I am a historical documentary addict. So maybe I should try my hand at writing the perfect historical documentary script using all of my favourite clichés. What follows is my ‘one size fits all’ documentary script which I plan to simply adjust as necessary as the commissions inevitably come rolling in. My “One Size Fits All”…
Month: January 2014
Photographs of Churchill: What deductions about him can we draw?
Photographs of Churchill: What deductions about him can we draw? “What impression is created of Churchill in each of the following photographs? Record your thoughts to the right of each picture. Compare your ideas with a partner, then with the class. TIP: To help you analyse each picture, you might want to consider such things…
Churchill, hero or villain – Introductory Lesson and Activity – Teacher Lesson Plan
Introductory Lesson and Activity – Teacher Lesson Plan This introductory lesson gets students to pull apart what it means to be a ‘hero’ or a ‘villain’. Students brainstorm what they know about Churchill and will probably lean more towards a ‘hero’ interpretation. But then the teacher provides a twist in the tail for the second…
Arab-Israeli Conflict: Google Hangout Video Conference for IB Historians
Interview with Max Salant This Google Hangout Video interview took place with a former student of the International School of Toulouse in Summer 2014. Max conversed with us direct from Israel to answer questions about the history and current affairs of the region. It provides some excellent material and perspectives that would be useful in…
Winston Churchill Head2Head Interactive Interview
This detailed, stand-alone study unit is based around an interactive Head2Head Virtual Interview with Winston Churchill. The unit is designed to be used with Year 9 students (13-14 years) but is easily adaptable to other contexts. The unit develops sourcework and essay-writing skills, and the outcome is a detailed, structured essay answering the key question…
Compare and contrast the origins of World Wars One and Two, model essay
Model Essay by RJ Tarr (note: teacher password required) At this point, students should return to their original research template to complete the final column, which asks them to make some observations about whether the various factors for each war are areas of comparison and contrast. This can then be used as the basis for an…
Was Hitler’s foreign policy traditional, or unprecedented?
Main Task: Was Hitler’s foreign policy traditional, or unprecedented? In this activity students use extracts from the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, an Interview with Hitler, Mein Kampf and the September Programme to decide where they stand in regard to the Fischer controversy. Part of the “Compare and Contrast the Origins of World War One and World…
Historians on Twitter
I’ve just finishing putting together adynamically-updating list of professional historians on Twitter (at the current count, more than 300!) which you might find useful: Historians on Twitter
Primary source analysis activity, Public Opinion Polls on Appeasement
Primary source analysis activity: Public Opinion Polls on Appeasement (complete withteacher answer sheet). Part of the “Compare and Contrast the Origins of World War One and World War Two” unit at ActiveHistory.
Historians debating the Origins of WW1 on Twitter
Last week I was delighted to make Twitter contact with two of my history heroes – Simon Schama and Professor Gary Sheffield – on the issues surrounding Mr. Gove’s latest comments about the teaching of World War One, which I have turned into a worksheet that I will use as a revision exercise with students….
ActiveHistory: The Year in Review
I hope you have a good start to the New Year! I have put together a summary of some of the main additions to ActiveHistory over the past 12 months. There may have been some that you have overlooked and I hope you find it useful. ActiveHistory: The Year in Review
Was Appeasement Spineless, Stupid, Cunning or Honourable?
Was Appeasement Spineless, Stupid, Cunning or Honourable? If you are keen that students cover the Origins of World War Two from all of the essential angles, the following materials allow students to conduct an in-depth analysis of the efficacy of appeasement as a policy by the British and the French in the interwar period. Introduction…
