Resources: Colouring pencils and teacher tool scripts. For the re-enactments: a P.E. bench, tennis racquets, and ping pong balls or bean bags.
Teacher tool: This handout contains information and scripts to support teachers with re-enacting the Battle of Stamford Bridge and the Battle of Hastings.
Core Handout (2): An alternative handout so that pupils can design their own version of the Bayeux Tapestry to celebrate the events of the Battle of Stamford Bridge.
Use the starter slides to recap the reign of Alfred the Great and the Viking settlement in England.
Use the presentation slides to explore the rise and fall of Viking rule in Britain with the children. They will understand that the establishment of Danelaw did not stop the back-and-forth nature of Viking rule in England, resulting in the kingship of Cnut (this is the Norse spelling; the anglicised version is Canute. Both are pronounced Ka-NYOOT). They will begin to understand the transition back to Anglo-Saxon rule with Edward the Confessor. Finally, they will explore the events of 1066 by understanding who the three main contenders to the throne were, and who the victors were.
Use the first script in the Teacher Tool handout to guide the children in safely re-enacting the Battle of Stamford Bridge and to provide additional context for the fighting. You will need to use an open space, such as a playground or school hall, or clear a space in the classroom. Alternatively, use the core handout to ask the children to draw the Battle of Stamford Bridge, in the style of the Bayeux Tapestry. They can read the script to understand the events.
Challenge Task: If time, use the second script (Teacher Tool 2) to re-enact the Battle of Hastings. You will need an open space again, ideally with a raised hill area. Teachers could also use cones or similar objects to mark out the top of a hill, if working on flat ground.
Ask the children to create a human timeline of the key rulers between Alfred the Great and William I. Ask the children which rulers were Anglo-Saxon, and which were Viking. Can they remember which group of people William the Conqueror represented and where they came from?
Teacher Mastery
The establishment of the Danelaw in England created a clear division between areas controlled by the Vikings and those under Anglo-Saxon rule, but it did not end conflict between the two groups. Over the following decades, control of England shifted back and forth as kings fought to expand their influence. Eventually, a powerful Viking king, Cnut (also spelt Canute), became ruler of England, uniting much of the country under his reign. After Cnut’s death, the throne passed back to the Anglo-Saxons, with Edward the Confessor becoming king, marking a return to Anglo-Saxon leadership. When Edward died in 1066, the succession was unclear, and there were three main contenders for the throne: Harold Godwinson, William of Normandy, and Harald Hardrada of Norway. This struggle for power led first to the Battle of Stamford Bridge and then to the Battle of Hastings, where William emerged victorious and changed the course of English history.
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