51ºÚÁÏ

This fully resourced lesson forms part of Key Topic 3 of the Edexcel 9–1 GCSE History course on Russia and the Soviet Union (1917–41), with a focused investigation into the causes behind Stalin’s brutal political purges. It helps students explore the complex factors that led to the Great Terror and understand the nature of Stalin’s control.

The PowerPoint breaks the content into manageable and engaging sections, including:

The context of fear and repression under Stalin’s rule

The murder of Sergei Kirov and its significance as a trigger event

Stalin’s motivations: consolidating power, removing threats, and creating a climate of control

An analysis of political, personal and practical reasons for launching the purges

Interactive questioning and source analysis built into the slides

A breakdown of short and long-term causes with scaffolded discussion tasks

What’s Included:

Fully editable PowerPoint (no textbook required)

Knowledge retrieval starter and built-in recap tasks

Clear step-by-step content delivery with definitions and guided questioning

Structured cause categorisation task to support extended explanations

Challenge prompts and exam-style practice to build analytical skills

Integrated support for stretch and scaffolded progression

This lesson is designed to deepen students’ conceptual understanding of dictatorship and repression in Stalin’s USSR, while preparing them for exam success. It fits seamlessly into a full scheme for Key Topic 3, designed to raise attainment and reduce teacher planning time with ready-to-use, high-quality resources.