Chapter Two

Chapter Two Introduction | Agricultural Revolution lesson plan |
Agricultural Revolution Powerpoint presentation | Extension Project | Bibliography

Chapter 2 seeks to help you to achieve greater clarity about the educational value of history and the topics you are asked to teach. So the text of this chapter, building upon Chapter 2 of Learning to Teach History in the Secondary School will help you to approach your teaching with confidence in the value of the lessons you are preparing and precise in the articulation of your aims.

The text and worksheets in this chapter are therefore designed to encourage you to do the following:

• clarify in your mind why you are teaching history so that you can express your reasons in ways which are accessible to your pupils;
• consider how such thinking could influence the way you plan your lessons;
• review your attitude to the teaching of topics, which you have hitherto found rather dull by considering different approaches – in this case, looking at significant change through the experience of an individual family;
• look for the big picture in explaining why a topic is to be studied by considering the new substantive concepts involved, the long-term causes and consequences and the significance at the time and for today;
• consider way in which pupils can use their numerical skills in historical problem-solving activities.

Resources to Download

The Agricultural Revolution: MS PowerPoint presentation

Agricultural Revolution: lesson plans

An example of an extension project for the very able – Slavery by numbers:

• task sheet
• Slavery by numbers: with answers
• Slavery by numbers:
• Additional Reading for Chapter 2

The items related to the Agricultural Revolution lessons were devised by Martin Hunt and Alison Stephen and taught by Alison Stephen. The items exemplifying the use of numeracy in the history classroom were devised and taught by Alison Stephen.