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Athens Versus Sparta
Ancient Greece & Rome
Compare Athens and Sparta as two very different Greek city-states: Athens focused on learning, arts, debate, and democracy, while Sparta focused on military training, discipline, and obedience — and understand that a city-state was a city that ruled itself like a small country
Battle of Hastings and 1066
Medieval Times
The events of 1066: the death of Edward the Confessor, three claimants to the throne, the Battle of Hastings, William the Conqueror, and the Bayeux Tapestry as a historical source
Boudicca's Revolt Against Rome
Ancient Greece & Rome
Tell the story of Boudicca, queen of the Iceni tribe, who led a fierce revolt against Roman rule in Britain — burning Colchester, London, and St Albans — before her army was defeated, and understand her significance as a symbol of resistance against a powerful empire
Building the Pyramids
Ancient Egypt
Understand how the pyramids were built: thousands of workers moved enormous stone blocks using ramps, rollers, and sledges, the work was organised by the pharaoh's officials, and the design evolved from flat-topped mastabas to step pyramids (like Djoser's) to the smooth-sided Great Pyramid — and know that later pharaohs were buried in hidden rock-cut tombs in the Valley of the Kings
Castle Design Through the Ages
Medieval Times
How castles were built and evolved: from wooden motte-and-bailey to stone keeps to concentric castles; rooms and their uses; how castle design responded to new attack methods
Daily Life in a Roman Town
Ancient Greece & Rome
Describe daily life in a Roman town — the forum (marketplace and meeting place), public baths, amphitheatre, and villas — and explain that the Romans were brilliant engineers who built straight roads, aqueducts to carry water, underfloor heating (hypocaust), and Hadrian's Wall to mark the empire's northern frontier in Britain
Egyptian Gods and Goddesses
Ancient Egypt
Name and describe key Egyptian gods and goddesses: Ra the sun god who sailed across the sky each day, Osiris the ruler of the afterlife, Isis the goddess of magic and motherhood, Anubis the jackal-headed god of mummification, Horus the falcon-headed sky god, Thoth the ibis-headed god of writing, and Bastet the cat goddess of protection
Egyptian Social Hierarchy
Ancient Egypt
Describe the social structure of ancient Egypt as a pyramid-shaped hierarchy: the pharaoh at the top, then priests and nobles, followed by scribes and soldiers, then craftworkers and merchants, and farmers and labourers at the base — understanding that a person's position was usually inherited and determined their whole way of life
Egyptian Tomb Paintings and Artefacts
Ancient Egypt
Use tomb paintings, artefacts, and objects from ancient Egypt as evidence to find out about daily life: Nebamun's tomb paintings show hunting and feasting, jewellery and furniture reveal craftsmanship, and everyday objects like pots and tools tell us what ordinary people used — understanding that these sources are how we piece together information about a civilisation that ended thousands of years ago
Gladiators & Pompeii
Ancient Greece & Rome
Know that Romans watched gladiators fight in huge arenas like the Colosseum in Rome, that gladiators were usually enslaved people or prisoners trained to fight, and that the city of Pompeii was buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79, preserving an extraordinary snapshot of Roman daily life
Gods & the Parthenon
Ancient Greece & Rome
Name the major Greek gods and their roles — Zeus (king, thunder), Hera (queen, marriage), Athena (wisdom, warfare), Poseidon (sea), Apollo (sun, music), Artemis (hunting, moon), Ares (war), Aphrodite (love), Hermes (messengers), Hephaestus (fire, crafts), Hades (underworld) — and know that the Parthenon in Athens was a grand temple built to honour Athena
Greek Gods with Roman Names
Ancient Greece & Rome
Understand that the Romans adopted the Greek gods but gave them new names — Zeus became Jupiter, Hera became Juno, Ares became Mars, Athena became Minerva, Poseidon became Neptune, Aphrodite became Venus — and that this shows how deeply Rome was influenced by Greek culture
Greek theatre
Ancient Greece & Rome
Know that the ancient Greeks invented theatre, performing tragedies and comedies in large open-air amphitheatres with actors wearing masks — and that plays were performed as part of religious festivals honouring the god Dionysus, with audiences of thousands
Marathon and Thermopylae
Ancient Greece & Rome
Describe the battles of Marathon and Thermopylae as moments when Greek city-states united against the invading Persian Empire — the runner Pheidippides bringing news of victory at Marathon (origin of the marathon race), and the heroic stand of 300 Spartans at Thermopylae — and understand these wars were fought to defend Greek independence
Medieval Pyramid of Power
Medieval Times
How medieval society was organised: king at the top, then lords, then knights, then peasants/serfs; who owed what to whom; the pyramid of power and mutual obligations
Mummification Step by Step
Ancient Egypt
Describe the step-by-step process of mummification: the body was washed, internal organs were removed and placed in canopic jars, the body was dried with natron salt for 40 days, then wrapped in linen bandages with amulets tucked between the layers, and finally placed in a decorated coffin (sarcophagus)
Roman Army and Conquest of Britain
Ancient Greece & Rome
Describe how the Roman army was organised into legions of highly trained soldiers, how Julius Caesar first raided Britain in 55 BC and Emperor Claudius later conquered it in AD 43, and explain why the Romans wanted to expand their empire — for land, resources, taxes, and glory
Scribes and the Rosetta Stone
Ancient Egypt
Know that scribes were specially trained people who could read and write hieroglyphs, that the Rosetta Stone — a slab with the same text in three scripts — was the key to cracking the hieroglyphic code, and that Jean-François Champollion used it to decipher hieroglyphs in 1822 after centuries of mystery
Siege Warfare
Medieval Times
How castles were attacked and defended: siege weapons (trebuchets, battering rams, siege towers), boiling liquids, arrow slits, murder holes; the drama of a medieval siege
The Black Death
Medieval Times
The Black Death of 1348-49: what the plague was, how it spread, its devastating death toll; how it changed society by giving surviving workers more power and higher wages
The Crusades
Medieval Times
A simplified account of the Crusades: why Europeans travelled to the Holy Land, what they found there, the cultural exchange between Christian Europe and the Islamic world
The Medieval Church
Medieval Times
The enormous power of the medieval Church: monasteries and the daily life of monks and nuns; building great cathedrals; pilgrimage as a religious journey; the Church's influence over everyday life
Upper and Lower Egypt
Ancient Egypt
Understand that ancient Egypt was divided into Upper Egypt (the narrow river valley in the south) and Lower Egypt (the wide delta in the north), that the two lands were united under one pharaoh, and that Egyptians managed the Nile's water through irrigation canals and shadufs to grow crops year-round
Vikings vs Anglo-Saxons
Medieval Times
The conflict between Vikings and Anglo-Saxons for control of England: Viking raids, Alfred the Great's resistance, the Danelaw, Athelstan as first king of all England, Edward the Confessor