This innovative session places pupils right from the start of the enquiry in the role of detectives to discover when, where and why the Great Fire of London broke out.
Using a wide range of carefully chosen images, pupils have to sift through the evidence to find answers to the key questions, before comparing their findings with a brief expert video.
Learning objectives
- Pupils are able to raise valid questions relevant to the enquiry
- Pupils are able to extract information from sources
- They can combine information
- They learn how to make deductions from maps
Step 1
Set the scene using slides 2-5 of the PowerPoint which give pupils some context of 17th Century London. You might also want to play a version of the short nursery rhyme ‘London’s Burning’ e.g. Example nursery rhyme
to help get a feel for the period, without giving much away.
Pupils are given a brief overview of the fact that the fire burnt down a quarter of London, but they are not told where, when, how or why. That is for them to work out. So, with slide 6 projected, a good place to start would be to ask pupils what questions need answering in