Category: Historical Periods

Who was Jack the Ripper? – Simulation

Armed with the profiles that they have built up using the worksheet unit about Jack the Ripper, students go to this ActiveHistory Simulation which asks them a series of questions about what they think they now know about the personality and appearance of the Ripper. The computer then analyses their responses to present them with…

Read More

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…

Read More

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.

Witchcraft Trial – Updated Activity Worksheet

I have updated the popular witchcraft trial lesson plan and trial worksheet to include follow up questions designed to get students thinking about the advantages and disadvantages of both the adversarial justice system, and also of jury trials. This ensures that the trial itself is rounded off with some reflective questions rather than just a…

Read More

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.

Year 7 History Skills – “People”

A new lesson plan / worksheet. Students brainstorm famous people from history, research one each in more detail, and conduct a lively balloon debate to decide on the “most important”.

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.

Year 7 History Skills: “Time”

A new lesson plan / worksheet. Each student produces a timeline of their life and then a timeline of world events covering the same period. They also consider how different cultures measure time in different ways, and how Einstein showed that time itself can be slowed down!

Crime and Punishment in the Middle Ages

Crime and Punishment in the Middle Ages – A kinaesthetic history unit! Students start by considering how guilt was determined in the Middle Ages. They then engage in a role-play exercise where the class acts as a “jury” and the defence and prosection teams have to go through trial by water, battle and fire. Once…

Read More

Year 7 History Skills – “Historical Evidence”

A new worksheet / lesson plan. As a first homework, students produce a scrapbook of personal evidence consisting of photos, certificates, tickets and so on – but with no written explanation. In the follow-up lesson, the scrapbooks are swapped around and students have to deduce things about each other from the evidence that they have.

“Bloody” Mary Tudor?

A worksheet based around the short clip from the feature film “Elizabeth” which shows the execution of Latimer and Ridley. Type in “latimer ridley” into www.youtube.com to find the clip!

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…

Read More

Medieval Realms: KeyWord Challenge

A new end of unit quiz for Year 7. Put students into teams of 4-5. The first member of the first team sits in the “hotseat” with their back to the interactive whiteboard. The teacher uses the “Random Word Picker” at www.classtools.net to choose and display a word at random on the interactive whiteboard. The…

Read More

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.

Medieval Images of Heaven / Hell

A worksheet, with 5 interactive exercises to accompany it. Students will label different features of various “doom” paintings, then print them off for display purposes. In the worksheet, they will produce a medieval sermon trying to bring alive the sights, sounds and smells of hell from their investigations.

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.

ghjk

Click here for full screen version

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…

Read More

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….

Read More

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”…

Read More

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…

Read More

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,…

Read More

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!

Video Worksheet [2]: Who were the top suspects?

This worksheet accompanies the final 20 minutes of the video available from Amazon. In this part of the documentary, the top suspects are suggested and the video narrator offers his own view on who the murderer was. This is a stimulating way of following the classroom debate and usually provides some lively discussion.

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.