Discovering the Tudors

Date: [Insert Date]

Key Enquiry Question: How did the War of the Roses lead to the first Tudor king?
Timeframe: 180 minutes
Class Size: 4 SEMH Year 6 students

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Lesson Objectives

By the end of this session, students will:

1. Know what the War of the Roses was and who the key figures were.
2. Understand how Henry VII came to power and solidified his rule as the first Tudor king.
3. Analyse the specific reasons Henry Tudor won the Battle of Bosworth in 1485.

Relevant Curriculum Area & Level:
National Curriculum for History, Key Stage 2 (Year 6), focusing on the development of political power and the impact of monarchy on British history.

Differentiation Notes for SEMH Students:
This lesson is carefully structured to involve multiple short, engaging activities with visual, auditory, and kinaesthetic components, alongside frequent breaks. It incorporates scaffolding to build confidence and clear, explicit instructions for each task.

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Session Structure Overview

Warm-Up (10 minutes)

• Activity: “What’s in a rose?” Initial thoughts brainstorm
  • Show a red rose and a white rose. Ask students how they feel when they see each one. Discuss how different colours and symbols can mean different things.
  • Write their words/feelings on the board. Introduce the War of the Roses as a war between two families fighting for the throne of England.

Purpose: To establish prior knowledge and create a connection to the topic.

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SECTION 1: The War of the Roses (35 minutes)

Step 1: Simplified Storytelling (10 minutes)

• Provide students with a simple, visual story of the War of the Roses. Use a printed storyboard with symbols and visuals.
  • York (white rose) vs Lancaster (red rose).
  • Key figures: Richard III (York) and Henry Tudor (Lancaster).

Differentiation:

• For higher-ability learners: Allow them to explain parts of the story or infer motivations.
• For students needing more support: Use a pre-filled storyboard and have them annotate or colour it.

Step 2: “Act it Out!” Drama Activity (15 minutes)

• Split the group into York (2 students) and Lancaster (2 students). Use props (e.g., flower crowns, small banners) to act out a fictional peace negotiation that fails.
  • Add some historical tension by referring to family rivalries. Encourage speech-making or short improvs based on prewritten dialogue cards.

Step 3: Mini Quiz (5 minutes)

• Ask them three key questions to check understanding so far:
  1. What were the two sides in the War of the Roses?
  2. Who led the House of Lancaster at the end of the war?
  3. What impact did the War of the Roses have on England?

Break (5 minutes): Provide students with a short, relaxing break and encourage group conversation.

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SECTION 2: Henry VII and the Battle of Bosworth (40 minutes)

Step 1: Visual Timeline Creation (10 minutes)

• Work together as a group to arrange illustrated cards about Henry VII’s life—and place key moments from his rise to power on a timeline.

Differentiation:

• For higher-achieving students: Have them write an explanation (2-3 sentences) for 2–3 timeline events.
• For students needing additional support: Use pre-labelled timeline cards they can sequence with guidance.

Step 2: Battle of Bosworth Comic Strip Creation (20 minutes)

• Use comic strip templates to focus on the Battle of Bosworth.
  • Key moments: Henry’s army arriving, betrayal of Richard III by Stanley, and Richard’s defeat.
  • Encourage creativity: Use coloured pencils and speech bubbles for dialogue.

Step 3: Learning Check-In (10 minutes)

• Hold a brief, fun discussion around this question: “Why was Henry Tudor able to win the battle?” Possible answers might include:
  • Richard’s overconfidence.
  • Stanley’s betrayal.
  • Stronger alliances for Henry Tudor.

Break (5 minutes): Provide another scheduled break to sustain engagement and avoid attention fatigue.

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SECTION 3: Consolidation & Analysis (50 minutes)

Step 1: Group Debate Activity (25 minutes)

• Pose the question: “Was Henry Tudor lucky or clever in becoming king?” Divide the group into two teams to share their opinions and justify their answers.
• Use scaffolded sentence starters like:
  • “I think Henry was lucky because…”
  • “I think Henry was clever because…”
  • “An example of this is…”

Differentiation:

• Provide a cue card with simplified arguments for students needing more scaffolding.

Step 2: Written Reflection (20 minutes)

• Task: Write a diary entry from Henry Tudor’s perspective, the night before the Battle of Bosworth.
  • Prompts:
    • What might Henry have been thinking?
    • What were his fears? His hopes?
  • Allow students to include sketched “thought bubbles” if writing is challenging for them.

Differentiation:

• Support: Provide a writing scaffold (sentence starters and a word bank of key terms like “alliance,” “army,” “throne,” “chance,” etc.).
• Challenge: Encourage higher-ability learners to include historical details or reasons for their emotional state in the diary entry.

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Plenary Activity: Tudor Treasure Hunt (15 minutes)

• Hide Tudor-themed “treasures” (fact cards or small objects, e.g., gold coins, crown symbols) around the classroom.
• As they find each treasure, they must explain its relevance to Henry VII’s rise to power.
  • Example: Finding a "crown" = Explain how the victory at the Battle of Bosworth led to him becoming king.
• Key goal: Reinforce their knowledge in an active, physical way.

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Assessment Opportunities

1. Responses during brainstorming and questioning sections.
2. Quality of participation in drama and debate activities.
3. Creativity and understanding demonstrated in comic strips and diary entry writing.
4. Informal assessment during the treasure hunt.

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Resources Needed

• Symbolic props for drama (red and white roses, small banners, etc.).
• Illustrated timeline and comic strip templates.
• Printing materials for fact cards, Tudor treasure items, and visual aids.
• Word banks, sentence scaffolds, coloured pencils, and other stationery.

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Reflections for Next Session

1. Did students remain engaged throughout the various activities?
2. Were they able to justify arguments during the debate effectively?
3. Did the breaks and kinaesthetic tasks support SEMH needs?
4. What additional scaffolding (if any) is needed for those who found certain tasks challenging?

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This plan combines storytelling, active engagement, and creative thinking to cater to Year 6 SEMH learners’ needs while meeting the KS2 History curriculum standards.