KS4 lessonThere is probably more material already on the web for GCSE history teaching at KS4 than for any other key stage. Much of it is written for students. This section of the site is for teachers. The long and growing list of lessons on most sections of most specifications has been created from actual lessons, in the hope that it will stimulate even better ideas in your department. These lessons were taught by teachers whom I have seen in action and with whom I have discussed the lesson. You will find no lessons that have not been carefully validated by a highly experienced expert – me.

Suffragettes train ticket
Using artefacts to teach history at Key Stage 4

It may be some time since you last used artefacts in your GCSE teaching, but their appearance in Key Stage…

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hitler
Why was Hitler able to consolidate his position in power between January 1933 and August 1934? Smart Task KS4

This smart task works as a starter. Students are given 7 reasons why Hitler came to power. In just 5…

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Millie
Thoroughly Modern Millie: How do we know this song is about Flappers? A quick musical starter

Students are given the lyrics of a song about flappers (copy provided) and have to find 10 references that prove…

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met police
GCSE SHP Crime and Punishment: The Metropolitan police force in 1830: SMART TASK

This quick starter uses the slow reveal technique which encourages students to explore parts of a cartoon in a particular…

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causes of ww1
How well do these cartoons cover the causes of World War One?

In pairs, Y9/GCSE students visit 9 different cartoons posted around the wall. They have to work out: a. Which cause…

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prohibition
When Prohibition was so popular when it was introduced, why had it failed within 12 years? SMART TASK

In this varied series of activities, students predict from pictures, categorise influence cards, and create a tweet before structuring an…

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korean war
Who started the Korean War? Smart Task

In this short starter smart task students are given two contradictory accounts of the start of the Korean War, both…

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mussolini
When Italy signed two peace treaties with Abyssinia just 7 years before, why then did Mussolini invade in 1935? Explanation builder

Students are given a short answer to this question that appeared as an answer on the Student Room website. It…

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AQA
How the boards differ in their approach to the historic environment

AQA The historic environment is 10% of the overall course which equates to approximately 12 hours out of 120 guided learning…

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AQA
Assessing students’ understanding of the historic environment in the new GCSE history courses

As we await the verdict of OFQUAL on the draft submissions for the new 2016 GCSE history courses, one of…

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bloody code
If the Bloody Code made so many offences punishable by death, why were so few criminals hanged? SMART TASK

Fun lesson in which small groups have to predict punishments meted out for specific crimes in 1786 using original documents…

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marshall plan logo
The Marshall Plan: How should we interpret it? Just how philanthropic was it?

The activities in this very varied lesson ask students to raise questions, place sources on a continuum, add analysis to…

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hitler propaganda
Hitler’s propaganda: the cult of leader. Reading internal clues. KS3 & 4 Smart Task

The aim of this short task is to encourage students to look really closely at images for what is there,…

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Why did Germany lose the Battle of Britain?

If Britain was only a few days away from defeat in August 1940 how on earth did she win the…

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california gold
What was the impact of the Californian Gold Rush 1848-9? GCSE SMART TASK

In this series of short tasks GCSE students predict, infer, gather information and then improve existing explanations of the impact…

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Migration: Online resources

Great new Migration site www.ourmigrationstory.org.uk Our Migration Story: The Making of Britain is an Arts and Humanities Research Council-funded collaboration…

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Keystage 4 history
Link between Elizabethan theatre and bear-baiting

Historic England schedulded several of London bear pits so they will not now be built over. The listing of these…

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keep calm
Was there really a Blitz spirit? Killer evidence. Smart Task

Historians to this day still argue as to whether there was a Blitz spirit or not. Much depends on the…

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ww3
The end of the Cold War for new GCSE history: taking a fresh look

In a recent article in Teaching History David Reynolds offers some clear insights into this period which might help to…

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elizabeth I
Elizabeth and the Catholic threat: Elizabethans GCSE Smart Task

Asking questions in history. Elizabeth’s policy towards the Catholics: students use a graph to raise their own enquiry questions which…

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Historic Environment GCSE: Castles

Castles: 2 Smart Tasks Those of you who are studying the castles topic, maybe as part of the OCR specification,…

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hitler
Market place: Why I didn’t oppose Hitler.

To help pupils to understand why so few people opposed Hitler in the 1930s the use of this market place…

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KS3 & 4 The Causes of World War One: The Blame Game

This smart task which can be used from Y9 or for GCSE can be used as a form of diagnostic…

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9/11
Teaching GCSE History: Terrorism and the Iraq war

This section is included mainly to help teaching of the new OCR’s History Modern World unit entitled A New Age…

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met police
Why was the Metropolitan Police Force set up in 1829? Smart Tasks

This activity forms the central spine of a lesson on the reasons for setting up the Metropolitan Police Force in…

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smuggling at gcse
Crime and Punishment starter: Smuggling – SMART TASK

This simple smart task uses the rather unusual source of a famous Kipling poem to ascertain what students already know…

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poacher
Poaching: Need or Greed? A 3 minute starter SMART TASK KS4

Throughout history, people have had different views of poachers. Were they: a. Starving labourers, snaring game to keep body and…

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GCSE SHP Crime and Punishment:
GCSE SHP Crime and Punishment: How and why did Victorian prisons change in the first half of Victoria’s reign

Introduction The Chief Examiner’s report for OCR made the following point: “A number of reports have identified 19C  prison reform…

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highwayman
Would you have liked to have been a highwayman? Why would you have stopped?

In this lesson students have to persuade others to become a highwayman and then have to work out why they…

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met police
Posting punishments in periods: an active approach to creating overviews in crime and punishment

This lesson draws on, and extends, an idea developed by Ian Dawson at Trinity and All Saints College. Students work…

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met police
How effective was the Metropolitan police force and how would we find out?

This enquiry-led activity focuses on students considering the possible evidence base, as well as knowing how to evaluate existing evidence…

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'Geronimo and our policy'
Attitudes of the US government to the native Americans: milking an image for meaning

The simple PowerPoint presents students with an image which has six separate panels for them to investigate. Only by exploring…

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indian great plains
Why did the Indians lose control of the Great Plains? I want that for my essay SMART TASK KS4

Students work in pairs to answer a GCSE question. They have cards of relevant information to sort through to help…

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Mountain Men
Mountain Men – Myth and Reality SMART TASK KS4

Having looked at the role of Indian trappers who had been supplying skins to British, French and Spanish traders on…

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Ways of representing the fate of the Native Americans 1840-90
Phases of Native American life on the Plains 1840-1890: What patterns can YOU see?

This lesson comes at the end of work the students have done on the Native Americans and their interaction with…

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John Gast's image
Manifest destiny: beat the textbook/expert caption

Students find this a fun lesson in which they not only consolidate their knowledge of the people who crossed the…

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chisholm
How can we explain the rise and boom in the cattle industry?

This enquiry starts with students posing 7 expert historical questions, stimulated by a graph.  They then set about investigating their…

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19th century surgery
Changes in surgery; late 19th century: a puzzle. Can students use all the contextual clues to work out when it was painted?

This lesson was kindly provided by Barbara Seymour who trialled it when she was Head of History at John Hunt…

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Who mattered most in medieval medicine? Who would you have on your textbook front cover from 1500?

One way of getting students to think about change and continuity in medieval times is to show them textbooks that…

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Map of Snow's Broad Street pump
How did John Snow make the breakthrough with cholera?

This lesson focuses on problem-solving. Instead of simply telling students how clever John Snow was, or showing them a video…

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Diagram of Four Humours
The impact of the theory of the four humours on medicine: the case of the three tadpoles!

This lesson was conceived, taught and evaluated by Simon Harrison, when he was an Advanced Skills Teacher, Swanmore Technology College…

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Jenner or Jesty?
Who deserves to be remembered as the inventor of vaccination: Jenner or Jesty?

During this enquiry students work in two teams one using textbooks and websites to put forward the traditional claim that…

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ireland
SMART TASK: Overview of Irish history; a question of perspectives.

This smart task looks at iconic moments in Irish history and then challenges students to think how well each event…

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SMART TASK Key Stage 4: How should we remember the Easter Rising?

Recap This is the concluding lesson on the Easter Rising. If you want a good recap so that students hit…

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SMART TASK Key Stage 4: Why was Rohm murdered?

If Ernst Rohm was one of Hitler’s closest allies, as you can see in this photo, why then did he…

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1931 Nazi election poster
Treaty of Versailles: could it possibly be to blame for the Weimar Republic’s defeat nearly 14 years later?

This SMART task revolves around 6 slides on one PowerPoint presentation.  It comes as a penultimate activity prior to students…

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reichstag fire
SMART TASK: Weighing up the evidence for who caused the Reichstag Fire

This task follows a more open-ended investigation of written sources on the Reichstag Fire.  Most of you will already do…

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nazi election poster
SMART TASK Key Stage 4: Working out what the election posters tell us about Who Voted Nazi

This simple task engages students in thinking for themselves why people voted for Hitler in the 1930s. It uses the…

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Germany 1920-23. Can you spot any pattern in the uprisings during that period?
SMART TASK Key Stage 4: Germany 1920-23; problems facing Weimar

This activity was designed for more able students working towards a Modern World History GCSE in Year 10.  It leads…

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triumph of the will
Was Leni Riefenstahl’s ‘Triumph of the Will’ a Documentary or Propaganda?

This Y10 lesson provides a very good balance between thought and activity. Having discussed  the differences between a propaganda film…

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