Brunel: 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 put…

Head2Head Virtual Interview with Captain James Cook | Lesson IdeasThis interactive application allows students to interview historical characters directly! In this way, different groups of students can learn about different aspects of their life and career. There are plenty of lesson ideas to choose from.

End of Unit Quiz I give students 10 minutes at the start of the lesson to try to complete the quiz. Anyone completing the quiz within the available time gets a score based on the amount of minutes left on the clock. They can then move on to the first lesson task, whatever that happens…

Task – Winner’s podium: who was the greatest figure of the Regency period? Choose who you think are the three most significant figures from the Regency Period you have learned about. Use this PowerPoint Template to produce a poster explaining your choices to share with the rest of the class in a display. Designed to accompany the…

Time Travel Holiday Package to Regency London In this competitive activity, the class is arranged into groups and each one has to design a ‘Time Travel Holiday; package to Regency England, designed to appeal to a wide range of customers. Each group has to choose a different set of locations and people drawn from the simulation,…

Can you design your own Western Movie / Theme Park / Boardgame? To consolidate knowledge, students convert what they have learned into one of three projects, outlined here in detail.

Who were the greatest characters of the Wild West? I use this as an extension activity for students who complete the simulation within the three hours which I allocate to it. Students have to research various characters and then choose one “Cowboy”, one “Cowgirl” and one Native American who will be included in their film…

Horatio Ramsbottom: Victorian Entrepreneur In this newly relaunched version of the popular simulation, students take a series of decisions about how to run their new business. How should the workers be treated? What transport system should be used? Should they invest in the triangular trade and the Great Exhibition? Complete with a worksheet and follow-up…

Using this worksheet, students are given this presentation of 10 wacky inventions. They have to match each depicted invention with one of four possibilities. They should then try designing their own suitably nutty invention which can be later used as ‘Horatio Ramsbottom’s’ invention in the newspaper report task that follows the computer simulation (see below).

Mission C: Campaigns and Battles In this final stage of the game-based unit, students take the role of an advisor to either President Davis, or President Lincoln. They will be given a series of military, economic and political problems to deal with. Their first objective is to choose the course of action which they think…

Mission B: Events and Themes In the second stage of the simulation, students are presented with a series of decision points based on key events that took place during the course of the war. For each one, both teams have to decide how their president would have reacted. Correct guesses lead to an increase in…

Mission A: People and Places In this first stage of the simulation, students are divided into “Union” and “Confederate” teams and learn more about the key figures involved in the war. They can then use this to formulate a strategy for winning the simulation – which consists of various armies deciding how best to increase…

In preparation for the roleplay strategy game that follows, each student needs to take on the role of one key politician or soldier from the Civil War and research their life and career and present their findings through a ‘Fakebook’ profile. In this way they will be able to act in role much more effectively…

Video Project – What were the Causes of the American Civil War? This markscheme is designed to help students produce an effective video documentary about the Civil War using the information they have so far gathered.

Students’ Timeline Worksheet – preparation for the videomaking task Students are guided through the main events leading up to the Civil War using this timeline, which should be used in conjunction with specified clips from the first episode of Ken Burns’ excellent documentary about the American Civil War. At appropriate times they should have time…

Teacher’s Introductory Slideshow The teacher uses this worksheet to help introduce students to the main themes, events and personalities. To be used in conjunction with the student worksheet below.

My year 9 Historians have been in role as American Civil War politicians and generals for the past couple of weeks. Here are some of the ‘Fakebook’ projects they produced to round off the epic strategy game through which we studied the topic!

I have just completed teaching the transatlantic slave trade to my Year 9 students. “The Apprentice” roleplay was a particular highlight and I’ve uploaded some new resources to the main page, in particular a new PowerPoint getting students to think about logos, slogans and brand names and a streamlined tasksheet for the Apprentice roleplay exercise.

This lesson follows on well from the studies of individuals (see entire unit here). Students consider the big changes – transport, agriculture, smelting and so on – and try to link them together in a meaningful way. I have now added are some samples produced by my own students: Olivia | Hanif | Grace

The full study unit covering the causes and the events of the French Revolution takes up to 15 hours. However, in this condensed study unit, designed to last about 7 hours, students will learn about the main causes of the French Revolution. The Three Estates System, the mistakes of King Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette, the…

The full study unit covering the causes and the events of the French Revolution takes up to 15 hours. However, in this condensed study unit, designed to last about 7 hours, students will learn about the main causes of the French Revolution. The Three Estates System, the mistakes of King Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette, the…

I’ve just uploaded a template for a “Wanted” Poster which can be used to conclude the Year 9 unit on ““Who was Jack the Ripper?”

I’ve updated the Horatio Ramsbottom game with a simpler worksheet, a second test, a leaderboard and new questions.

I’ve added a high score board to the French Revolution simulation, so that teachers can quickly get a full set of marks for students at the end of a lesson.

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.

This Victorian 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.

Essay-Planning Task This worksheet is designed to be used in conjunction with the mid-unit assessment in this unit. Students compare, contrast and connect 6 key factors to produce a detailed essay plan.

Part 2 of the French Revolution simulation. It is 1789. You are the French aristocrat, the Count of Camembert. You are an advisor to King Louis XVI of France. Your job is to give him good advice when he faces difficult decisions. The game is complete with sound effects and a worksheet.