Lesson Challenges

In the UK, during a black lives matter protest, a statue of a former slave trader was pulled down. Our latest Lesson Challenge encourages learners to explore the statement '"troublesome monuments are not history and should be removed." It is an opportunity for students to develop their ACPs and VAAs by practising their agility as an enquirer, being creative, open-minded and taking risks. 

The following HPL Challenge can be used for Secondary history students to develop the VAAs by thinking and discussing two opposing views on the importance of memory in History. This could be adapted for assembly time or for structuring a debate about the war.

The following HPL Challenge can be used for KS1 History students to develop the ACPs by practising analysing skills, and the VAAs by practising agility as an enquirer. The challenge is to create a piece of work in response to the question: “Would it be OK to say that the Fire of London was a good thing?”

The following HPL Challenge can be used for KS2 History students to develop the ACPs by practising analysing skills, and the VAAs by practising agility as an enquirer. The challenge is to create a piece of work in response to the hypothesis: “The Vikings were refugees rather than explorers”.

The following HPL Challenge can be used for KS3, KS4 and KS5 History students to develop the ACPs by practising analysing skills, and the VAAs by practising agility as an enquirer. The challenge is to create a piece of work in response to the hypothesis: “Hitler’s rise to power was largely a matter of luck”.

The following HPL Challenge can be used for KS5 History students to develop the ACPs by practising analysing skills, and the VAAs by practising agility as an enquirer. The challenge is to create a piece of work in response to the hypothesis: “The Cold War began at Hiroshima in Aug 1945…”.

The following HPL Challenge can be used for KS5 History students to develop the ACPs by practising analysing skills, and the VAAs by practising agility as an enquirer.

The challenge is to create a short response to the question: "Martin Luther King: Magnetic and inspirational leader, or a notorious liar?” by researching widely around Martin Luther King and the civil rights movement in America. Students should be encouraged to see both sides of the argument and form their own conclusion but should recognise the racism still apparent in America and the protests currently in the news.

The following HPL Challenge can be used for KS3, KS4 and KS5 History students for practising and applying their historical skills of analysis and thinking about how we question or interrogate historical objects and artefacts. The learner challenge is to ask questions of a variety of historical artefacts to try to figure out what the artefact is. They are then asked to consider what 6 items we could display in the History museum that sums up our life in 2020 and explain why.