I am a History Teacher with a love for producing high quality and easily accessible history lessons, which I have accumulated and adapted for over 20 years of my teaching career. I appreciate just how time consuming teaching now is and the difficulty of constantly producing resources for an ever changing curriculum.
I am a History Teacher with a love for producing high quality and easily accessible history lessons, which I have accumulated and adapted for over 20 years of my teaching career. I appreciate just how time consuming teaching now is and the difficulty of constantly producing resources for an ever changing curriculum.
AQA GCSE Elizabethan England, 1568-1603, Historic Environment Question 2026
This Bundle has been designed to help teachers and students prepare for the AQA 2026 Historic Environment study on The Globe Theatre.
Resource 1: This Revision Guide on the Globe Theatre includes 9 possible questions for GCSE exam practice and breaks down the main details and significance of The Globe into manageable chunks, using student friendly language.
Resource 2: As an introduction to the Historic Environment question for 2026, I have included a lesson on The Globe Theatre including GCSE Exam Question practice. This lesson uses model answers to enable the students to achieve the highest marks in their written work on this unit of study.
The resources come in Word and PowerPoint formats if you wish to edit and change.
I would welcome any reviews, which would be much appreciated.
Cold War
The aims of this lesson are to explain what the Cold War was in post war Europe and how it developed between the two existing Superpowers in 1945.
The USA and the USSR had different ideologies and students will learn the differences between Capitalism and Communism.
Furthermore, despite cordial relations at the three meetings held before the end of the war at Tehran, Yalta and Potsdam, suspicions were soon aroused.
Students will analyse the preceding decisions made about the divisions of Germany and Berlin and make informed judgements as to why these suspicions developed especiallu after Churchillâs Iron Curtain speech.
The central enquiry of this and subsequent lessons is to ask why did civilians fear for their lives? Students will map out their ideas each lesson (which can be plotted in different colours or dates to show the progress of their learning and centred around a lightbulb) and build up a picture of how these and different countries in the world responded and acted in this new nuclear age.
The resource comes in PowerPoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change and is differentiated.
I have also included suggested teaching strategies to deliver the lesson.
The Industrial Revolution
The aim of this lesson is to question how effective Victorian justice was.
This is an interesting and engaging lesson for students as they decide who was a criminal (from their looks), which were the most common crimes in the early 1800âs and what you could expect at a public hanging though some source analysis.
By the end of the lesson, students will be able to answer the following questions:
Why was it so easy to commit crime in the Victorian period in the early nineteenth century and if you were unfortunate to get caught what could you expect from Victorian justice?
What was the Bloody Code and why was the law so harsh to offenders irrespective in some cases of sex or age?
There are also three case studies to unpick and students are left questioning the morality and effectiveness of the punishments inflicted.
Please note that the reform of the criminal justice system is dealt with in other lessons such as the Victorian prison system and the setting up of the Metropolitan Police force by Sir Robert Peel and the abolition of the Bloody Code.
There are a choice of plenaries from hangman to bingo and heart, head, bag, bin which get the students to prioritise the most âeffectiveâ methods used to deal with crime.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited at the end to show the progress of learning.
The resource comes in PowerPoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.
I have also included suggested teaching strategies to deliver the lesson and there are differentiated materials included.
Cold War
The aim of this lesson is to understand the causes behind the building of the Berlin Wall and the consequences for Berliners during the height of the Cold War.
Students analyse the differences between life on the East and West sides of Berlin to understand why thousands of Germans continued to cross the border to make a better life in West Berlin.
The second part of the lesson focuses on the building of the wall, using statistics, graffiti art and the personal account of Conrad Shuman in a thinking quilt to develop further understanding and evaluate its significance in the context of the Cold War.
The central enquiry of this and subsequent lessons is to ask why did civilians fear for their lives? Students will map out their ideas each lesson (which can be plotted in different colours or dates to show the progress of their learning and centred around the key question) and build up a picture of how these and different countries in the world responded and acted in this new nuclear age.
The resource comes in PowerPoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change and is differentiated.
I have also included suggested teaching strategies to deliver the lesson.
AQA GCSE Britain: Health and the People, C.1000AD to present
With revision constantly in full swing, I have started to make these revision workbooks which my Year 11 students love (as an alternative to death by PowerPoint).
We pick certain sections (as part of a revision programme) to revise and come up with model answers and discuss the best way to tackle each question in the best way, considering exam time constraints.
I print out the sheets in A5, which the students stick in their books and use to colour code
Students answer the questions next to or underneath the sheets.
They can also be used for homework or interleaving.
The resource comes in Word format if there is a need to change or adapt.
The Industrial Revolution
The aim of this aim is to assess why coal became known as âblack goldâ.
Students learn how important coal was to the Industrial Revolution and how it was used in a number of areas.
However the interesting facts focus on its extraction and yet again the dangers involved for all concerned, especially children.
Students have to rate how effective the various measures put in place were to overcome some of the problems
They also have to tackle some historical hexagonals to get them thinking and linking all the information together.
A find and fix plenary should test their recall and knowledge from the lesson.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited at the end to show the progress of learning.
The resource comes in PowerPoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.
I have also included suggested teaching strategies to deliver the lesson and there are differentiated materials included.
Cold War
The aim of this extended lesson on the Vietnam War is to analyse its significance in the Cold War and the ideology of the Domino Theory.
The lesson will analyse its dubious beginnings and inception to the types of weapons used such as Agent Orange, the war crimes which followed at My Lai and the ensuing lack of support at home as well as the consequences for the civilian population of Vietnam.
So why did America fail to win this war despite overwhelming manpower, control of the air and sea and the most modern military weapons available at the time?
As a starting point, students focus on Paul Hardcastleâs 19 song and his reasons for writing it and analyse the photograph of Kim PhĂșc before examining the details surrounding the Gulf of Tonkin resolution.
They are given a number of differentiated tasks to analyse both American and Vietcong tactics to win the war (using printable worksheets) and the horrors surrounding search and destroy and the My Lai massacre, the tunnelling system as well as the use of napalm and agent orange.
At the end they will prioritise the reasons for Vietcong success and American failure and how this war played its key part in the Cold War.
The central enquiry of this and subsequent lessons is to ask why did civilians fear for their lives during the Cold War? Students will map out their ideas each lesson (which can be plotted in different colours or dates to show the progress of their learning and centred around the key question) and build up a picture of how these and different countries in the world responded and acted in this new nuclear age.
The resource comes in PowerPoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change and is differentiated.
I have also included suggested teaching strategies to deliver the lesson.
The aim of this lesson is to evaluate why the Titanic sank and ultimately who was to blame for the disaster.
The lesson therefore focuses on the errors made, not just by the Captain, but on the owners and the design of the ship, as well as some sensationalist reports of it being unsinkable in the media.
Students begin by showing their knowledge of the sinking as well as explaining why there is still such a fascination about studying this topic, from exhibitions to books and films.
They are given the context to its maiden voyage as well as some misconceptions about the ship which the students have to decipher.
There are some sources to analyse and infer from, before students are given a number of facts of where the responsibility may lie for the sinking. They will use this information to make a judgement and decide in their opinion who was to blame.
There are some excellent video links to use, including a survivorâs testimony.
A final find and fix plenary will also centre around other misconceptions about the Titanic which they have to pick out and correct.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited at the end to show the progress of learning.
The resource comes in PowerPoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.
I have also included suggested teaching strategies to deliver the lesson and there are differentiated materials included, such as a rating grid of responsibility for the disaster.
Cold War
The aim of this lesson is to analyse the moon landings during the Cold War and the subsequent conspiracy theories which suggest it was faked and not real at all.
Students have to decide why it was so important for the USA and NASA to be the first to put a man on the moon with Apollo 11 and prioritise their reasoning using their knowledge of the Cold War.
They analyse footage from the time and are introduced to Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin to emphasise this audacious achievement in 1969.
However they also analyse sources from the time and different interpretations making their own sustained judgements as to whether the moon landings were fake or fiction.
They finish with writing an extended piece on the evidence they have selected and are given some argument words to help if required.
The plenary required them to judge if further facts are fake or authentic news.
The central enquiry of this and subsequent lessons is to ask why did civilians fear for their lives during the Cold War? Students will map out their ideas each lesson (which can be plotted in different colours or dates to show the progress of their learning and centred around the key question) and build up a picture of how these and different countries in the world responded and acted in this new nuclear age.
The resource comes in Powerpoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change and is differentiated.
I have also included suggested teaching strategies to deliver the lesson.
This fully resourced and engaging history skills lesson introduces students to the complexities of historical interpretations through two case studies.
It is designed to build critical thinking and source analysis skills; it helps students go beyond âwhat happenedâ to explore how and why historians disagree about the past.
I have included differentiated resources suitable for mixed-ability classes, clear learning objectives and an engaging starter activity to introduce the concept of interpretations.
Students focus on two detailed case studies with sources and viewpoints on How Henry VIII has been interpreted (tyrant vs. visionary king) and competing explanations for the fall of the Roman Empire (such as barbarian invasion vs. internal decay)
The lesson will promote deeper understanding of how history is constructed, encourage debate, analysis and independent though. It is perfect for observation lessons or simply introducing interpretations at KS3. There is no planning neededâjust print the slides needed and teach!
The resource gives suggested teaching strategies. It comes in PowerPoint format which can be edited and changed to suit.
This lesson has two aims; to discover if medieval towns were dangerous places to live and to question how dirty and unhygienic they actually were.
Students learn how Medieval towns grew up through Charters and Guilds and how shops and their names and surnames became intertwined. An exercise tests their ability to interpret shop signs.
They analyse a number of statements about the dangers facing townsfolk and evidence this on a road map (or dirt track) using danger symbols and accompanying road signs.
The second part of the lesson focuses on the filth and dirt of Medieval towns and questions how much the local authorities did.
Students evaluate how hygienic towns were, colour coding thermometers and rating each step taken by the local authorities (or not as the case may be).
This lesson is therefore designed to be interactive, fun, challenging and engaging and could be used over two lessons.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited at the end using a rate âoâ meter to show the progress of learning.
The resource is differentiated and gives suggested teaching strategies.
It comes in PowerPoint format which can be amended and changed to suit.
American Civil RIghts
This lessons aims to evaluate the impact of the Little Rock Nine and the desegregation of schools in America.
The events and actions surrounding the Little Rock Nine and the Little Rock Central High School are now infamous in history.
This lesson gives the background to the beginning of the desegregation of American Schools with the Brown vs Board of Education case of 1954.
Yet Orval Faubus, the Governor of Arkansas found this difficult to accept and unleased a tidal wave of protest from his actions in Little Rock, shown in this lesson through video footage and images from the time.
The students are given the context to the events of 1957 and have to decide what is being shouted at Elizbeth Eckford before they predict the actions of Eisenhower.
Ultimately they have to evaluate the impact of the Little Rock Nine following the actions of President and how they influenced American society today.
They are required to justify their opinions at the end with scaffolding given if required.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited to show the progress of learning.
The resource includes suggested teaching strategies, differentiated materials and comes in PowerPoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change
The aim of this lesson is to decide if everyone celebrated VE Day and the end of the Second World War (World War II) in May 1945.
At first glance, it would appear so as famous pictures at Trafalgar Square show soldiers and civilians alike celebrating as well as the famous faces on the balcony at Buckingham Palace.
Students are also given information about the lead up to the German surrender in the form of a quiz, in which they have to choose the right options to gain points.
However, further investigation reveals the Americans were still fighting the Japanese in the Pacific, as well as prisoners of war still held captive around the world.
Students also have to consider the terrible losses people had gone through and therefore had little cause to celebrate.
I have also included some curious questions such as why did divorce rates surge at the end of the war or why were there rumours that soldiers were to be trained in jungle warfare?
There is lots of video evidence from the time to accompany the lesson as well as a talking heads plenary, which analyses which leader said what at the end of the war in Europe.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited at the end to show the progress of learning.
The resource includes retrieval practice activities, suggested teaching strategies and differentiated materials and comes in PowerPoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.
This is the first in a series of lessons I have created on the Tudors.
This lesson is broken down into two parts. The first part describes and explains the events surrounding the Wars of the Roses.
Students learn about the Kings involved and the battles fought through fun tasks, video evidence and role play of which they have to make choices on the victors.
With this new found knowledge they have to explain what they have learnt through a âtalk like an historianâ quiz.
The second part of the lesson focuses on the previous Tudor perceptions of Richard III. Was he really a deceitful and cunning person, âa lump of foul deformityâ with a hunchback according to Shakespeare, More and Virgil?
Archaeological evidence from King Richardâs remains is analysed by the students to prove or disprove some of these popular âmisconceptionsâ about his posture and character.
Students are then challenged to write to the current Education Secretary to make sure correct history lessons are now taught about Richard III in secondary schools.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited to show the progress of learning.
This lesson is fully resourced includes suggested teaching strategies, differentiated materials and comes in PowerPoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.
AQA GCE A Level 2O: Democracy and Nazism: Germany 1918-1945
This 49 page Revision Guide is broken down into two main sections: Weimar Germany 1914-1933 and the Nazi Dictatorship 1933-1945
This Revision Guide includes practice exam questions on both types and gives examples and tips on how to answer each.
I have been inspired to write this Guide by my students after they had complained about the difficulty of accessing and understanding the content provided by other Revision Guides and resources.
The Guide is therefore clear, concise and content driven. It will enable all learners to achieve the higher grades with clear guidance on how to achieve them.
The information is also broken down into an easy to use format to aid the students. The Guide can be used for revision, interleaving, home learning as well as class teaching.
This Guide has been designed to be engaging, detailed and easy to follow and can be edited and changed to suit, It comes in both Word and PDF format.
Any reviews on this resource would be much appreciated. This Guide also compliments the lessons I have put on TES for the delivery of the whole course.
Please feel free to email me if you have any questions. My email address can be found by visiting my shop at TES: /teaching-resources/shop/PilgrimHistory
AQA GCSE Germany 1890-1945: Democracy and Dictatorship
This lesson analyses the reasons why the SS executed Ernst Rohm and the leaders of the SA in the purge of 1934.
After a recap of the previous lesson, students start unpicking the events leading to the Night of the Long Knives.
Students are put into Hitlerâs shoes; who should he choose to lead him forward in his new Third Reich - the Brownshirts or the Army?
The conclusions are never totally clear in favour of one or the other, making sure the students are challenged and have to think things through and justify their choices.
The events are also explained through a text mapping grid which the students also have to decipher as well as video evidence as Hitler eliminated Ernst Rohm and other rivals.
There is also a choice of two plenaries from Connect 4 to a talk like an historian quiz and some GCSE exam question practice to complete if required.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited to show the progress of learning.
The resource includes suggested teaching strategies, retrieval practice, differentiated materials and comes in PowerPoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.
The British Empire
This lesson focuses on the role Gandhi played in achieving Indian independence from Britain which ultimately cost him his life.
The first part of the lesson looks at why the Indian population were unhappy with British rule, from the Indian Mutiny of 1857, events happening abroad to the Rowlatt Act culminating in the Amritsar Massacre.
They are then introduced to Gandhi, his philosophy of passive resistance (or as he called it satyagraha) and why he set up his Independent Congress Party. This is accompanied with some excellent video footage from the BBC as well as clips from the film âGandhiâ by Sir Richard Attenborough.
The second part of the lesson centers around his life and by analysing various sources from which they complete either a table or grid; students then have to decide how big a part Gandhi played in many events leading to Independence and his lasting legacy for India in 1947.
The lesson comes with retrieval practice activities, suggested teaching and learning strategies, differentiated materials and is linked to the latest historical interpretations, video clips and debate.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question posed at the start of the lesson and revisited at the end to show the progress of learning.
The lesson is fully adaptable in PowerPoint format and can be changed to suit.
This bundle is the first part in a series of lessons I have created for AQA GCSE 9-1 Elizabethan England 1568-1603.
Having taught this unit for a number of years, I have tweaked the order of lessons I now teach at the beginning.
As well as teaching Elizabeth Iâs court, government and parliament, I have included Elizabethâs favourites and an introduction to the religious settlement (which are offered as free lessons), as I felt students were getting confused without these aspects of the course being referred to early on.
The theme throughout this bundle of lessons is to examine how Elizabeth tried to assert her authority and control in the first half of her reign.
The lessons contain different tasks to challenge the students and are differentiated. Furthermore each lesson focuses on how to answer a GCSE practice question from the exam, notably in this unit a source, write an account and significance question.
The lessons are as follows:
L1: An introduction to Elizabeth
L2 Elizabethan Court and Government
L3 Which problems did Elizabeth face in her first ten years?
L4 Elizabeth and marriage
L5 Who were Elizabethâs key people? (free resource)
L6 The Elizabethan Religious Settlement (free resource)
L7 Threats from the Norfolk and Ridolfi Plots
L8 The Essex Rebellion
L9 Catholic threats at home and abroad
L10 The Puritan threat
L11 The threat of Mary, Queen of Scots
The lessons are enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lessons and revisited at the end to show the progress of learning.
The resources includes suggested teaching strategies, retrieval practice, differentiated materials and come in PowerPoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.
Any reviews would be gratefully received.
This lesson poses the question âHow much of a threat did Mary, Queen of Scots pose to Elizabeth I?â
Students are taken through Maryâs life from becoming Queen of Scotland to the controversy of her husbands and her eventual house arrest in England.
Through sources, visual and video evidence, students have conclude how much of a threat Mary posed to Elizabeth, after pleading their case through the eyes of Mary herself.
There is some help to write an extended answer using key words which help mention cause and effect, to sequence events and to emphasise judgements.
There is also analysis of the Babington Plot and a deciphering exercise to work out on how Mary was implicated.
The lesson is enquiry based with a key question using a lightbulb posed at the start of the lesson and revisited to show the progress of learning.
The resource includes suggested teaching strategies, retrieval practice, differentiated materials and comes in PowerPoint format if there is a wish to adapt and change.
AQA GCSE Conflict and Tension 1918-1939
With revision in full swing, I have started to make these revision workbooks, which my Year 11 students love.
We pick certain sections to revise (as part of a revision programme) and come up with model answers and discuss the best way to tackle each question, considering exam time constraints.
I print out the sheets in A5, which the students stick in their books and use to colour code.
They answer the questions next to or underneath the sheets.
They can also be used for homework or interleaving.