Oliver Cromwell: Hero or Villain?

This KS3 unit of work should take around 3 lessons to complete. The Power Point leads students through all activities with accompanying resources included.

Aims and Objectives:

• To know the key facts about Oliver Cromwell- who he was and what he did.
• To use sources critically to learn more about opinions on Oliver Cromwell.
• To use our evidence to reach a balanced judgement on whether he was a hero or a villain.

Activities include a starter which uses the Monty Python Oliver Cromwell song to recall key facts. Students are then unknowingly issued with a set of either positive or negative sources to create a quick thought-shower and feedback before exploring the reasons why their ideas about Cromwell are so different. We then colour-code Cromwell’s actions into “hero” and “villain” before analysing a range of sources to consider whether they show him in a positive or negative light and how far we trust them. Students then complete an assessed piece of writing, using these sources and their knowledge to answer the key question “Oliver Cromwell: Hero or Villain?”. A writing frame is including, along with a mark scheme which assesses their knowledge/understanding, use of sources and judgement.