Topic catalogue
Explore the curriculum
Search 1,590 matching topics by subject, domain, and learner age.
Towns & Trade
Medieval Times
The growth of medieval towns: markets, guilds, the merchant class; how towns won charters of self-governance; the shift from purely rural to partly urban life
Women in the Middle Ages
Medieval Times
The lives of medieval women: noblewomen managing estates, peasant women's hard daily work, nuns and abbesses, notable figures like Eleanor of Aquitaine and Joan of Arc
Evidence Versus Interpretation
Historical Thinking
Distinguish between historical evidence and historical interpretation — evidence is what survived, interpretation is the argument a historian builds from it, and the same evidence can support different arguments
Modern Archaeology and Egyptian Ethics
Ancient Egypt
Understand that modern Egyptologists use advanced technologies — CT scanning of mummies, satellite imagery to find buried structures, DNA analysis — alongside traditional excavation, and think critically about the ethics of archaeology: whether mummies should be displayed in museums, who owns ancient artefacts, and how colonial-era collecting affects how we study and present ancient Egypt today
Egyptian Maths and Engineering
Ancient Egypt
Describe the Egyptian achievement in mathematics and engineering: the Rhind Mathematical Papyrus shows calculations of area, volume, and fractions; the precision of pyramid alignment (within 0.05° of true north) required sophisticated surveying; and Egyptian medical papyri describe detailed anatomical knowledge and pharmacological remedies — placing Egypt as a major contributor to the early history of science and technology
Hidden Voices of Greece and Rome
Ancient Greece & Rome
Examine the lives of people usually left out of the Greek and Roman story — enslaved people who made up roughly 30% of Athens and powered Rome's economy, women whose lives varied dramatically between Athens (largely confined to the home) and Sparta (physical training, property ownership), and conquered peoples across both empires — and evaluate whose voices are missing from the historical record and why
Historical Sources on Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt
Explain how knowledge of ancient Egypt is built from multiple source types — inscriptions, papyri, artefacts, and physical remains — and critically evaluate each: what biases, gaps, and distortions exist? Explore how Champollion’s decipherment of hieroglyphs transformed the field, and why the same artefact can be interpreted differently by different scholars
Inclusion and Exclusion in Athens
Ancient Greece & Rome
Analyse who was included and excluded from Athenian democracy — only free adult male citizens (roughly 30% of adults) could participate, while women, enslaved people (who may have made up a third of the population), and foreign residents (metics) were excluded — and evaluate whether Athens truly deserves the title 'birthplace of democracy' by comparing it with modern representative democracies
Troy: Myth or History?
Ancient Greece & Rome
Explore how Heinrich Schliemann's excavation at Hisarlik in modern Turkey raised questions about whether the Trojan War described in Homer's Iliad was historical, partly historical, or entirely mythical — understanding that archaeology and literary sources can support or contradict each other, and that the line between myth and history in the ancient world is often blurred
Egypt and Its Neighbours
Ancient Egypt
Examine Egypt's relationships with neighbouring civilisations: trade networks reaching Nubia, the Levant, and Punt; the Hyksos invasion and the introduction of the chariot; and the New Kingdom empire and its conflict with the Hittites, culminating in the Battle of Kadesh and the world's earliest surviving peace treaty — understanding Egypt not as isolated but as part of a connected ancient world
Fall of the Roman Republic
Ancient Greece & Rome
Trace how Roman political violence — the murder of the Gracchi brothers, civil wars between Marius and Sulla, Caesar's crossing of the Rubicon and assassination on the Ides of March, and the final war between Octavian and Antony — destroyed the Republic and led to one-man rule under Augustus, and debate whether the fall of the Republic was inevitable or a series of choices
Who Really Built the Pyramids
Ancient Egypt
Analyse who built the pyramids and why, evaluating the evidence against the alien-builder myth and the slave-labour myth: archaeological evidence from worker villages at Giza shows a paid, skilled, well-fed workforce; discuss the social functions of monument building as a form of state organisation, religious duty, and employment; and assess the current controversy over newly discovered construction ramps and logistics
Fall of Ancient Egyptian Civilisation
Ancient Egypt
Trace the end of ancient Egyptian civilisation through its successive conquests — Assyrian, Persian, Macedonian (Alexander the Great), and finally Roman — and explain how each conqueror was simultaneously shaped by Egyptian culture; examine Cleopatra VII as the last pharaoh and as a multilingual political strategist; and consider what survives of ancient Egypt in modern culture, religion, and language
Asking for Help
Learning to Learn
Ask for help when you've had a go yourself and are still stuck — knowing when to ask is a skill in itself
Checking Your Own Work
Learning to Learn
After finishing a task, look back at what you did and ask yourself: does this seem right?
Persisting When It's Hard
Learning to Learn
Keep trying when something feels hard — making mistakes and trying again is how learning happens
Feeling of not understanding
Learning to Learn
Notice the feeling of not understanding — recognise when something is confusing rather than reading or listening past it
Planning a Task
Learning to Learn
Make a simple plan before starting a task: what do I need to do, and what should I do first?
Thinking Before Starting
Learning to Learn
Before starting something new, stop and think: what do I already know about this topic?
Connecting New & Old Ideas
Learning to Learn
Look for connections between new ideas and things you already know — how does this fit with what I've learned before?
Spotting Patterns
Learning to Learn
Spot patterns and recurring structures — in numbers, words, nature, sounds, or events — and use them to make sense of new information
Teaching It Back
Learning to Learn
After learning something new, explain it in your own words — to yourself, a family member, or even a toy
Trying a New Approach
Learning to Learn
When your first approach isn't working, try a different one — being flexible about strategies is part of being a good learner
Describing Rules & Patterns
Learning to Learn
When you notice a pattern repeating, describe it as a rule that works every time — then test whether the rule holds in new cases