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<title>Was Sarah Forbes Bonetta a significant individual in Victorian history?</title>
<link>https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/was-sarah-forbes-bonetta-a-significant-individual-in-victorian-history/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[stefanlesik]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Wed, 11 Dec 2019 09:00:43 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Primary]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Alf Wilkinson]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Collins Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[primary]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Sarah Forbes Bonetta]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[significant individuals]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Sue Temple]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Victorians]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/2019/12/11/was-sarah-forbes-bonetta-a-significant-individual-in-victorian-history/</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Every so often you come across the story of an individual that makes you think ‘Whoa! What a life!’ They … <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/was-sarah-forbes-bonetta-a-significant-individual-in-victorian-history/">Continued</a>
The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/was-sarah-forbes-bonetta-a-significant-individual-in-victorian-history/">Was Sarah Forbes Bonetta a significant individual in Victorian history?</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[
Every so often you come across the story of an individual
that makes you think ‘Whoa! What a life!’ They can make you re-evaluate what
you thought you already knew. Sarah Forbes Bonetta is one of those people.
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter is-resized"><img fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/87/2023/03/Sarah-Forbes-Bonetta-Sarah-Davies.jpg" alt="Sarah Forbes Bonetta (Sarah Davies)
by Camille Silvy
albumen print, 15 September 1862
NPG Ax61384 © National Portrait Gallery, London " class="wp-image-8594" width="470" height="600" /><figcaption> <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw86361/Sarah-Forbes-Bonetta-Sarah-Davies?" target="_blank">Sarah Forbes Bonetta (Sarah Davies)</a> by Camille Silvy albumen print, 15 September 1862 NPG Ax61384 © National Portrait Gallery, London </figcaption></figure></div>
Sarah was born in 1843 in West Africa. She was a princess. In
1847 she, along with others from her tribe, was captured by fighters from
Dahomey. Some of the captives were made into slaves and some were kept to be
sacrificed. Sarah was one of those kept as a sacrifice. 
In 1849, Captain Forbes of the British Navy, visited the
Kingdom of Dahomey as part of the British attempt to limit the slave trade from
West Africa to the Americas. He told the King that ‘the great white Queen
across the seas’ [Queen Victoria] would be very angry if the King of Dahomey
sacrificed Sarah, so she was given to Captain Forbes as a gift for Queen
Victoria. Captain Forbes took her to England in the ship HMS Bonetta, and in
due course, she was presented to Queen Victoria. Once in England, Sarah lived
with Forbes and his family for a while. 
Queen Victoria met Sarah many times, and paid for her
clothes, her education and her upkeep. She became a god-daughter of the Queen. She
was friends with some of Queen Victoria’s children and was even invited to their
weddings. In 1862, Sarah married James Davis, a successful West African
merchant who lived in Bristol. Sarah and her husband returned to West Africa
where he carried on his business and she taught for a time in a missionary
school there. In 1867, Sarah returned to England and visited Queen Victoria
with her daughter who Queen Victoria adopted as a god-daughter too. Sarah
returned to live in West Africa and died in 1880 from consumption. She is
buried on the island of Madeira.
We are not even certain of Sarah’s real name. Captain Forbes
named her Sarah, ‘Forbes’ is his name, and ‘Bonetta’ is the name of the ship
that took her to England. Reports of her meeting with Queen Victoria appeared
in the Illustrated London News on the
23rd November 1850. Photographs of her wedding in Brighton were on
sale shortly after the event. She was, I suppose, a minor celebrity at the
time. 
Sarah’s significance as an individual in Victorian times can influence the way we think about that period of history. Two facts made me re-evaluate my ideas of Victorian times. Firstly, I was unaware that Queen Victoria had African god-daughters. I knew she had an Indian servant and was enamoured by all things Indian (as can be seen at one of her favourite homes, Osborne House on the Isle of Wight), but I did not know about her connection with West Africa. Secondly, I had no idea there were successful African merchants living and trading in Britain in the 1850s and 1860s. Once you discover something like that, it makes you wonder what else is lost in the mists of time.
<hr class="wp-block-separator is-style-dots" />
To find out more about Sarah Forbes Bonetta, have a look at the videos and pictures on the <a href="https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/person/mp63230/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="National Portrait Gallery’s website (opens in a new tab)">National Portrait Gallery’s website</a>.
<hr class="wp-block-separator" />
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft is-resized"><img decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/87/2023/03/Picture2-1.png" alt="" class="wp-image-8595" width="256" height="353" /></figure></div>
The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/was-sarah-forbes-bonetta-a-significant-individual-in-victorian-history/">Was Sarah Forbes Bonetta a significant individual in Victorian history?</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
]]></content:encoded>
</item>
<item>
<title>Rewind to the beginning of TV broadcasting</title>
<link>https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/rewind-to-the-beginning-of-tv-broadcasting/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[stefanlesik]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Wed, 04 Dec 2019 09:00:53 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Primary]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Alf Wilkinson]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Changes within living memory]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Collins Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[primary]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Sue Temple]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Television]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/2019/12/04/rewind-to-the-beginning-of-tv-broadcasting/</guid>
<description><![CDATA[magine the scene. You are sitting in a darkened room. The curtains are pulled tightly closed – you don’t want any light to come in and spoil the picture. In the corner of the room, a big wooden box with a small screen glows. Chairs are pulled up close to be able to see what’s on the screen. All the neighbours are in the room because very few people have a television yet. It’s in black and white, and only on for a few hours a day. There is only one channel: the BBC.
The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/rewind-to-the-beginning-of-tv-broadcasting/">Rewind to the beginning of TV broadcasting</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[
Imagine the scene. You are sitting in a darkened room. The
curtains are pulled tightly closed – you don’t want any light to come in and
spoil the picture. In the corner of the room, a big wooden box with a small
screen glows. Chairs are pulled up close to be able to see what’s on the
screen. All the neighbours are in the room because very few people have a
television yet. It’s in black and white, and only on for a few hours a day. There
is only one channel: the BBC.
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter is-resized"><img decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/shutterstock_696658108-1024x683.jpg" alt="People watching an early television" class="wp-image-8589" width="512" height="342" /></figure></div>
TV was first broadcast in 1936, but was suspended during
World War Two. It started up again in 1946, but it was the coronation of Queen
Elizabeth II in 1953 that provided the big stimulus to get a TV. The whole
ceremony – which was seven hours’ long – was shown live. Most televisions were
rented then because they were far too expensive for ordinary people to buy.
Broadcasting hours were strictly controlled by the government: programmes could
only be shown between 9am and 11pm, and only two hours of programmes were
allowed each day before 1pm. There were no programmes at all between 6pm and
7pm – some parents even persuaded their children that the TV was finished so it
was time for bed at 6pm! 
Gradually things began to change. In 1955, ITV began,
financed by adverts. You needed an adapter box to receive the new channel. By
1957, viewers were spending on average 40% of their evening in front of the
television. A new art form – TV dinners – appeared as people ate in front of their
favourite programmes! In 1964 BBC2 started and viewers now had a choice of three
channels. Wimbledon was the first programme to be shown in colour and in
1967, BBC2 started to broadcast regularly in colour. In the 1980s Channel 4 and
Satellite TV began, and in 1988 24-hour TV started. 
In the early days of television, cameramen filmed an event
in another country and sent the film back to England by aeroplane to be
processed before it could be broadcast a day or two after the event had happened.
Nowadays, we can see events anywhere in the world almost instantaneously. You
can watch subscription satellite and cable television, Freeview, digital,
online, on demand and catch-up! There are hundreds and hundreds of channels to
choose from – specialist news channels, sports channels, cookery channels, film
channels, whatever you want. And still we complain that we can’t find anything
to watch on TV!
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft"><img decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/shutterstock_1398250544-300x200.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-8590" /></figure></div>
Today, instead of the little screen in the corner of the room we are just as likely to have a huge screen on the wall, showing programmes in high definition and with stereo sound. Modern televisions can be used as computers, can download data, can even be used as cinema screens. Things have changed a great deal since the 1950s<a href="#_ftn1">[1]</a> when we felt ourselves lucky to have the choice of two black and white television channels for a few hours each day.
<hr class="wp-block-separator is-style-dots" />
<a href="#_ftnref1">[1]</a> Television and broadcasting is a great example of changes within living memory: take a look at the pictures in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/media/gallery/2010/jul/07/televisions-through-the-years">this article</a> about the development of television since 1925. It has been 9 years since this article was published – how are televisions different now?  
<hr class="wp-block-separator" />
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/87/2023/03/Picture1-2.png" alt="" class="wp-image-8591" width="256" height="351" /></figure></div>
The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/rewind-to-the-beginning-of-tv-broadcasting/">Rewind to the beginning of TV broadcasting</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
]]></content:encoded>
</item>
<item>
<title>How did the Maya share (and boast about!) their lives?</title>
<link>https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/how-did-the-maya-share-and-boast-about-their-lives/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[stefanlesik]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Wed, 27 Nov 2019 09:00:24 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Primary]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Alf Wilkinson]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Collins Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Maya]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[mayan]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[primary]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Sue Temple]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/2019/11/27/how-did-the-maya-share-and-boast-about-their-lives/</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The Maya liked to boast too. Leaders built stelae (singular: stela) in their cities to celebrate their great victories in a similar way to Trajan's Column.
The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/how-did-the-maya-share-and-boast-about-their-lives/">How did the Maya share (and boast about!) their lives?</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[
I recently had a phone call from a friend asking me why I hadn’t responded to his social media posts. He had been on the holiday of a lifetime – a month in Southern Africa! When I looked, there were posts of him at Victoria Falls, in the Serengeti, watching elephants and wildebeest, and much, much more. His whole holiday played out daily – and sometimes more frequently than that – for the whole world to see.
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright"><img decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/shutterstock_1382815688-300x200.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-8603" /></figure></div>
Many people post even the most trivial of events and ideas on their social media platforms. It is a convenient way to get your voice heard. Before that, people kept in touch by email. And before that, telephone and post. Postcards from places we visited and letters detailing family events were the way ideas spread. Is this shouting out about things as new, dominating or destructive as some people think? Or is it as old as the hills?
Go into almost any church and you will find plaques on the
wall, or bronzes on the floor, commemorating people and their achievements. My
local church has a plaque commemorating someone’s involvement in events in
India in 1857, and another remembering a soldier from the First World War. 
Ancient Egyptians painted on the walls of their tombs,
telling the story of wars, adventures and conquests. The Sumerians did the
same: the Standard of Ur (a decorated box, now displayed in The British Museum)
tells us about the achievements of one of their kings. Roman Emperors also
liked to boast of their achievements. Hadrian’s Wall is a monument to the man
who ordered it built and successfully defended the Empire. Trajan’s Column, in
Rome, was built to celebrate the victories of Emperor Trajan in the Dacian
Wars. It is sited right in the middle of Rome, next to the Forum, is 38 metres
tall and contains over 200 metres of carefully sculptured detail extolling the
virtues of Trajan and his great victories!
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/shutterstock_729711445-683x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-8602" width="342" height="512" /><figcaption> A Mayan stela at the Calakmul archaeological site in Mexico </figcaption></figure></div>
The Maya liked to boast too. Leaders built stelae (singular:
stela) in their cities to celebrate their great victories in a similar way to
Trajan. Although not as tall as Trajan’s Column, a stela would have images of
the leader on one side and the other three sides would be covered with
hieroglyphs describing the event the stela was commemorating. The king or ruler
would always be shown as a military and divine leader. There is no doubting
their purpose! One city, Calakmul in Mexico, is known to have had at least 166
stelae! Ultimately, they seem to have gone out of fashion, as the last known
stela was erected around 909AD.
So next time you post something on social media remember
people have been doing the same thing for ever – perhaps not as often as people
do today, but shouting out about their achievements just the same as we do!
<hr class="wp-block-separator" />
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/87/2023/03/Picture4.png" alt="" class="wp-image-8604" width="256" height="351" /></figure></div>
The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/how-did-the-maya-share-and-boast-about-their-lives/">How did the Maya share (and boast about!) their lives?</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
]]></content:encoded>
</item>
<item>
<title>When was the golden age of medicine?</title>
<link>https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/golden-age-medicine/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[stefanlesik]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Wed, 20 Nov 2019 09:00:54 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Primary]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Alf Wilkinson]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[collins primary]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Collins Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[doctor]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[medicine]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Sue Temple]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/2019/11/20/golden-age-medicine/</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Someone in my village recently went into hospital for a life-changing operation. She had a knee replacement and she can … <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/golden-age-medicine/">Continued</a>
The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/golden-age-medicine/">When was the golden age of medicine?</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[
Someone in my village recently went into hospital for a
life-changing operation. She had a knee replacement and she can now drive and
walk quite a way, which she couldn’t do before. Such operations are now routine
and usually very safe – this is her second knee replacement! But has that always
been the case?
Until 1948, when the National Health Service began, doctors were far too expensive for ordinary people. It was quite unusual for people to go to hospital, unless it was an emergency or they were wealthy. People depended on folk-remedies and long-used family recipes. This is part of our very recent history! When I was little my parents rubbed goose-fat on my chest whenever I caught a cold, and vinegar and brown paper really was used to reduce swellings and bumps!
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignright is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/87/2023/03/shutterstock_86072566_low_nwm.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-8549" width="250" height="153" /><figcaption> A stamp shows Lister’s Carbolic Spray, circa 1965 </figcaption></figure></div>
During Victorian times, until James Simpson pioneered anaesthetics
and Joseph Lister antiseptic surgery, operations were very dangerous indeed and
many people died from shock, infection or blood loss. It is only during the 20th
Century that antibiotics like penicillin have been developed to control infection
and make surgery much safer. 
In Medieval times, Arab doctors were the best in the world.
People like Avi Senna wrote medical textbooks and set up hospitals that were
kept scrupulously clean and airy, with plenty of water to which they believed
kept the air pure. Hospitals contained lecture rooms, pharmacies and libraries,
and new doctors were very carefully trained. Another Arab doctor called Rhazes,
was the first in the world to accurately describe the symptoms of smallpox – an
essential step towards establishing a cure.
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/87/2023/03/shutterstock_1505945942-scaled.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-8550" width="171" height="256" /><figcaption> Hippocrates statue at the Bahia School of Medicine</figcaption></figure></div>
Where did all this knowledge come from? Partly, it came from
close observation of their patients, but also from translation of old texts
from India, Egypt, Rome and Ancient Greece, where Hippocrates was regarded as
the ‘Father of Medicine.’ He was born on the island of Kos in 460BC. His motto
was ‘Do no harm to your patient.’ He looked at the body as a whole and tried to
treat it. He believed doctors should always be smart, well-dressed, and behave
in a polite manner, and that rest and recuperation were most important in
recovering from illness. He wrote over 60 books, many of which continued to be
used in Europe in Medieval times. New doctors around the world today still take
a version of the Hippocratic Oath as they start out on their careers.
Ancient Egypt was renowned for its medicine – its doctors
were in great demand around the whole Mediterranean area. Rulers of other
countries would send to Egypt for a physician. Much of Egyptian doctors’ knowledge
of the human body came from the mummification process, which helped them to
understand – not entirely accurately – how the body worked. 
Even further back in history, there is evidence of successful
surgery from Stone Age times when a patient might have a hole drilled in his
skull (trepanning) to relieve pressure or perhaps release evil spirits. There
is lots of evidence of fractures being set and healed. Surprising as it seems,
some of these patients recovered!
In conclusion, successful medicine is not just a modern phenomenon. It has been around, with various degrees of success, probably as long as there have been humans on earth. It is just that we are perhaps better now than ever before. 
<hr class="wp-block-separator" />
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft is-resized"><a href="https://collins.co.uk/pages/primary-history-collins-primary-history" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/87/2023/03/Ancient-Greece-cover.png" alt="Collins Primary History Ancient Greece Pupil Book" class="wp-image-8556" width="256" height="353" /></a></figure></div>
 

The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/golden-age-medicine/">When was the golden age of medicine?</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
]]></content:encoded>
</item>
<item>
<title>Striking is as old as the pyramids!</title>
<link>https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/striking-is-as-old-as-the-pyramids/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[stefanlesik]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Wed, 13 Nov 2019 09:00:55 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Primary]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Alf Wilkinson]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Ancient Egypt]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Collins Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Deir el-Medina]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Egyptians]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[primary]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Strike]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Sue Temple]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/2019/11/13/striking-is-as-old-as-the-pyramids/</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The people of Deir el-Medina were quite well off. Each family had a slave, paid for by the pharaoh, who came twice a week to grind their wheat into flour. They also had a laundry slave once a week, so keeping clothes clean was not a problem. They might keep a few animals for food, and in their spare time they often made items to sell in nearby villages. Perhaps one of the most surprising things about Deir el-Medina is that most of the men – and many of the women – could read and write. This was very unusual in Ancient Egypt where the literacy rate was around 1%!
The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/striking-is-as-old-as-the-pyramids/">Striking is as old as the pyramids!</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[
We often hear about workers going on strike in the news. If the
workforce want change then one way to influence it is by going on strike.
Striking is a modern phenomenon, surely? Perhaps not – what if the Ancient
Egyptians went on strike?
Not all Ancient Egyptians were farmers. There were lots of craftsmen
building pyramids and temples, making weapons, building boats and writing
letters. Egyptian society depended on them. They built the tombs, they painted
the walls, they mummified the dead. In fact, they were everywhere! One special
place full of craftsmen was the village of Deir el-Medina.
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/shutterstock_1436832833-1024x683.jpg" alt="Scene from a tomb at the ancient Egyptian village of Dier el-Medina" class="wp-image-8598" width="512" height="342" /><figcaption> Scene from a Tomb in Deir el-Medina</figcaption></figure></div>
Deir el-Medina was a village just outside the Valley of the Kings,
where Tutankhamun and other pharaohs from the New Kingdom were buried. There
were about 70 houses built inside a wall, just a mile or two from their
workplace. There were carpenters, quarrymen, stonemasons, draughtsmen, potters,
scribes, even a doctor. These people were employed directly by the pharaoh to
construct the tombs in the Valley of the Kings. It was in Deir el-Medina that
the first recorded strike in history happened.
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/shutterstock_1435951982-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-8597" width="512" height="342" /><figcaption> The ruins of the ancient Egyptian workers’ village, Deir el-Medina  </figcaption></figure></div>
The people of Deir el-Medina were quite well off. Each family had a
slave, paid for by the pharaoh, who came twice a week to grind their wheat into
flour. They also had a laundry slave once a week, so keeping clothes clean was
not a problem. They might keep a few animals for food, and in their spare time
they often made items to sell in nearby villages. Perhaps one of the most
surprising things about Deir el-Medina is that most of the men – and many of
the women – could read and write. This was very unusual in Ancient Egypt where
the literacy rate was around 1%! 
They were paid in rations: every month they received wheat (for bread),
barley (for beer), fish, vegetables, firewood and oil (for cooking and to use
in their lamps). There were people specially employed by the pharaoh to deliver
their rations to them – even water, as there was no water in the village – all
of it had to be brought up from the Nile. On their days off the men would
sometimes go hunting in the desert so there might be some meat to eat. 
One day the rations were late, so people complained to the pharaoh’s
staff. The scribe wrote a letter asking for the rations to be delivered
promptly. They didn’t arrive. Fed up with having to buy their own food and
water, and of course, to carry this up from the Nile Valley below, the men
finally had had enough. They went on strike. They refused to work on the burial
chambers until their rations were delivered. Within three days the missing
rations turned up, and the men went back to work. 
So next time you hear about a strike think about the hungry craftsmen
of Deir el-Medina and the pharaoh, desperate to get his burial chamber
completed before he died!
<hr class="wp-block-separator" />
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/87/2023/03/Picture3.png" alt="" class="wp-image-8599" width="256" height="353" /></figure></div>
The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/striking-is-as-old-as-the-pyramids/">Striking is as old as the pyramids!</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
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<title>The Victorians: tough on crime</title>
<link>https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/the-victorians-tough-on-crime/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[stefanlesik]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Wed, 06 Nov 2019 09:00:13 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Primary]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Alf Wilkinson]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Collins Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Sue Temple]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Victorians]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/2019/11/06/the-victorians-tough-on-crime/</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Oliver Twist’s crime was to ask for a second bowl of gruel in the workhouse. He was severely punished for his sins. Although Oliver Twist is a fictional character, any local newspaper from the time will reveal many similar cases that really happened.
The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/the-victorians-tough-on-crime/">The Victorians: tough on crime</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[
<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/shutterstock_1223940130-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-8562" /></figure>
We all know that the Victorians were tough on crime –
especially crimes against property. Sentences were harsh for what, to us, seem
like quite trivial offences.
Political crimes were treated extremely harshly. The
Tolpuddle Martyrs, six agricultural labourers in a small village in Dorset,
were found guilty in 1834 of taking an illegal oath and were transported to
Australia for seven years. Their crime was to band together to try to form a
trade union in order to prevent their employer reducing their wages yet again.
Government and those in authority were frightened the masses might overthrow
the government as the French had done in 1789. Those accused of rebellion were
often sentenced to death.
Petty crimes were treated equally harshly. Oliver Twist’s
crime was to ask for a second bowl of gruel in the workhouse. He was severely
punished for his sins. Although Oliver Twist is a fictional character, any
local newspaper from the time will reveal many similar cases that really happened.

<h3 class="wp-block-heading">This is one case that I came across in my own village in
Lincolnshire…</h3>
Mary Dimoline was a servant, born in 1786. In January 1840,
she was accused of theft. The court documents give us our only description of
her: she was 4ft 11inches tall and had black hair, beginning to turn grey. She
was married with three children. She was also, in the legal documents,
described as a cripple.
On the 4th of October 1839, two knives and two ounces of
feathers belonging to Robert Speed were stolen. Suspicion fell on Mary Dimoline
who had been lodging in their house for the night. Unfortunately for the
Speeds, the suspect had left their house before the discovery was made. 
A few days later, Dimoline visited the house of Mr Benjamin
Garton of Scredington. Sitting down in Mr Garton’s kitchen with only a servant
present in the house, Dimoline stole silk neckerchiefs and a tablecloth drying
by the fire. Dimoline struck another house the following day; left alone, she
helped herself to a watch, seals, a vinaigrette box, and a sum of money. 
Having been caught and arrested on suspicion of theft,
Dimoline was locked up in Folkingham House of Correction. When the Matron
searched the prisoner, the watch, seals, vinaigrette box, and 3 sovereigns, 3
shillings, and 5 sixpences were found hidden in the prisoner’s stays. Armed
with an official warrant, the Sleaford Constable searched the house of Mr
Fountain of Caythorpe on the 26th of October. There, in a box belonging to John
Bowling, he found the table cloth and neckerchiefs stolen from Mr Garton. Mr
Bowling said that they had been given to him by his mother, Mary Dimoline, for
safekeeping.   
Mary was put on trial in Sleaford in January 1840. She was
found guilty of theft. The court sentenced Dimoline to fourteen years’
transportation to New South Wales, Australia. Having spent a year in various
prisons, Dimoline finally set sail from London in October 1840 onboard the
convict ship Navarino. After three months on board in terrible conditions, she
landed at Hobart and her life in Australia began.
We do not know what drove Mary to steal these items – was it
opportunity, or desperation? Did she tour the local villages looking for
opportunities to steal goods? What we do know is that her case is typical of
thousands of people at the time, probably driven by desperation in order to
survive in hard times, and who, on conviction, were treated very harshly
indeed. Cases like this provide a different perspective on the period we know
as ‘The Great Changes’. 
<hr class="wp-block-separator" />
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft is-resized"><a href="https://collins.co.uk/pages/primary-history-collins-primary-history"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/87/2023/03/The-Victorian-Times-cover.png" alt="" class="wp-image-8563" width="256" height="354" /></a></figure></div>
The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/the-victorians-tough-on-crime/">The Victorians: tough on crime</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
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<title>King Alfred’s cakes – legend or fact?</title>
<link>https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/king-alfreds-cakes-legend-or-fact/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[stefanlesik]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Oct 2019 09:00:35 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Alf Wilkinson]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Collins Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Invaders]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[King Alfred]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Sue Temple]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/2019/10/30/king-alfreds-cakes-legend-or-fact/</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Everyone knows the story of King Alfred burning the cakes. Well, perhaps not. Let me tell you….
The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/king-alfreds-cakes-legend-or-fact/">King Alfred’s cakes – legend or fact?</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[
Everyone knows the story of King Alfred burning the cakes.
Well, perhaps not. Let me tell you….
King Alfred had been defeated in battle yet again by the
Vikings and was hiding out in the wilderness of the Somerset Levels, the only
part of Wessex not conquered by the Vikings. He was hiding in a shepherd’s hut.
The shepherd was out, minding his flocks and his wife was baking cakes – more
likely, flatbreads – and she had to pop outside for another bucket of water from
the stream. She had no idea who her illustrious guest was.
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/shutterstock_664601272-1024x685.jpg" alt="Flatbreads cooked in a fire" class="wp-image-8559" width="512" height="343" /></figure></div>
She asked Alfred to watch the cakes but he was so
preoccupied with planning how to win back his kingdom and defeat the Vikings
that he completely forgot about the cakes, which burnt. The shepherd’s wife was
not pleased to come back to the smell of burning and a spoiled supper so she set
about beating King Alfred with her broomstick, calling him a lazy, good-for-nothing
idiot.  Rather than assert his royal
status, Alfred meekly accepted the beating and apologised!
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/King-Alfred-1014x1024.png" alt="Alfred the Great, 849-899AD" class="wp-image-8560" width="254" height="256" /><figcaption> Alfred the Great, 849-899AD </figcaption></figure></div>
It is a lovely story, designed to show King Alfred in a good
light. He accepted being in the wrong when it was his fault, and did not use
his royal authority to gain privilege or avoid punishment.  The story was told to make Alfred appear to
have all the qualities needed to be an outstanding King of England. 
King Alfred’s greatness – and this story in particular – was
especially admired during Victorian times and into the 20th Century.
When a statue of Alfred was unveiled at Winchester in 1901, 2000 local schoolchildren
were given pieces of cake to celebrate!<a href="#_ftn1">[1]</a>
 Many old history books for children even
relate this story as fact – asserting that it really happened.  
Unfortunately, the story is probably not true. It first appears in an Anglo-Saxon chronicle over 100 years after the event is supposed to have happened, and what is worse,<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2007/mar/13/britishidentity.research" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)">it appears that the story may have been first told about a Viking called Ragnar Hairybreeks</a>! Of course, the story might be true, no one can say for sure. I wonder how many other stories from British history, told and retold through the ages, may be true, or might be made up and used as propaganda or persuasion to make somebody appear ‘Great.’
<hr class="wp-block-separator is-style-dots" />
<a href="#_ftnref1">[1]</a> This interesting fact is from Michael Portillo’s Radio 4 programme Alfred the Great, part of the Things We Forgot To Remember series (skip to 21 minutes in to hear about the burning of the cakes story) <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00g2zrt" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)">https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00g2zrt</a>
<hr class="wp-block-separator" />
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft is-resized"><a href="https://collins.co.uk/pages/primary-history-collins-primary-history" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/87/2023/03/Invaders-cover.png" alt="" class="wp-image-8558" width="256" height="354" /></a></figure></div>
<hr class="wp-block-separator" />
The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/king-alfreds-cakes-legend-or-fact/">King Alfred’s cakes – legend or fact?</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
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<title>Neolithic Know-How: Great Langdale Axes</title>
<link>https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/neolithic-know-how-great-langdale-axes/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[stefanlesik]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Wed, 23 Oct 2019 08:00:59 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Primary]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Alf Wilkinson]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Collins Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Neolithic]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Neolithic axes]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Stone age]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Sue Temple]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/2019/10/23/neolithic-know-how-great-langdale-axes/</guid>
<description><![CDATA[About a quarter of all stone axes studied by experts come from the Langdale Valley. Why is this? And how did they get from Langdale to their destination? Some of the axes are worn, showing they have had a lot of use. Some are brand new, well-polished, obviously highly-valued, yet seem to have been deposited in water, perhaps as an offering to the Gods.
The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/neolithic-know-how-great-langdale-axes/">Neolithic Know-How: Great Langdale Axes</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[
As the Mesolithic Period (‘middle stone age’) turned into
the Neolithic Period (‘new stone age’) around 4,000BC in Britain, axes became
more and more important. A good stone axe was essential to be able to clear the
forest and create fields to grow crops and keep animals. And the best axes,
over a period of around 1200 years, seem to have come from Great Langdale in
the English Lake District.
<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/shutterstock_1410884249-1024x337.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-8579" /><figcaption> Great Carrs, the Coniston fells, looking towards Langdale</figcaption></figure>
There were perhaps 200,000 people in the whole of Britain at
the time, living in scattered communities wherever conditions were favourable.
Archaeologists argue whether the earliest farmers kept animals or grew crops,
but a settled existence made clearing the land essential and an axe would be
needed to do this. 
Suitable rock types for axe making could be found in many
places across the country, but the Langdale Valley was a great source of
greenstone, which was perfect for making axes. The greenstone appears to have
initially been found on the scree slopes near the summits, but was also shallow
mined in places. There is still plenty of evidence of rough cut stones and
debris, as well as hammerstones, in the area today. Rough cut stones were
transported from the summits to lowland areas, often on the coast, where they
were finished by polishing and final shaping. Langdale Axes were a very
attractive shade of green, but were also very strong and practical. They would
have been fixed into a wooden haft (or handle) for use. They are often around
11 inches long and 3 or 4 inches wide. A great deal of effort was needed, often
taking several weeks, to produce the finished axe.
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/shutterstock_386401549-1024x837.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-8581" width="512" height="419" /><figcaption>A Neolithic axe might have looked something like this</figcaption></figure></div>
What is particularly interesting is the fact that about a quarter of all stone axes studied by experts come from the Langdale Valley. Axes have been found in archaeological digs from North-East Scotland all the way to Cornwall. There seem to be more in the East of the country than in the West. Why is this? And how did they get from Langdale to their destination? Some of the axes are worn, showing they have had a lot of use. Some are brand new, well-polished, obviously highly-valued, yet seem to have been deposited in water, perhaps as an offering to the Gods.
What does that tell us about Neolithic times? Communities may have been small and scattered but they did from time to time come together to build henges, like Stonehenge. There was obviously a complex trading network throughout the country. Communities did stay in touch. Whether the axes were bought and sold, or were ‘gifted’ in return for favours of one sort or another, we do not know. What is certain is that axes from Great Langdale were very highly valued throughout much of the country and people must have gone to great trouble to obtain both the raw materials – from high up in the Lake District Fells – and the finished article. Perhaps Neolithic people were not so simple as we sometimes make out.
<hr class="wp-block-separator" />
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/87/2023/03/Picture1-1.png" alt="" class="wp-image-8584" width="256" height="352" /></figure></div>
The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/neolithic-know-how-great-langdale-axes/">Neolithic Know-How: Great Langdale Axes</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
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<title>Who Discovered America?</title>
<link>https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/who-discovered-america/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[stefanlesik]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Fri, 11 Oct 2019 09:44:57 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Alf Wilkinson]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Christopher Columbus]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Collins Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Sue Temple]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/2019/10/11/who-discovered-america/</guid>
<description><![CDATA['In fourteen hundred and ninety-two Columbus sailed the ocean blue' ... and discovered America. Or did he?
The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/who-discovered-america/">Who Discovered America?</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-style-default">‘In fourteen hundred and ninety-two Columbus sailed the ocean blue’<cite> … and discovered America. Or did he?   </cite></blockquote>
 
<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/shutterstock_342245075-1024x683.jpg" alt=" Christopher Columbus monument on the central promenade of Barcelona " class="wp-image-8534"/><figcaption> Christopher Columbus monument on the central promenade of Barcelona </figcaption></figure>
 
There is some doubt whether Columbus ever set foot on the
American mainland, certainly on his first voyage. It appears he landed on a
Caribbean island, which was probably the Bahamas but no-one knows for sure. He
thought he had arrived in the Indies, hence the name ‘West Indies’ and ‘American
Indians.’ On his third (1498) and his fourth voyage (1502), Columbus explored
the coastline of Central America, trying and failing to find a route through to
the Pacific Ocean. Nevertheless, Columbus’ voyages led to Spain claiming the
lands of the New World. Subsequent voyages of conquest led to war with the
Aztecs, Inca, and Maya civilisations.
But did Columbus discover America? There is now plenty of evidence to suggest that the Vikings were there before him. Around the year 1000AD, Leif Ericson, who lived in Iceland, was on a voyage to Greenland and was blown off course by the wind. He reached Newfoundland, and for a while, the Vikings had settlements there. Leif called the settlement ‘Vinland’ – <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/vinland" target="_blank">meaning ‘wine-land’</a> – after the wild berries or grapes discovered there, to make it appear more attractive than Greenland and encourage people to move and live there. Vinland provided crops and timber that Greenland couldn’t and helped sustain the Viking settlements. Eventually, finding life hard and tired of conflict with the Native Americans, the Viking settlers left and returned to live in Greenland and Iceland.
The Vikings may not have been the first Europeans to land in America. There is a legend that an Irish monk called St. Brendan sailed a hide-covered boat into the Atlantic in the 6th Century and discovered a place known as St. Brendan’s Isle. Its location has been variously identified as Iceland, the Azores, Greenland and the coast of the USA. The first surviving written accounts of this voyage date from around 900AD and mention the ‘Island of Sheep’, the ‘Paradise of Birds’, ‘pillars of crystal’, ‘mountains that hurled rocks at voyagers’, and the ‘Promised Land’ which historians and explorers have used to try and identify the true course and stops on the voyage.  Medieval maps showed this Isle and it is widely believed that Christopher Columbus used one of these maps as a guide. In 1978, the historian and adventurer Tim Severin proved that it was possible to cross the Atlantic in a hide-covered boat in <a href="https://www.arcgis.com/apps/MapJournal/index.html?appid=db1c8a837b514d8d89db838c6451f316" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)">the Brendan Voyage</a>.
Again, this is not the whole story because, of course, America was already widely settled when it was ‘discovered’ by Europeans. About 25,000 years ago, early humans walked across the Bering Straits land bridge from Siberia to North America following game. Some historians claim that early settlers sailed around the Pacific coast to what is now Alaska and spread south that way. Gradually they spread throughout the whole continent. Surely, these were the people who first discovered and settled America. What place then does Columbus deserve in the annals of discovery?
<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>
<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/87/2023/03/Picture1-1.jpg" alt="Events Beyond Living Memory" class="wp-image-8537" width="256" height="352"/></figure></div>
 

The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/who-discovered-america/">Who Discovered America?</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
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<title>Lesson ideas to celebrate the Queen’s 90th birthday</title>
<link>https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/lesson-ideas-to-celebrate-the-queens-90th-birthday/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[stefanlesik]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Fri, 06 May 2016 13:26:34 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Primary]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Primary History]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Primary PSHE]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[collins primary]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Education]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[free lesson ideas]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[lesson plan]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[primary]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[primary education]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Teaching]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/2016/05/06/lesson-ideas-to-celebrate-the-queens-90th-birthday/</guid>
<description><![CDATA[In April, Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her 90th birthday and whilst many who reach that age like to reminisce about … <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/lesson-ideas-to-celebrate-the-queens-90th-birthday/">Continued</a>
The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/lesson-ideas-to-celebrate-the-queens-90th-birthday/">Lesson ideas to celebrate the Queen’s 90th birthday</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[In April, Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her 90th birthday and whilst many who reach that age like to reminisce about their lives, the whole country did just that on the queen’s special day with plenty of documentaries showing the life of our monarch in detail. The celebrations are sure to continue right the way through the year and especially on the Queen’s official birthday on the 11th of June. In this series of activities we look at the changing times through the Queen’s reign and how we can celebrate the Queen’s 90th year in school.
 
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-6942" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/87/2023/03/shutterstock_412813690-1-300x201.jpg" alt="shutterstock_412813690" width="600" height="401" />
Activity One – Queen’s Birthday Party
Suitable for Years 3 to 6
Learning Objectives: 
<ul>
<li>To recognise the school’s place in the local community and help it become an active member</li>
<li>To plan and deliver a birthday party for the Queen’s birthday</li>
</ul>
There’s nothing better than a party to celebrate a birthday and no party is fun without special guests. In this activity, the school and your class gets a chance to reach out to the community of which it is a part and find out more about life there during the reign of the Queen.
The class are going to organise a party with tea, sandwiches and cakes and invite people who are 90 years old or more from the community. You could find these from local care homes or through Age UK at <a href="http://www.ageuk.org.uk/">www.ageuk.org.uk/</a>
You can arrange some entertainment for them in the form of the school choir or recorders group or make the visitors perform for their tea by getting them to tell groups of pupils about their memories of the queen over the 90 years. Don’t forget to photograph the event for the school records!
The activity can involve maths in calculating how much food is required and what it’s going to cost. Science can be involved in healthy eating as well as irreversible changes in cooking. English and art get a look in with menus and invitations and speaking and listening skills can be practised in phoning the care homes to make arrangements and in welcoming the guests to the party.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-6943" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/87/2023/03/shutterstock_298858547-1.jpg" alt="shutterstock_298858547" width="600" height="434" />
Activity Two – Queen’s Birthday Mural in School
Suitable for Years 3 to 6
Learning Objective: 
<ul>
<li>To understand why we mark important occasions</li>
<li>To help produce a school-wide recognition of the Queen’s 90th year</li>
</ul>
Ask the pupils if they can remember a big event in the life of the school. It could be an anniversary since it opened or the opening of a new building. How was it celebrated? Sometimes a tree is planted, sometimes a plaque is put up. Why do we do this? Now ask them what they think might be appropriate to mark the queen’s 90th birthday. One of the most common answers is likely to be to make a cake or to send her a gift. Both of these can be done neatly, and metaphorically, with a pebble mural that each child in the school contributes to.
For this, you’ll need to find a flat area which can be elevated slightly or even vertical. You’ll need a bag of cement or tile adhesive and lots of small pebbles which can be collected from the beach (if one nearby) or from a builders’ merchant. Ask each pupil to decorate a pebble and to add their name. Once they are all completed, draw a design of a birthday cake where the installation will be situated and layer the pebbles in band of colours like a cake. Once completed, the installation will need to be sprayed with sealer or exterior varnish to preserve it. Make sure you annotate it with a plaque, photograph it and send a copy to the queen!
Activity Three – Decade Wheel
Suitable for Years 3 to 6
Learning Objective: 
<ul>
<li>To identify important events in the decades of the queen’s life</li>
<li>To create a collage of photographs of events over the last 90 years to help celebrate the Queen’s life</li>
</ul>
This is a great visual activity and involves creating a large circle of card, as big as you think necessary, perhaps with a picture of the queen in the middle. Divide the circle into nine sectors and label each with the decade of the queen’s life. Now either by finding pictures on the internet or drawing and colouring their own, make a collage of pictures of events from those decades, accompanied by a picture of the queen in that decade. The finished article could be displayed in the school entrance or hall.
 
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-6944" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/87/2023/03/shutterstock_385608118-1.jpg" alt="shutterstock_385608118" width="600" height="367" />
Activity Four – The Next Decade
Suitable for Years 3 to 6
Learning Objective: 
To be able to write using the future tense
To be able to identify possible events that may happen in the next decade and how the Queen may be involved in them
Look at recent news articles about what the Queen has been doing. Where has she visited, what has she done? From this, ask the pupils to think about what the Queen might do in the next ten years. Are there anniversaries of events she will be involved in? Perhaps the 30th anniversary of the invasion of the Falkland Islands in 2017 or 100 years since the end of the First World War in 2018 or, further ahead, the Queen’s 75th year on the throne.
How will the Queen be involved? What might she do? Imagine you are a news reporter there on the day, describing the event and what the Queen did, how she was dressed and even refer to how she coped with the events given her age. The pupils can do this as a ‘to camera’ report, a written report or by piecing together pictures from a similar event or the original event to make a ‘newsreel’ which they can narrate.
As an extension or alternative activity, they could simply imagine the event in the future and write it in the future tense.<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-6945" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/87/2023/03/shutterstock_106047695-1.jpg" alt="shutterstock_106047695" width="600" height="399" />
Activity Four – History With A Royal Touch
Suitable for Years 4 to 6
Learning Objective: To look at historical events from a different perspective
To recognise the importance of the queen’s role in events of the last 90 years
The Queen is often seen marking the anniversaries of historical events but, given her longevity, many of the events were ones that she experienced herself. Recently we have heard of what the Queen did during the Second World War as a member of the Women’s Auxiliary Territorial Service but what were her experiences of other events in the history of the 20th and 21st centuries?
What did she do in the sixties during Beatlemania and the hippy era? Where was she when the Berlin Wall fell or when the Gulf War started? We can use the Queen’s experiences to help pupils look at historical events from a different perspective.
Choose a major event from the last 90 years. Find out what the queen and the royal family were doing at the time. How did the events affect them? Did any of her children join the armed forces in a war? Did the Queen do anything to impact on the effects of the event? As an example, you could use the Second World War. The queen was 13 years old at the start of the Second World War; how was she affected in those early days or during the Blitz? Did she stay in London or was she an evacuee?
The tasks will require some research and, when writing about the events, some empathy from the pupils as to how the Queen might have been feeling.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-6947" src="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/87/2023/03/shutterstock_249573424-1-300x217.jpg" alt="London during World War II" width="600" height="434" />
 
The post <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk/lesson-ideas-to-celebrate-the-queens-90th-birthday/">Lesson ideas to celebrate the Queen’s 90th birthday</a> appeared first on <a href="https://freedomtoteach.collins.co.uk">Collins | Freedom to Teach</a>.
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