The Renaissance

History Games and Worksheets

Please note: It is recommended that you end this unit with the whole-school, cross-curricular "Renaissance Day" which is outlined in detail here.

A. Introduction and Overview: What was the Renaissance?

1. What was the Renaissance?
An introductory worksheet to get students thinking about Renaissance changes the arts and the sciences.

2. Time Machine Journey to Renaissance Florence

Students should then play this major decision-making game designed to teach students about the key events, characters and concepts of the period. Each student should choose one of the following three worksheets to complete:
a. Who were the main figures of the Renaissance? [easiest]
b. Why did the Renaissance happen? [medium difficulty]
c. How are the main figures of the Renaissance connected? [most challenging]
In addition, ALL students should aim to complete this worksheet, which could form the basis of a factual test.
d. Key words, dates, people, places.

B. Why did the Renaissance Happen?

1. The Siege of Constantinople
a. Introductory Worksheet
b. Main Task: Interactive Running Dictation Exercise
c. Additional Materials: Pictures of the Siege
Perhaps the main reason why the Renaissance took off in Italy - this activity gets the narrative across in an engaging way. Students are given an interactive "news feed" of events, then can choose to produce EITHER a biased news report in Publisher OR a radio broadcast using their microphone OR a television newsflash using Moviemaker. Each of these tasks is progressively more challenging and they can be graded accordingly. Some examples of videos produced by my own students at the International School of Toulouse can be found here:Laura.

C. Who was the most important person of the Renaissance?

1. Individual Research Task, Wiki Project and Balloon Debate
A detailed lesson plan. A class list is put into the Fruit Machine Name Picker at www.classtools.net to choose the Renaissance character each student should produce a research project on. This project will be written in the first person to ensure that the student reads the information, under three clear headings. This is then placed onto a Wiki (see the example my students have produced here). The class then has a balloon debate (instructions provided) to determine who the most important person overall. An alternative approach is to use this website and worksheet - which is simpler and quicker, although less engaging perhaps for the students.

2. End of Unit Essay Assessment
Following directly on from the classroom debate, students then write an essay. This worksheet contains detailed instructions on how to link the characters together rather than simply focusing on what each one individually contributed. A clear markscheme is also provided; I get each student to mark 4 different essays, then we collate all the marks and average out the score for each essay in a peer-assessment exercise.

D. Why did the Renaissance End?

1. The Sack Of Rome: A paper based running dictation exercise working on the same basis as the Siege of Constantinople exericse.

E. End of Unit Quizzes

Wordshoot Quiz: Renaissance Florence
A quiz designed to accompany the decision-making game, but can work independently

Manic Miner Game - The Renaissance

CannonBall Fun: Renaissance Florence
A game to test mathematical as well as historical skills!

The Era of the Renaissance - Fling the Teacher Quiz. With 45 possible questions

KeyWord Challenge - The Renaissance
If you are unfamiliar with the format of the game, click here for instructions.

History in the News for The Renaissance

1. The 16th century diagrams that detail the world's first nose job But details of the world's first ever nose jobs show how it's not as modern as you might imagine. A 16th century book detailing one of the earliest rhinoplasty operations came to light when it was sold at auction.
2. Leonardo Da Vinci's forerunner to machine gun is confirmed Triple-barrelled cannon found in Croatian fort is 'machine gun' forerunner designed by Da Vinci
3. Michelangelo hid anatomical sketches in Sistine Chapel in Church attack Michelangelo concealed anatomical sketches in the robes and faces of the figures he painted on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in a coded attack on the Church's disdain for science, researchers believe.
4. Leonardo da Vinci's bones to be dug up by Italian scientists
5. Leonardo da Vinci-designed instrument to be unveiled in New York
6. Italian couple discover 16th-century frescoes in bedroom
7. Painting features 'oldest watch'
8. Fingerprint Tech IDs Leonardo da Vinci
9. Copernicus's remains identified
10. Lost Michelangelo drawing tipped to fetch millions
11. Dig for Mona Lisa's Bones to Begin
12. Leonardo da Vinci to become Hollywood hero in new film
13. Galileo's Lost Fingers Join Medici Treasures in Florence Museum
14. Tycho Brahe to be exhumed
15. Enigmatic smile of Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa a sign of ill health
16. Galileo's missing fingers found
17. How Galileo and his spyglass turned the world on its head
18. Unrecognised Leonardo da Vinci portrait revealed by his fingerprint
19. History News Network Italian scientists are trying to get Galileo's DNA
20. Earliest Scottish music discovered on carving
21. Poland Angered by "German" Copernicus
22. Briton drew pictures of the moon before Galileo

History weblinks for The Renaissance

1. Michelangelo's er..Tracey? - mirror.co.uk elangelo's er..Tracey?
2. The Renaissance
3. Face to face with Leonardo da Vinci - an interactive guide | Art and design | guardian.co.uk As visitors flock to this year's blockbuster show, the National Gallery's Leonardo da Vinci: Painter at the Court of Milan, Guardian art critic Jonathan Jones takes a detailed look at some of the Renaissance…
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