Following a lively, interactive and illustrated story-telling session, reinforced by a sequencing activity, pupils consider the reasons for Alfred’s success in 878, against the odds, before considering the significance of the year in the overall struggle between the Vikings and Alfred’s Anglo-Saxons.
Learning objectives
- Pupils can recount the main events of 878 in the correct sequence
- Pupils know that some of the stories from 878 are legendary
- Pupils can blend a range of reasons to provide a convincing explanation for Alfred’s success.
- They can explain the significance of Alfred’s success at Edington.
Step 1
Start by setting the scene. The Vikings had been conquering large areas of what we now call England for a number of years. The kings who fell into their hands, such as in Northumbria and East Anglia, were usually killed. The king of Mercia had been driven into exile. In 871, the year in which Alfred became king, a big Viking army attacked the kingdom of Wessex. After hard fighting Alfred bought time by paying them not to attack, but in 876 and 877 they came back.
Step 2
Tell the story using the text RS1 and the linked slides from the PowerPoint drawing pupils
