 Henry VIII
A fantastic topic of study. If you can have
The Complete music of Henry VIII playing during the main
activities it really adds a but of atmosphere!
There are two ways that I approach an investigation of Henry VIII:
EITHER 1: Classroom Trial: Was Henry a Hero, or a Villain?
This roleplay exercise divides the class into three teams - prosecution, defence, and judges. The prosecution and the defence gather evidence and prepare their case whilst the judges select some surprise exhibits to use in the trial. The trial itself should be a lively lesson which encourages students to make deductions and question the reliability of their "witnesses".
OR 2. Interpretations
Exercise: Henry VIII - Evil or Wonderful?
First, I place students into two groups and give them the same evidence to argue
produce completely conflicting interpretations of Henry's life and reign. This
lesson gives students a good overview of the main events and characters of the
reign.
Extension / Homework activity: Henry VIII Wheel of Life
Students rate Henry VIII according to various criteria and "join the dots" in this diagram to produce a "Wheel of Life". Space is provided for students to explain their reasoning.
Video: At this point, I watch the Henry VIII episode from the Nigel
Spivey series "Kings and Queens",
asking students to make notes on Henry's good / bad points as they watch. At the
end of the video, ask students to vote on whether they think Spivey's
interpretation of Henry is "evil", "wonderful" or (best of all!) "something
inbetween" (make sure they can explain this judgement).
2. Head2Head:
Interview King Henry VIII!
As the final part of their research on Henry, students interview the King from
"beyond the grave" in this award-winning activity. Their objective is to gather
at least five fresh pieces of evidence which backs up their side of the case
("evil" or "wonderful").
Homework: students use all the work they have done so far to produce a
biased children's storybook (in Publisher) about Henry VIII from either a
positive or a negative perspective. Thought should be given to the chapter
headings, the illustrations, and the facts to be included. The class is then
split into two, with half the students reading their stories to pairs of
students in one Year 7 set, and the other half reading theirs to pairs in the
other Year 7 set. Each set then has to vote whether they think Henry was "evil"
or "wonderful" and produce a poster to this effect. The Year 8 students who most
effectively get their Year 7 class to vote in the "correct" way get merits.
3. Living Graph Exercise: The Life of King Henry VIII (based at www.classtools.net)
A good way of rounding the unit off: Students have to place key events from
Henry's life not only in the correct date order, but also on an appropriate
"emotional" scale.
 Edward VI and Mary I
1.
Picture Analysis: The Tudor Portrait Mystery
Students analyse a famous picture to determine its message.
2.
Decision Making Game: Walking the Mid-Tudor Tightrope!: A decision-making
game in which students take on the role of an advisor to King Edward VI. Designed for A-Level
/ IB, but of potential use for younger students.
3. The Lady Jane Grey
Plot: A "Codebreaking" activity in which students decipher a secret message
sent following the death of Edward VI. Serves as an introduction to the crises
facing Mary I.
4. Does Mary deserve to be known as "Bloody"?: A worksheet based around the short clip from the feature film "Elizabeth" which shows the execution of Latimer and Ridley. Type in "latimer ridley" into www.youtube.com to find the clip!
Elizabeth I
a. The Circumnavigation of Francis Drake: A Google Earth
spectacular!
1. The Circumnavigation of Sir Francis Drake
This is a major unit of study in its own right, with a comprehensive Google
Earth Tour and five possible worksheets which could be divided between a
classroom of students.
b. Why did Spain decide to invade England in 1588?
1. Analysis and
Revision: The Elizabethan Religious Settlement
It would be good to start this lesson with the clip from "Elizabeth"
showing the burning of Latimer and Ridley to remind students of the divisions
caused by religion - but of course it is a "15" certified film, so this is not
possible...So, in this worksheet, students simply assess whether each part of
the settlement was Catholic, Protestant or both. This is good revision of the
Reformation unit, and gives students a sound understanding of what the Church of
England stands for.
Homework / Extension: Students could be asked to produce an illustrated
depiction of the new Church designed to explain to the illiterate majority of
the population how it is set up. Alternatively, the class could be broken into
three groups, so that one group could produce a poster about the Elizabethan
Church, one could provide a poster about the Catholic Church, and one could
provide a poster about the Puritan Church. The teacher should close the lesson
by saying that “Both the Catholics and the Puritans (strong Protestants) hated
the settlement. The Pope promised that any Catholic who killed Elizabeth Tudor would
be guaranteed a place in heaven! As a result all Catholics were declared
possible assassins and would be executed for treason. Many hid in the famous
“Priest Holes” in country houses (e.g. Boscobel). Elizabeth also set up the
Secret Service under Francis Walsingham to root out spies!”
2. Sourcework:
Elizabethan Pirates - Drake and Raleigh
A ripping yarn, which it would be a shame to overlook! Directly after this, I
have to resort to history teacher stereotype and show students the
Blackadder Episode: "Potato", which is a fantastic spoof of the voyages of
discovery.
3. You be the
Judge! - Mary Queen of Scots
Students consider the life and actions of Mary, and decide for each piece of
evidence whether she deserves to be executed, imprisoned or freed. This feeds
into a lively class debate and verdict, which can be compared to the one
actually reached and this primary source account of
the execution.
Extension / Homework: Students could:
(a) Watch the excellent 30-minute episode on "The Babbington Plot" from the
Simon Singh series "Codebreakers". They could make notes on Tom Phillips, Al-Kindi,
Anthony Babbington and Francis Walsingham*.
AND / OR:
(b) Complete this codebreaking worksheet - The Babbington Plot: Secret Codes!
(c) Complete the Fling
the Teacher Quiz on Mary Queen of Scots.
*Please note that for copyright reasons I am not permitted
to copy this and send it through the post, so please don't ask!
4. Running
Dictation Exercise: The Spanish Armada
Students have to scribble down as much information as they can from the
interactive news feeds, then use it to
(a) Produce a biased newspaper report from either a Spanish or an English
perspective in three sections - cause, course, consequences AND / OR:
(b) Produce a written piece deciding whether the Spanish Armada failed due to (i)
Luck, (ii) English Skill or (iii) Spanish Mistakes
Note: It is a good idea to brainstorm some "good" and "bad" words on the
board prior to starting the written report so that students don't keep repeating
the same points. After the reports are finished, you can then have a "knockout"
competition where each student has to give a "good" word in turn, without
repetition or hesitation. Students sit down when they are "out" and the winning
student gets a merit. The same game can be played for "bad" words. It's a nice
way of building up vocabulary!
5. Portraits as Propaganda: Symbolism in
Picture Sources
This activity build on well from
The
Ambassadors and the
Tudor Portrait Mystery Exercises. Students consider the tools used by
artists to represent different policies, emotions and personality traits in
individuals, using the famous "Armada Portrait" as a starting point. They then
use what they have learned to produce their own colourful "Royal Portrait" of
themselves, which can then be used for display purposes.
 End
of Unit Interactive Tests on The Tudors
Splat the Tudor!
Manic Miner: The
Tudors
WordShoot Quiz:
The Tudors
CannonBall Fun: The
Tudors
Play Your Dates Right: England
under the Tudors, 1485-1603
Fling the Teacher: The
Tudors
KeyWord Challenge - The Tudors
If you are unfamiliar with the format of the game, click here for instructions.
| 
