This week was a week I was thoroughly looking forward to. We were to be focusing solely on Robin Hood. Honestly? This week was going to be fun, fun, fun! I hope you equally enjoy this Robin Hood Lesson as an excellent addition to your Medieval Unit Study Robin Hood Reading Matter To all intents…
Category: History – Middle Ages
Medieval Knights Homeschool Lesson
This medieval knights homeschool lesson was our learning over the period of a week. We are deep into our medieval unit study and are flip flopping as topics interest us. The children have been reading so many great books set in the Middle Ages and which include knights (obviously!) and they have been playing loads…
Domesday Book Homeschool Lesson
I'm all for fun school work. I know that sometimes in life one simply has to knuckle down and do the work regardless of the fun factor or lack there of. However, as Mary Poppins once said 'a spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down' (I'm currently breaking off into song - you should be glad…
Hands-On Homeschool Percentage Maths {Domesday Book}
In our quest to do some hands-on homeschool percentage maths, I turned to an unlikely resource, the Domesday Book. The Domesday Book is a record of The Great Survey of much of England and some of Wales. This was carried out by William the Conqueror in 1086, twenty years after the Battle of Hastings in…
Stain-Glass Window Homeschool Lesson
In this stain-glass window homeschool lesson we will learn about the history of using coloured glass in windows, linking it with our current medieval history unit study. Resources for a Stain-Glass Window Homeschool Lesson We used the books we had around the house for this art study. Art of the Middle Ages is a book…
Events Leading Up To The Battle of Hastings 1066
This lesson, which covers the events leading to the Battle of Hastings, is fun and thorough. Oh, and it involves dressing up as Knights! I hated history in school, apart from Henry VIII. He fascinated me. The rest however was plain boring. In particular I hated learning about wars and battles. A list of dates…
Narration Example: Re-enactment
Learn more about the art of narration! This post covers re-enactment as an example of narration, using a paper mache map & Play Mobil figures. This is a perfect way for a child who hates writing to express their understanding of a given topic. What is Narration? Narration, in its most basic form, tells a…
Bayeux Tapestry Homeschool Lesson
This Bayeux Tapestry homeschool lesson contains recommended resources, hands on activities and an excellent online tapestry generator. Enjoy! We studied the Battle of 1066 using the Bayeux Tapestry as our starting point. I knew the children had a good grasp of the battle as we had been to see a re enactment on the hill…
Feudalism in the MiddleAges
The Normans introduced feudalism to Britain in the Middle Ages after the battle of 1066. King William claimed all the land for himself and proceeded to rent out percentages of it to the nobles. The nobles, in turn, rented out land to knights in return for their promise of allegiance. Peasants or commoners then…
Guido D’Arrezzo Composer Study
This Guido D'Arrezzo composer study is a perfect accompaniment to a medieval unit study. Guido D'Arrezzo was a Benedictine monk and one of the most influential music theorists of the Middle Ages. Practical in nature and wanting to make learning music more accessible and efficient, Guido laid the foundation for our modern system of music.…
Cimabue Artist Study for Homeschoolers
This post will teach you how to create a wonderful immersive Cimabue artist study perfect for homeschoolers. First, I will introduce Cimabue, an Italian painter and mosaic-maker of the 1200s. Second, I will direct you to another post which will teach you a simple method of making tempura paints similar to those Cimabue would have…
Literature Studies: Chaucer – A Play of the Nun’s Priest’s Tale
We only do Chaucer studies once a week on a Tuesday, or at least that is the plan. I have, as always, over estimated what we can fit in, so the children aren't getting much time to do each activity. Sometimes that is good. The last activity felt pressurised and therefore less enjoyable. This activity…
Literature Studies: Chaucer – A Retelling of a Knight’s Tale?
The first tale I chose to focus on was the Knight's Tale because it is the tale from which Shakespeare took his inspiration for 'The Two Kinsmen' and 'A Midsummer night's Dream'. We will be studying Shakespeare for a whole year and 'A Midsummer Night's dream is my very favourite play of his, and probably…
Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales: Setting the Scene
Although traditionally Chaucer is taught to children older than 12, the Canterbury Tales are far too good to postpone, especially as I will only be studying the Middle Ages once with the older children. Just because it is written in language which may be hard to understand doesn't mean we should be literary snobs and insist that Chaucer…
Project Based Learning : The Black Death
Not the most inviting of titles but a subject which has gripped my children. As we near the end of the second week of a six-week term I thought I would write more specifically about the projects the children have chosen to do. I am so incredibly excited about our new 'project based' status! My school…