New: Who should I vote for in the UK General Election?

Diary of the Website

DATE

Year group

Resource added to the website by RJT

03/03/06

GCSE

Weimar Germany Decision Making Game - Part 2: 1921-29

A brand-new decision making game. This simulation is a great way of introducing or revising the issues surrounding Weimar Germany in the years 1921-29. Each of the 7 key decision points covers a different issue. By working through the activity and completing the worksheet, students will learn about the diplomatic, economic, social and political problems faced by the Republic, and consider how successfully the Republic dealt with them. The game is designed to "run itself" with minimal teacher preparation.

20/02/06

GCSE

NOW AVAILABLE!: Interactive Chat with a Medicine Through Time Expert!
Designed to allow a range of year groups to investigate medicine, surgery and public health at particular points in history

In this brand new activity, students can ask questions to a Virtual “Expert” who responds appropriately through means of an extensive database. With over 100 possible responses in memory and over 200 suggested questions, this will provide a valuable introduction to or revision of the GCSE Medicine Through Time topic.
Click Here to view the activity

12/02/06

Yr10

Weimar Germany Decision-Making Game - Part 1: 1918-21

A brand new version of the popular decision making game. The completed game will be playable in three separate sections, or as one large game, and each section will have its own worksheet. This will make the activity much more informative and flexible for classroom use.

Section 1 [available now]	1918-1920: A difficult beginning Covers the Armistice, the Constitution, the Treaty of Versailles, the Spartacist Rebellion and the Kapp Putsch.
Section 2	1921-28: Crisis and Recovery Covers the Reparations bill, the Ruhr Invasion, Hyperinflation, the Beer Hall Putsch, the Dawes Plan, Locarno, German entry into the League
Section 3	1929-1933: Collapse Covers the Wall St. Crash, the Depression, the "backstairs intrigue" that led to Hitler becoming Chancellor.

05/02/06

Yr10

Wall St. Crash - Interactive Worksheets to accompany the decision-making game

Introduction: Economic problems in the 1920s

Economic Principles - Stocks, Shares, Speculators

Why did a Crash happen in 1929? Could it have been prevented?

How did the Crash lead to a Depression? What were the political consequences?

Sourcework exercise - The Wall St. Crash

Fact? Mistake? Opinion? - The Wall St. Crash research exercise

01/02/06

GCSE

The League of Nations in the 1920s: A self contained digital study unit to accompany the decision-making game.

Worksheet to accompany the decision-making game
This worksheet is referred to throughout the rest of this worksheet unit. Students complete it by playing the game above.

Aims and Strengths of the League

Membership Problems

Membership Problems - Extension Task

Structural Problems

Border Disputes

Border Disputes - Extension Task

Social Problems

Disarmament

Agreements reached outside the League

Essay Task

31/01/06

Yr8

Interactive Running-Dictation Exercise
The Armada

30/01/06

Yr8

Redesigned the Year 8 Tudors Page so that it is now broken down between the various reigns rather than by resource type.

29/01/06

GCSE

Interactive Interview with Adolf Hitler

Completely rewritten to include text-to-speech and a customised animated face. The full list of questions can now be read, and a record of the conversation you have with the dictator is kept for printing off at the end of the session.

28/01/06

Yr7

New worksheets, which can be completed online or printed off for use in the classroom:

What happened in 1066? - Students cut and paste the information into the correct order and then produce a biased newspaper report.

Why did William Win in 1066? - Students categorise the key events into four groups, then use this as the basis for an essay.

The Gruesome end of William the Conqueror - Sourcework and "code-breaking" activity

23/01/06

IB / A-Level / GCSE

A new section launched on The Peace Treaties after World War One. These develop and extend the previous resources available in the 1919-39 section in that many of these resources can now be completed on computers rather than merely being printable files.

1.	What problems confronted the Big Three? Easily overlooked, this helps students understand the complex political, economic and social backdrop to the Peace Conference.
2.	What were the Aims and Motives of the Big Three? Designed to be completed through a teacher-led lecture. Also available as a pdf file. There is also a completed teacher copy.
3.	The 14 Points [Higher Level Activity] An extension or homework task.
4.	The Territorial Terms of the Treaty of Versailles: A Role-Play Exercise: Student Worksheet \| Teacher Notes An effective way of getting students to assess not only what did happen, but whether these were the best decisions that could have been reached. A teacher lesson plan is also essential for this exercise. A simpler exercise is available as a pdf file.
5.	The Territorial Terms of the Treaty of Versailles: Conclusion A map-based activity to help students visualise the location of the places discussed in the previous lesson.
6.	The Other Terms of the Versailles Treaty: Reparations, Armaments, War Guilt, League of Nations Students debate the pros and cons of the various decisions taken by comparing them to alternative courses of action.
7.	Cartoons about the Treaty of Versailles Designed to consolidate knowledge and to develop visual reasoning skills.
8.	Who was happiest with Treaty of Versailles? Students assess the extent to which each of the Big Three were happy with the terms of the Treaty.
9.	Debate: "Was the Treaty too harsh, or not harsh enough?" Students are placed into groups and use a variety of written sources to marshall an argument.
10.	Crossword Test: The Treaty of Versailles To test factual knowledge.
11.	The Other Peace Treaties A "Cut and Paste" exercise which provides students with a one-side summary of the terms and results of the treaties imposed on Germany's allies. Also available as a printable pdf file.
12.	The Treaty of Versailles A printable worksheet covering the aims of the Big 3, the decisions reached an an assessment - with a completed teacher copy.
13.	Sourcework: The Peace Treaties After World War One A printable worksheet, complete with mark scheme.

19/01/06

Collapsible Revision Notes
Stalin's USSR: 1945-53 - Society, Culture and Zhdanov

And an accompanying worksheet:
Stalin's USSR: 1945-53 - Society, Culture and Zhdanov

17/01/06

New PowerPoint Presentations contributed by Mr. Fitzsimmons:
Year 8: Henry VIII: Overview (by Mr. Fitzsimmons)
Year 8: Religious Change in England (by Mr. Fitzsimmons)
GCSE: The Weimar Republic: Revolts and Rebellions | The Crises of 1923
AS: Luther's Theological Development (by Mr. Fitzsimmons)

14/01/06

A-Level / IB

Social, Political, Economic and Cultural Consequences of World War One in Germany, Britain and the USSR
A topic which is easy to overlook - so I have put together these materials:
Students should open a copy of this table, and fill the gaps by playing one of the following quizzes:
Manic Miner Quiz - Consequences of WW1
Cannonball Quiz - Consequences of WW1
Wordshoot Quiz - Consequences of WW1

12/01/06

Why did the USSR win the Great Patriotic War?
Designed to follow on from the interactive exercise. Students drag and drop factors to make connections and write up their findings.

A series of worksheets:
1. Stalin's USSR: 1945-53 - Industrial and Agricultural recovery?
2. Stalin's Legacy: Did he corrupt or fulfil Lenin's vision?
3. Stalin's Legacy: What was his long term impact on the USSR and beyond?

10/01/06

Yr9

Careers Advice: Victorian Style!
An interactive, self-contained game designed to teach students about some of the worst jobs in Victorian Britain.
Simply answer a series of questions about your personality and preferences, and get a full description of your perfect working-class job. A workheet is provided - a great way of spicing up a unit on the Industrial Revolution!

05/01/06

"Using ICT in History"

Are you a history teacher keen to learn more about using ICT to enhance teaching and learning?

Would you like the opportunity to spend the day developing your skills and some interactive materials with an award-winning, full-time practitioner?

On Friday 26th May I will be running a one-day, hands-on course giving practical advice on how to integrate ICT effectively into the history curriculum. Computer facilities, a full training pack and lunch is provided.

Full details

26/12/05

Updated all of the Play Your Dates Right Quizzes to make the fully compatible with the Mozilla Firefox browser.

24/12/05

GCSE

World War One: New resources and structure
I added several new resources to this page of the site, and decided it was getting unwieldy, so I have now broken it into two sections:
Causes of World War One
Course of World War One
Each one of these is now structured by topic (so it reads like a scheme of work) rather than resource type. Hopefully this will make it much more practical as a teaching and learning resource.

17/12/05

Yr7

Flash Animation - Spread of the Black Death
Complete with tasks. Allows you to examine the spread of the disease month by month in cities around Europe.

15/12/05

Stalin resources on The "Social Revolution" and the "Cult of Personality"

1. The 1936 Constitution
2. The Stalin Cult
3. The Social Revolution
4. Conclusion

14/12/05

Yr8

Interactive Investigations
What happened to the Princes in the Tower?

12/12/05

Yr7

Spread of the Black Death
Students are each given a map of Europe and a month to look at. They plot outbreaks of the Black Death using a provided table and an atlas. When put up as a display, a graphical representation of the spread of the plague is produced.

Interactive Running Dictation Exercise - Consequences: The Peasants' Revolt
A running dictation exercise. Students should follow it up by producing a biased newspaper report from either a pro-revolt or an anti-revolt perspective.

11/12/05

Yr8

Witchcraft PowerPoint Presentation uploaded to accompany the A classroom witch trial!

Updated the Coalbrookdale Interactive Census of 1851 to make it a bit speedier.

08/12/05

More resources on Stalin's USSR uploaded:

PowerPoint Presentation - By Mr. Fitzsimmons

C. Economic Policies: Industry

1. Introduction and Overview [student worksheet] [teacher copy] [PowerPoint Presentation]
2. Debate on the causes, course and consequence of the 5-Year Plans [student worksheet]
3. Assessment of the 5-Year Plans [student worksheet] [teacher notes]
4. Industrial Policies: A comparison of the Tsarist and Stalinist periods [student worksheet] [teacher copy

07/12/05

Yr7

	Resources for teaching The Black Death
1.	Introductory PowerPoint Go through each of the slides in this presentation, asking the students to raise their hands once they know what the connecting factor is between all the pictures. Then, go back through the presentation a second time elaborating on each picture to give an overview of the topic and engage student interest.
2.	Worksheet for the Schama Video I follow the PowerPoint by watching the first 15 minutes of "King Death" from Schama's "History of Britain". Student complete this simple worksheet as they watch.
3.	Symptoms of the Black Death
4.	Causes of the Black Death
5.	Cures for the Black Death

05/12/05

New Worksheets / Teacher Notes / PowerPoints on Stalin's USSR uploaded:

Agricultural Policies:
1. What were Stalin's Economic Objectives? [student worksheet] [teacher copy] [PowerPoint Presentation]
2. Collectivisation: Theory and Practice [student worksheet ] [teacher copy] [PowerPoint Presentation]
3. The Ukrainian Famine: Sources and Questions [student worksheet] [PowerPoint Show]
4. The Ukrainian Famine: Individual Research Task [student worksheet]
5. Collectivisation: How successful was it? [student worksheet] [teacher copy]
6. Collectivisation: Sourcework Test [student worksheet]
7. Agricultural Policies: A comparison of the Tsarist and Stalinist periods [student worksheet] [teacher copy]

29/11/05

New Worksheets on Stalin's USSR uploaded (more on economic policies to follow shortly).

1. Introduction to the Terror - including an investigation of the key characters
2. Causes of the Terror - economic, political, diplomatic
3. Who Killed Kirov? - a sourcework investigation leading to a debate
4. Key Events, 1936-38 - political, economic and military victims
5. The Trials of Kamenev, Zinoviev and Bukharin - transcripts and discussion points
6. Effects of the Purges - on all levels of society
7. End of the Purges - including the assassination of Leon Trotsky
8. Conclusion Grid - to consolidate understanding
9. Factual Test - to consolidate knowledge

26/11/05

YR7

Games designed to accompany the Time Machine Journey to the Middle Ages and The Peasants' Year activities:
Social Life in the Middle Ages - CannonBall Fun Game
Social Life in the Middle Ages - Manic Miner Game
Social Life in the Middle Ages - Wordshoot Game

25/11/05

Yr9

Uploaded The Trading Game - an interactive simulation designed to teach students about what continents trade which goods, and what sorts of factors can encourage or hinder international trade. Could be used as a follow-up to a study of the British Empire, or as a cross-curricular link with the Geography theme of Globalisation. I would really appreciate some feedback if you have any ideas about how this could be improved or adapted.

19/11/05

Updated the Horatio Ramsbottom: Victorian Entrepreneur game, the League of Nations in the 1920s game and the Would you have Survived the French Revolution? game to make the fully compatible with the Mozilla Firefox browser. If you are aware of any other games which do not run perfectly with this browser, please let me know using the Members' Feedback Form.

15/11/05

Yr9

Jack the Ripper
Improvements made to several of the worksheets (Victims, Other Evidence, Who Was Jack?)

12/11/05

Yr7

The Peasants' Year - Copy and Paste the pictures into the correct spots in the peasants' calendar. Follow-up questions included.

11/11/05

Yr8

Added Flash elements to the Tudor Portrait Mystery - a 'zoomable' image is now featured.

Added the facility for Canadian subscribers to subscribe online using WorldPay

09/09/11

Updated 154 Fling the Teacher Quizzes to make them fully compatible with the code developed by Andrew Field of www.schoolhistory.co.uk.

08/11/05

Added a new High Score Board feature to the Play Your Dates Right quizzes.

05/11/05

GCSE / Yr12

Three new quizzes - each one with 74 possible questions!
Manic Miner Quiz - Causes of World War One
Wordshoot Quiz - Causes of World War One
CannonBall Fun Quiz - Causes of World War One

05/11/05

Yr9

George III / George IV: A stand-alone worksheet designed to develop understanding of censorship and propaganda.

04/11/05

GCSE

Updated the "Virtual Chat with Martin Luther King Jr" to make the text-to-speech facility Firefox compatible.

03/11/05

GCSE

Amendments to the "You be the Judge" game - students now have to explain their choices as they go along to ensure they reflect on them.

Updated the "Hitler Head to Head" to make it FireFox compatible.

Updated the "Stalin Head to Head" to make it FireFox compatible.

26/10/05

GCSE

Interactive Simulation: You be the Judge!
Pass sentence on a series of ten crimes from 19th Century Britain and see how close you come to the actual verdicts reached at the time!

25/10/05

GCSE

A Series of Crime and Punishment Worksheets donated to ActiveHistory by Cathy Warren:

Defining Crime:
(a) What are the different types of crime?
(b) How and why do different periods define crime in different ways?
(c) How are laws made?
(d) Nature of Crime - Practice Questions

Determining Guilt:
How do we decide if someone is guilty?

Deciding on Punishment:
How has the range of punishments changed over time?
Nature of Punishment - Practice Questions

24/10/05

GCSE

Crime and Punishment Through Time - In response to member feedback, I added a brand new section to the site to cater for students and teachers following this popular SHP course.

18/10/05

Crime and Punishment during the Industrial Revolution - Worksheet designed to be completed over a double lesson; students are given a series of crime case studies, and decide what punishments they would have given. These are then compared with punishments actually given at the time.

18/10/05

Added the new High Score Board (using PHP / SQL) to the CannonBall Fun and Wordshoot games.

16/10/05

Brand new High Score Board (using PHP / SQL) added to the Manic Miner games.

15/10/05

The Rise of Stalin - Collapsible revision notes

Worksheets on Stalin's Russia:
1. Divisions in the party before 1924
2. Who should succeed Lenin?
3. Lenin's Testament
4. What were Stalin's Economic Objectives?
5. Collectivisation: Theory and Practice
6. How successful was the policy of collectivisation?

12/10/05

Yr7

Time Machine Journey to the Middle Ages
In response to member feedback, this popular activity has now been completely re-programmed to contain a whole raft of new features, including:
a. Quiz questions throughout the game (which each student will only have to answer the first time they visit a location)
b. Additional sound effects (even more excuse to give the students headphones and keep them quiet!)
c. New visual navigation system (based on a compass icon)
d. Randomized features (e.g. falling in the river could take you to lots of different places)
e. Inventory feature (so students can assess how far they have progressed).

Further updates are planned next week, including:
a. A race-against-the-clock feature - once students have all the pieces of the time machine, they will have only a limited amount of time to get back to their machine before they fail their mission;
b. Extension quizzes and tasks for those students who finish quickly;
c. Black Death danger feature - students spending too long in the "plague quarter" could end up dead

Anyway, try it out - and if you have any suggestions for further improvements, please contact me.

29/09/05

GCSE

Uploaded a new series of editable worksheets on The Causes of WW1:
The Assassination at Sarajevo
Serb Nationalism
The Alliance System
Colonial and Economic Rivalry
The Arms Race / War Plans

Classroom Debate: Who was most responsible?

19/09/05

Yr9

"Horatio Ramsbottom: Victorian Entrepreneur" decision-making game.
Completely rewritten and updated to cover more factors, with a new worksheet and added interactive elements.

15/09/05

Yr9

What does it take to become a successful businessperson? - An editable Venn Diagram, which can be changed to suit your purposes and which serves as a good introduction to the "Horatio Ramsbottom: Victorian Entrepreneur" decision-making game.

10/09/05

Uploaded a series of PowerPoint Presentations kindly offered to the site by Mr. Fitzsimmons:
Counterfactual History
The League of Nations to 1930
Witchcraft Trials in Scotland
Tudor Monarchs
Phillip II and Elizabeth I
Revolts in the Reign of Phillip II
William the Conqueror

Also, two PDF Worksheets from the same source:
Charles V
Phillip II: Progressive or Reactionary?

05/09/05

Uploaded brand new Wordshoot; CannonBall Fun and Manic Miner games on the following topics:
The Radical Reformation
Calvin and Calvinism
Henry VII - Domestic Policy
The USSR under Lenin

TO VIEW THE DIARY FOR LAST ACADEMIC YEAR, CLICK HERE!