The Middle Ages BUNDLE

This bundle includes 11 activities-projects that will help students learn about life in the Middle Ag in a fun and creative way. Find resources on the Feudal System, Medieval entertainment, Medieval inventions, the Black Death, castles, knights and closing activities!

It includes:

The Feudal System activity

The Feudal System at school! An introduction to the Medieval Feudal System. Use this warm-up activity to introduce students to the Feudal System in the Middle Ages in a creative way as they design their school’s “feudal system”.

After this activity, explaining feudalism will be easier and more meaningful as learners will connect new information to their real-life experiences.

TIP: Before you give your students this worksheet, introduce them to Medieval society teaching them the basics about knights, kings, peasants (villeins / serfs), lords (nobles). Once they have completed this worksheet, they will be ready to understand how the Feudal System worked.

It includes:

1) Students design their school's Feudal System using a pyramid.

2) Students explain why they have designed the pyramid in such way.

3) Students answer some questions related to the use of the pyramid as a shape to illustrate the feudal system and think about the organization of their families.

4) Students complete the Feudal system pyramid

5) Answer key

Having fun in the Middle Ages

How did people entertain themselves during the Middle Ages? What do we do to entertain ourselves nowadays? This engaging and meaningful worksheet / activity will allow learners to explore Medieval entertainment and compare it with entertainment nowadays. It will also help them to understand that people in the past do not always see the world as we do (essential in the study of History!). It will give you a chance to get to know more about your students.

It includes:

Q1: Warm – up: Students will write about what they do to entertain themselves.

Q2: See-think-wonder (visible thinking routine) based on Medieval images related to entertainment.

Q3: Students will conduct research on Medieval entertainment and expose their findings

Q4: Students will compare Medieval entertainment with entertainment nowadays (music / popular sports / jesters / games)

Q5: Students will answer some questions about the use or not of Medieval activities/sports nowadays.

ANSWER KEY

Medieval inventions project

In this simple and fascinating project, students explore some of the most important inventions of the Middle Ages – printing press, astrolabe, gunpowder, mechanical clock, public libraries. They create a proposal (flyer or video) for the King to win the first Medieval contest on inventions: “Making Medieval Europe a better place”

It includes:

· CALENDAR: Project is divided into 4 steps.

· STEP 1: Warm up questions (related to inventions in general, including research on inventions created in their country).

· STEP 2: Students listen to a podcast on Medieval inventions and complete a chart where they explain the inventions and their consequences/significance.

· STEP 3: Students design a proposal to win a Medieval contest on inventions.

· STEP 4: Wrap up questions (about the invention they chose and the characteristics of the Middle Ages).

· CHECKLIST FOR STUDENTS.

· COMMENTS FOR TEACHERS /ANSWER KEY.

This project has many advantages as it helps students to:

· Develop their research skills.

· Use specific vocabulary.

· Practise their listening comprehension skills.

· Explore scientific progress in the Middle Ages (helping them to understand that the Middle ages were not always “dark”).

· Communicate their ideas in an original and ingenious way.

· Understand the concept of change as they explore the consequences of the inventions.

This project can be done in groups (cooperative work) or individually.

Building a Medieval castle project

This project involves learning about castles in the Middle Ages while having fun. They build a Medieval castle model ("motte and bailey" or stone castles) following certain steps. Students love this creative, hands-on experience!

This project has many advantages as it helps students to:

· use specific vocabulary

· learn about castles in the Middle Ages

· communicate their ideas in an original and ingenious way.

· develop collaborative and social skills.

It includes:

· STEP 1: Teachers deliver a lesson on castles or students may carry out research (this step is not developed in this project).

· STEP 2: Planning. Students answer questions to help them with their plan of the design of the castle. What type of castle will you build? What materials will you need? They design a sketch of the castle.

· STEP 3: Students build the castle model following certain requirements (this depends on what type of castle they build).

· STEP 4: Students describe the castle (features of the castle, materials they used, etc.)

· STEP5: Group reflection questions. Strengths and weaknesses of the castle and strengths and weaknesses of group work. They also answer questions related to the defense and attack methods of a castle.

Medieval knights storyboard activity

Fun and simple activity where students design a storyboard to illustrate the path to become a knight in the Middle Ages. They read a short passage with information about knights, they design a storyboard (template provided) and they answer two wrap up questions.

This project has many advantages as it helps students to:

· communicate their ideas in an original and ingenious way.

· compare their lives to the lives of Medieval boys (as page and/or squire).

·strengthen their reading-comprehension skills.

It includes:

1) A text with information about knights

2) Instructions to design a stroyboard with a template (students have the option of creating the storyboard digitally)

3) Wrap up questions

An introduction to the Black Death worksheet

Introduce students to the Black Death in the Middle Ages with this activity / worksheet. Learners answer questions about modern medicine, Covid 19 and pandemics in general. This resource faciliates their study of the Black Death as it provides a context / background that is useful to understand the plague. Learning in context increases students' motivation and engagement! Answer key included.

It includes:

· Six warm up questions about modern medicine and its difficulties and about students’ experience during Covid 19.

· Five questions based on a video about pandemics in general.

· For teachers: answer key.

This activity / worksheet has many advantages as it:

· Activates students’ prior knowledge

· Promotes topic engagement

This activity can be used as a starting point for other activities (included in the Black Death bundle).

Investigating the Black Death activity

Do you want your students to learn about the Black Death in a fun and imaginative way? In this activity, students imagine that they are living in the Middle Ages and that the Black Death has arrived in their village. They must take action to stop this horrible disease from spreading. But first, the must investigate about the Black Death!

It includes answer key.

It includes:

· SECTION A: general questions about the Black Death (causes, cures, symptoms) based on a video.

· SECTION B: students continue to research about Black Death causes.

· SECTION C: students continue to research about Black Death cures.

· SECTION D: students play a game. They design a paper cube that challenges their time management and creative skills and helps them to consolidate learning.

· FOR TEACHERS: answer key.

This activity can be done in groups or individually. It can be completed after the activity “An introduction to the Black Death” and followed by the project: “A survival kit for the Black Death”. (Bundle: The Black Death)

This activity has many advantages as it helps students to:

· Develop their research skills.

· Learn about the Black Death.

· Use specific vocabulary.

· Identify different perspectives on the Black Death

· Communicate their knowledge through a game.

Surviving the Black Death project

In this amazing project students design a SURVIVAL KIT for the Black Death in the Middle Ages. Learners imagine that they are living in the Middle Ages and that the Black Death has arrived in their village. They take action to stop this horrible disease from spreading as they design a “survival kit” for the Black Death. This project involves group work.

Students design a survival kit with three Medieval cures / ways to treat the plague. They can produce the elements of the kit using different materials or they can design it using an app.

This project has many advantages as it helps students to:

· Use specific vocabulary

· Identify different perspectives on the causes of the Black Death

· Understand Medieval beliefs and ways of thinking and how people in the past found themselves in dissimilar situations from those of today (different ideas, beliefs, values, knowledge and resources).

· Communicate their ideas in an original and ingenious way.

· Strengthen social and collaborative skills

It includes:

· STEP 1: planning the kit.

· STEP 2: designing the kit.

· STEP 3: reflection questions.

This project works great on its own but you may also dedice to implement it together with the activities "An introduction to the Black Death" and “Investigating the Black Death” (part of the Black Death bundle).

Black Death vs. Coronavirus activity

Students compare the Black Death to the COVID-19 pandemic (making learning more meaningful as it related to their own personal experiences). A great way of ending a unit on the Black Death. Students can choose to write diary entries, record videos or create a dialogue.

This activity has many advantages as it helps students to:

· Use specific vocabulary

· Develop their critical thinking skills

· Make unexpected connections

· Demonstrate what they have learned about the Black Death

It includes:

· SECTION A:

Option 1: students compare the experiences of two teenagers (one living in times of Covid-19 and another one living in times of the plague). They write two diary entries with specific requirements.

Option 2: students compare the experiences of two teenagers (one living in times of Covid-19 and another one living in times of the plague). They record two videos with specific requirements

Option 3: students compare the experiences of two teenagers (one living in times of Covid-19 and another one living in times of the plague). They create a dialogue.

· SECTION B: reflection questions.

Medieval jobs - working in the Middle Ages

Engaging activity to learn about Medieval jobs, occupations that no longer exist and the worst Medieval jobs (includes links to videos and websites). At the end, students carry out a fun activity (job advert). A great resource to teach students about an aspect of Medieval culture! Answer key included.

This project has many advantages as it helps students to:

· Strengthen their critical thinking skills.

· Strengthen their reading /listening comprehension skills.

· Understand Medieval beliefs and ways of thinking.

· Communicate their ideas in an ingenious way.

It includes:

· SECTION A: Medieval jobs. Students read information about Medieval jobs from a great website and classify Medieval jobs into different categories.

· SECTION B: Jobs that no longer exist today. Students read about Medieval jobs that no longer exist from a great website and answer several questions.

· STEP C: The most disgusting jobs. Students watch a video about the worst Medieval jobs and answer several questions.

·STEP D: Students answer wrap up questions (personal questions about what job they would have liked to have in the Middle Ages and about what jobs will be obsolete in the future),

·STEP E: Students design a job advert for a Medieval job!

·ANSWER KEY for teachers.

The Middle Ages closure activities

Here are 4 effective closure activities to help you wrap-up a unit on the Middle Ages.

You can use them to close the unit or a lesson; individually or as part of a final assessment task.

These activities have many advantages as they help students to:

· Use specific vocabulary.

· Summarize and show an understanding of the major points of the unit.

· Develop their critical thinking skills.

· Identify different perspectives on the Middle Ages.

· Reflect on what they learnt.

· Make unexpected connections.

As teachers, you can evaluate student learning.

It includes:

· ACTIVITY 1: “Color, emoji, image” visible thinking routine.

· ACTIVITY 2: Debunking the term “Dark Ages”.

· ACTIVITY 3: Traveling back to the Middle Ages.

· ACTIVITY 4: What would you bring back to Medieval England? (based on a Podcast)

· COMMENTS FOR TEACHERS / ANSWER KEY

If you have any questions about this product or using this product, please email me at: thehistoryhostba@gmail.com

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