. Through engaging historical topics, they teach skills of problem formulation, deductive reasoning, independent research, groupwork and structured writing.

Religious events in the Early Modern Period Before moving on to the next topic of study, this activity gets students to investigate a wide range of other events going on in Europe at the same time as the Lutheran Reformation. In this way they get a useful overview of the entire period rather than merely…

A Powerpoint template getting students to match historical characters from the timeline of Luther’s life to real actors. A completed version is also available, along with a movie trailer produced recently by one of my students. For the full unit, click here.

At the International School of Toulouse, Year 8 students (aged 13-14) are taken off-timetable during the summer term for what we call “Renaissance Day“. The event is popular with both teachers and students. It promotes cross-curricular awareness, gets students working effectively as teams, develops analytical ability and improves presentational skills. The resources to develop your…

An ActiveHistory Mystery. The “History Mysteries” lessons are designed as stand-alone projects which each last 3-4 hours. Through engaging historical topics, they teach skills of research, groupwork, structured writing. There is a standard teacher lesson plan and student record sheet / markscheme for each activity.

Now improved with hyperlinks to keywords and an on-screen record of the conversation.

This Worst Jobs in History simulation can be used as a stand-alone lesson, homework assignment or as part of a broader unit on “Was life Good or Bad during this particular period?”. The worksheet has basic activities for a 30 minute lesson, and extension tasks that could be followed up later.

This four-hour unit helps students to understand why religion was so important in the Middle Ages. This leads neatly into a study of the Cathars and the Reformation. Students study why the Church was so powerful in the Middle Ages. They conduct a card-sort exercise, have a game of charades, then work in pairs and…

Students rate Henry VIII according to various criteria and “join the dots” in this diagram to produce a “Wheel of Life”. Space is provided for students to explain their reasoning.

This roleplay exercise divides the class into three teams – prosecution, defence, and judges. The prosecution and the defence gather evidence and prepare their case whilst the judges select some surprise exhibits to use in the trial. The trial itself should be a lively lesson which encourages students to make deductions and question the reliability…

Students read transcripts of the trial to consider what they tell us about the King, his prosecutors and the attitude of those present. This resource can be found within this complete Key Stage 3 History Study Unit on the English Civil War.

A selection of quizzes and activities designed to help Year 8 History students revise the year’s work prior to their summer exams.

The Execution of King Charles I: Film and Primary Source Analysis How accurately has the event been depicted in films such as Cromwell (1970) and To Kill a King (2002)? The video clips are accessible at YouTube: [Cromwell (1970)] [To Kill a King (2002)]

How accurately has the event been depicted in films such as Cromwell (1970) and To Kill a King (2002)? The lesson can be accompanied by the second part of the Prezi Presentation.The video clips are embedded within it, but they are also accessible at YouTube: [Cromwell (1970)] [To Kill a King (2002)]. This resource can…

An overview of the main events of the English Civil War is provided, and a discussion takes place as to whether the King should be put on trial. The lesson can be accompanied by the first part of a Prezi Presentation. This resource can be found within this complete Key Stage 3 History Study Unit…

A thematic analysis of the problems leading up to the outbreak of the English Civil War. This resource can be found within this complete Key Stage 3 History Study Unit on the English Civil War.

A chronological analysis of the problems leading up to the outbreak of the English Civil War. This resource can be found within this complete Key Stage 3 History Study Unit on the English Civil War.

Students play as King Charles I and try to avoid taking the country into a Civil War. Comes complete with a worksheet and follow-up activities. This resource can be found within this complete Key Stage 3 History Study Unit on the English Civil War.

An in-depth investigation into the Gunpowder plot making use of primary source materials to help students decide whether the Catholics were “framed”. There is a PowerPoint Slide could be used as a starter to the lesson, and there a Fling the Teacher Quiz which can be used as a factual test. This resource can be…

Students consider the personality and policies of King James I as a long-term explanation for the outbreak of the Civil War. This resource can be found within this complete Key Stage 3 History Study Unit on the English Civil War.

A series of images and short textual points designed to generate student interest. What was the Civil War? Why is it important to study? This resource can be found within this complete Key Stage 3 History Study Unit on the English Civil War.

Following directly on from the classroom debate, students then write an essay. This worksheet contains detailed instructions on how to link the characters together rather than simply focusing on what each one individually contributed. A clear markscheme is also provided; I get each student to mark 4 different essays, then we collate all the marks…

A detailed lesson plan for year 8 history students. A class list is put into the Fruit Machine Name Picker at www.classtools.net to choose the Renaissance character each student should produce a research project on. This Renaissance project will be written in the first person to ensure that the student reads the information, under three…

An introductory worksheet. Perhaps the main reason why the Renaissance took off in Italy – this activity gets the narrative across in an engaging way. Students are given an interactive “news feed” of events, then can choose to produce EITHER a biased news report in Publisher OR a radio broadcast using their microphone OR a…