Teaching Amy Johnson and Wright Brothers in Flight topic KS1

This section contains both the Wright brothers and Amy Johnson that could be taught together at KS1 under a heading of Flight.  At present there are lessons on the Wright Brothers and guidance on how to teach Amy Johnson. Full planning for both people can be found in the Key Stage 1 medium term planning section which shows what the 6 lessons for each person will look like.

Why do you think Amy Johnson was famous? Smart Task KQ1

In this session on Amy Johnson (KQ1 on the planner) children learn to: predict from small clues link together disparate pieces of evidence and draw conclusions based on the clues they are given. With the help of the slow reveal of the clues in carefully arranged order, pupils build...

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Amy Johnson story-telling relay KS1

How did Amy the secretary end up being the first woman to fly to Australia? Smart Task KQ2

This short, fun activity using mime and props, tells the story of Amy Johnson's first flight to Australia in a way that children will never forget.  Each of...

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Why was flying to Australia so difficult for Amy Johnson? Smart task KQ3

Having heard the story of Amy Johnson's life, pupils are now asked to focus their attention on explaining why it was such a difficult feat for Amy to achieve at that time. Can they think of any ideas themselves before working out from clues on...

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How did people react to Amy Johnson’s famous flight? KS1 activity KQ4

How did people react to Amy at the time, and how do we know?

Children generate adjectives to describe Amy’s arrival in Australia using a photograph and short newspaper extracts and then are given 10 statements which they have to prove using a gallery of evidence. First...

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How did things change for Amy Johnson after her famous flight? Smart Task KQ5

Was Amy really successful for the rest of her life? A Living graph Smart Task KQ5

The focus here is on the ups and downs of Amy’s life, in the ten years after her famous flight to Australia.

Step 1

Give pupils an envelope containing a set of...

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KS1 History Mystery. Whatever happened to Amy?

How can we solve the mystery of what happened to Amy Johnson? Smart Task KQ6

This enduring mystery has puzzled historians for over 75 years. New evidence has just come to light which makes this an ideal opportunity for pupils to explore reasons for themselves. Clearly...

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What do you think the Wright brothers did to make them famous? KQ1

At the very start of the topic, on the assumption that you haven’t told them what the topic is about!! pupils are shown slide 2 in the form of a slow reveal.  4 coloured boxes obscure a picture of the Wright Brothers’ Flyer.  But can...

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How did the Wright brothers manage to be the first to launch a man powered flight? KQ 2

This enquiry comprises a series of three smart tasks: the first is a sequencing task based on storytelling; the second a ‘living graph the third an optional ‘reconstruction relay drawing task’ . All contribute to helping pupils gain a firm grasp of the key events...

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Why did the Wright brothers succeed where others had failed? KQ3 Activity1

Sarah Duck describes how her class tackled this key question. The task involves children reading small diamond-shaped text cards, to decide which statements are true or false. They then put aside the false ones and work only with the true ones.  The next task is to...

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Spying on the Wright Brothers. KS1 Drawing task part of KQ3

This reconstruction relay - part of KQ3, Why did the Wright Brothers succeed where others had failed - is fantastic fun as well as helping pupils to look carefully at the features of The Flyer, the Wright Brothers 1903 plane. Basically pupils are cast in the...

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The Wright Brothers first flight. KS1 Prove it! task KQ4

How can we possibly know about the Wright Brothers first flight when there’s nobody alive now who saw it? This is a question about evidence, one which makes pupils consider how we know for sure about the past.  Their thinking needs to be developed beyond ‘it...

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Wright brothers: prove to me that it really happened.KQ4

This lesson was taught by Sarah Duck, Leading Teacher for History, Hampshire LA.  She kindly describes for us how the lesson went.  "Work had already begun on the Wright Brothers' topic and the children were familiar with the sequence of events leading up to, including...

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How did flight change as a result of the Wright Brothers’ work? KQ5

This activity goes beyond simple sequencing of images, which pupils first attempted at the start of the topic, to explaining the nature of the changes that have taken places in aviation since the Wright brothers. They finish by attaching significance to each change. Which do...

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How should the Wright brothers be remembered? Smart task KQ6

Commemorating the Wright brother's achievements with words young children can understand

Pupils have to create a plaque to commemorate the Wright brothers’ achievements to replace the incomprehensible one on the monument at Kitty Hawk. But they can use only 50 words so they need to be...

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Teaching the Wright Brothers as a Famous Person in Key Stage 1

The Wright brothers offers an exciting opportunity for pupils to explore a topic that should engage their interest, provide plenty of opportunities for drama and creative thinking and should fit well into a cross-curricular topic plan. Pupils live in a highly technologically-driven world, so this...

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Guidance for teaching Amy Johnson as a Famous Person in Key Stage 1

This study of a significant individual has been designed to form part of a broader topic on a similar theme which is one of the key new requirements of the current National Curriculum for history. It can also be covered as discrete topic in its...

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