This is a lesson I created to teach kids aged 10-14 a thing or two about Post-Roman and Anglo-Saxon Britain, about feudalism/ manorialism, and about figuring out the blurry dividing line between history and myth.
School Resources
School Resources: King Lear
More school resources this week. Material on King Lear for Leaving Cert, ie, ages 16-19.
School Resources: Nazi Germany
Some history notes here for educators, along with questions and exercises. ‘How the Nazis took power’ consists of 3 worksheets explaining how the notorious genocidal dictator and his party seized power. It is aimed at students aged 16-18. It is text-heavy, to be used along with the accompanying slides which include visuals and more exercises. There is also a brief explainer on anti-Semitism.
School Resources: The Spanish Civil War
This is not on the history course in Ireland but it’s a brilliant topic for Transition Year or for Leaving Cert projects.
I uploaded this in Irish over the last week or two. Here is the whole lot in English.
First off, a presentation going over the main events and issues of the war.
An exercise involving an element of role play. Instructions are on one of the slides in the presentation.
An extract with questions from https://www.marxists.org/archive/morrow-felix/1938/revolution-spain/
A questionnaire to give some structure to online or library research
Finally, an extract from Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell
Acmhainní Scoile: Cogadh Cathartha na Spáinne
Is ábhar íontach é seo don idirbhlian. Cruthaigh mé an Powerpoint seo nuair a bhí mé ag obair i gaelcholáiste.
Agus an gramadach? Bhuel, is fearr Gaeilge briste…
Powerpoint ar príomh-pointí an chogadh:
Billeog le dúshlán beag do daltaí.
Sliocht as Revolution and Counter-Revolution in Spain le Felix Morrow – aistrithe agus curtha in eagar, le ceisteanna. Déanann sé cur síos ar éirí amach na hoibrithe i Barcelona
Sliocht as Homage to Catalonia le George Orwell, aistrithe agus curtha in eagar. Déanann sé cur síos ar an saol i Barcelona i rith an réabhlóid
Tionscal beag taighde – ar líne nó sa leabharlann
School Resources: Strongbow
Building on last month’s resources on the Middle Ages, here are linked notes and presentation: Strongbow: A Story from Ireland in the Middle Ages.
The history of Strongbow and the Norman conquest of Ireland is a great case study for Junior Cycle students to get to grips with life and politics in Medieval Europe. It’s also a crucial episode in Irish history.
School Resources: The Middle Ages in Europe
Bertold Brecht, ‘Questions from a worker who reads’
More school resources here for you today: material on the poem ‘Questions from a worker who reads’ by the great Bertold Brecht.
This is a poem I’ve never seen in a school textbook but which I’ve found brilliant and thought-provoking for a group of 14-15-year-olds. But really this would work with any age group.
Below is the text of the poem itself plus a presentation that should occupy the class for an hour or so.
School Resources: ‘The Sun’ by Benjamin Zephaniah
This fantastic poem was a lot of fun to teach as it provoked debate and discussion in the classroom. There are plenty of clips online to help fill in some of the background on the issues that come up in the poem – from Northern Ireland to nuclear war.
Here is another blog post I found useful.
And here are my resources: two presentations and a sheet of questions.
Children of Men (School Resources)
This is one of my favourite films and teaching it to a class of 18-year-olds was a great experience. Here are some resources I did up to help my students study the film.
First, below is a long presentation intended to go over multiple class periods. It covers Cultural Context, General Vision & Viewpoint and Literary Genre (For the benefit of international visitors, these three headings are the three Comparative Modes in Ireland’s Leaving Certificate course).
All images credited to Children of Men (2006) dir. Alfonso Cuarón – with the exception of the Blade Runner stills and a few from Wikimedia Commons.
Next, below, a worksheet looking at Literary Genre.
Last, a brief exercise designed to help students learn off a few quotes from the movie that they can use in essays and exams (or in casual conversation if they want to confuse people)
The 1919 Review 