World War Two (WW2) Resources and Lessons KS2
This is a well-taught KS2 topic and deserves to find its way into your history curriculum, not least for the opportunity to study key concepts like propaganda which require pupils to develop an awareness of evidence and how it can be used and abused. A crucial skill in this world of fake news.
There are some great activities here: role play and debate, zones of inference, market place, explanation builder, call my bluff, curators dilemma as well as sequencing, cartoon annotation, graph analysis and asking questions and evaluating the BBC website. There is also an excellent assessment task with markscheme to show how well pupils have understood the topic, against national expectations.
Planner, knowledge organiser and assessment task
| All Second World War Key Questions | Historical focus |
|---|---|
| KQ1 – Why did Britain have to go to war in 1939? | Causation and chronology |
| KQ2a – Why was it necessary for children to be evacuated? | Causation and wartime experience |
| KQ2b – Evacuation enquiry | Evidence and evacuation |
| KQ2c – What was the experience of evacuation really like? | Evidence and interpretation |
| KQ3 – How was Britain able to stand firm against the German threat? | Causation and Home Front |
| KQ4 – Which 8 objects should we show to explain how Britain coped with the effects of war on the Home Front? | Significance and evidence |
| KQ5 – Why is it so difficult to be sure what life was really like on the Home Front? | Evidence, propaganda and reliability |
| KQ6 – What was VE Day really like? | Evidence and historical reconstruction |
Britain during World War Two (WW2) end of unit quiz – KS2
You’ve spent some time diving into one of the most important events in modern history – World War Two. You’ve learned about brave evacuees, life on the home front, rationing,…
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WW2 – Assessment task – How do we know that this picture shows England at the beginning of the Second World War?
Focus: characteristic features of life for men, women and children Once again based on a very detailed and colourful artists’ impression, this extremely popular task has elicited some outstanding answers…
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Britain during the Second World War knowledge organiser – KS2
In this topic you will learn why Britain went to war and was threatened with invasion by Hitler’s Germany during the Second World War from 1939-45, just over 20 years…
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Planner for Britain at War: The Home Front 1939-45
The new detailed downloadable planner below has key questions, suggested activities, resources and assessments for teaching The Home Front in World War Two at KS2 and links with the lessons…
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WW2 – KQ1 – Why did Britain have to go to war in 1939?
Pupils learn the sequence of events leading to the Second World war before a lively role-play debate in which they exchange well-rehearsed arguments verbally in the House of Commons and…
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WW2 – KQ2a – Why was it necessary for children to be evacuated? Introductory task
Why was it necessary for children to be evacuated throughout the war, and what was the experience of evacuation really like? This question has two significant outstanding lessons to cover…
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WW2 – KQ2b – Evacuation enquiry – links with numeracy
This lesson comes towards the beginning of the topic after pupils have explored the nature and reasons for evacuation. I am grateful to Julie Tzivanidou of Cove Junior School, near…
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WW2 – KQ2c – Extending the BBC website on Eric the evacuee
The BBC children’s history section has been in touch with the school asking for their help in extending their website section on Eric the evacuee. There is nothing wrong with…
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WW2 – KQ3 – How was Britain able to stand firm against the German threat?
This enquiry revolves around a central contemporary cartoon which encapsulates life on the Home Front and how it was geared towards dealing with the Nazi threat of invasion. Pupils have…
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WW2 – KQ3 additional information – Rationing
In order to prevent serious shortages, as early as 1936 the British Ministry of Food had begun to make plans for the supply, control and distribution of foodstuffs. In addition…
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WW2 – KQ4 – Curator’s dilemma. Which 8 objects should we show to explain how Britain coped with the effect of war on the Home Front?
In this activity pupils are cast in the role of local museum curators specializing in the commemorating and interpreting of Life on the Home Front during World War Two. A…
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WW2 – KQ4 – Britain during World War Two – Call My Bluff
This activity is designed to promote creative thinking as well as to deepen pupils’ understanding of the objects that are unfamiliar to us but everyday items on the Home Front…
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WW2 – KQ4 – Christmas for children on the Home Front during World War Two
This is not an outstanding lesson as such, more a collection of good ideas and support material to stimulate even better ideas of your own. Working as expert design consultants…
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WW2 – KQ5 – Britain at war. The Home Front – Why is it so difficult to be sure what life was really like on the Home Front?
Why is it so difficult to be sure what life was really like on the Home Front? Two great tasks which together make up Key Question 5 of the Britain…
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WW2 – KQ6 – What was VE day really like? Advising the film producer
In this really varied lesson pupils are asked to offer first-rate historical advice to a film producer who is about to make a new movie in which scenes from VE…
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WW2 – KQ6 Background information – What was VE Day really like?
8 May 1945 – VE (Victory in Europe) Day – was one that remained long in the memory of all those who witnessed it. It meant an end to nearly…
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Y6 pupils play film detectives to learn about government propaganda SMART TASK
Using a short Ministry of Information film, which last just 8 minutes and can be accessed online here (please note we do not have copyright for this and you will…
Read MoreWhy did Germany lose the Battle of Britain?
If Britain was only a few days away from defeat in August 1940 how on earth did she win the Battle of Britain a month later? PLEASE NOTE – This…
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Teaching Life in Britain 1930-1945 at Key Stage 2
Inexplicably axed by Michael Gove from the curriculum, my advice is to carry on teaching this highly successful unit focusing on the Home Front. You can shave time from other…
Read MoreWritten by Neil Thompson
All content on Keystage history is written and quality assured by Neil Thompson, a former history teacher, county history adviser and Ofsted inspector with more than 30 years’ experience in history education.