The 'Unsinkable' Titanic

Lesson Overview

Subject: History
Year Group: Year 5
Duration: 50 minutes
Class Size: 28 students
UK National Curriculum Link:
Key Stage 2 – Pupils should:

• Develop a chronologically secure understanding of British history.
• Address historically valid questions about cause and consequence.
• Understand how knowledge of the past is constructed from a range of sources.

Lesson Objectives

By the end of the lesson, students will:

1. Understand why people believed the Titanic was "unsinkable."
2. Differentiate between fact and opinion regarding the Titanic’s reputation.
3. Analyse historical sources and evaluate their reliability using a ranking activity.
4. Work collaboratively to engage in historical inquiry.

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Lesson Structure

1. Starter Activity (10 minutes) – Titanic Headlines

Objective: Introduce students to the idea of facts vs. opinions in history.

• Display two statements on the board:
  1. "The Titanic was the most luxurious ship of its time."
  2. "The Titanic was genuinely unsinkable."
• Ask students to discuss in pairs: Which statement is a fact, and which is an opinion?
• Brief class discussion: Explain how opinions can be presented as facts in historical sources.

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2. Main Activity (30 minutes) – Investigating the 'Unsinkable' Claim

Step 1: Exploring Why People Thought This (10 minutes)

• Introduce three key reasons behind the Titanic being called "unsinkable":

  1. Engineering Advances: The Titanic had watertight compartments designed to prevent it from sinking.
  2. Marketing & Newspaper Reports: The White Star Line promoted it as a marvel of safety and luxury.
  3. Public Beliefs: The public put faith in new technology and believed disasters like this couldn’t happen.

• Discussion Question: Could people in 1912 have known the Titanic would sink?

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Step 2: Source Analysis and Ranking Activity (20 minutes)

Group Work (5 or 6 students per group, total of 5 groups)

• Each group receives five historical source cards (mix of newspaper reports, survivor testimonies, advertisements, and engineering reports).

• Task:

  1. Read each source.
  2. Decide how reliable each source is, ranking them from most to least reliable.
  3. Justify rankings: Groups discuss why they trust some sources more than others.

• Plenary Discussion: Each group shares one source they found least reliable and explains why.

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3. Plenary (10 minutes) – The Importance of Questioning History

• Display the question: "Was the belief that Titanic was unsinkable based on fact or opinion?"
• Invite students to reflect: How can opinions influence how we understand history?
• End with a thought-provoking statement: If we lived in 1912, would we believe the Titanic was unsinkable? Why or why not?

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Resources Required

✔ Printed source cards for group ranking activity
✔ Large paper for group discussions
✔ PowerPoint or interactive whiteboard for presenting key ideas

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Assessment Opportunities

• Speaking & Listening: Are students critically engaging with source analysis?
• Group Discussion: Are they providing reasons for their choice of reliable sources?
• Plenary Reflection: Can they explain the difference between fact and opinion?

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Teacher's Reflection

• Did students successfully differentiate between fact and opinion?
• Did they engage with the reliability of sources critically?
• Were there any misconceptions that need further exploration?

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Extension Activity (Optional for Early Finishers)

• Create a Titanic Newspaper Front Page: Students write a short news article from 1912, either supporting or challenging the 'unsinkable' claim.

This lesson plan provides an inquiry-based, interactive approach to historical thinking while aligning with UK curriculum standards. Hope it impresses! 🚢 🙂