Lesson video

Hello, and welcome to today's history lesson.

My name is Mr. Merrett, and I'll be guiding you through today's lesson.

So let's get started.

Today's lesson is called "A princess in wartime Britain," and by the end of today's lesson, we'll be able to describe what life was like for Princess Elizabeth during World War II.

Now, in order to do that, we need to use some keywords.

So I'm going to say the keywords, and I'd like you to repeat them after me.

So here's the first one, which is princess.

Then there's war, London, safer, and courage.

Very well done if you were able to repeat those.

Now, a princess is a king or a queen's daughter.

War is when groups of people fight one another.

London is the capital city of the United Kingdom.

Safer means that you are less likely to be harmed.

And courage means being brave.

So let's see whether we can spot those in today's lesson.

Now, first of all, we're going to look at War comes to Britain.

Let's get started.

Firstly, do you know who the person on the screen is in front of you?

Hmm.

Now very well done if you knew that this person is Queen Elizabeth II, and that's who we're going to be looking at today.

And it's not a problem if you didn't know who she is because by the end of day's lesson you will know lots about her.

Now we are going to be learning about Queen Elizabeth II as she was a very special person, and the reason being is that she was the queen of the United Kingdom for 70 years, which is a very long time.

She was born in 1926, which is a very long time ago.

It's in the past, and it is long before we were born.

This actually means that she was a child at the same time as your great-grandparents were children.

So let's look and see what that would look like.

So you at the moment, you are a child, and your parents, they were children once, but Queen Elizabeth II was not a child then.

She was much older at that point.

Your grandparents used to be children, but Queen Elizabeth II wasn't even a child then.

She was still older then.

No, it's when your great-grandparents were children, that's when Queen Elizabeth II was a child.

So it was a very long time ago.

Queen Elizabeth II was a very important person who saw the world change a great deal during her long reign.

Let's have a quick check for understanding.

So who in your family was a child at the same time that Elizabeth was a child?

Was it your parents, was it your grandparents, or was it your great-grandparents?

So pause the video now and have a little think about that question.

Okay, if you said C, my great-grandparents, then very well done, that is the correct answer.

Now, Elizabeth was born a princess because her grandparents were the king and queen of the United Kingdom.

And this meant that she was a member of the royal family.

She lived in Buckingham Palace, which is in London.

In 1936, when Elizabeth was 10 years old, Elizabeth's father became the king of the United Kingdom, and Elizabeth was told that she would be the queen after him.

Very exciting.

Elizabeth had a very happy childhood with her father, her mother, and her younger sister, who was called Margaret.

And they're pictured on the screen in front of you there.

Elizabeth enjoyed riding horses.

She enjoyed swimming and dancing, and she also enjoyed playing games like chess and checkers.

And maybe those are some things that you enjoy doing too.

Let's have another quick check for understanding now.

So Elizabeth was born a prince, a princess, or a queen?

Which is the correct answer?

Pause the video now and have a little think, and I'll see you again in just a moment.

Alright, if you said that Elizabeth was born a princess, then very well done, that is the correct answer.

Once again though, another quick check for understanding.

A princess is the daughter of, is it a doctor?

Is the princess a daughter of a king or queen?

Or is the princess the daughter of a policeman?

So again, pause the video now.

Have a little think about that question.

Alright, if you said that a princess is the daughter of B, a king or a queen, then congratulations, that is the correct answer.

Now, Elizabeth's happy childhood changed in 1939 when she was 13 years old.

Back then, the United Kingdom entered into a war which was called World War II.

A war is when two or more countries fight each other, and a great many countries fought in World War II.

This war had a huge effect on everybody in the country, and that includes Elizabeth.

So World War II began a long time ago.

So again, thinking about that timeline we looked at the start, so look at when you were born.

World War II wasn't happening then.

It wasn't happening when your parents were born.

It wasn't happening when your grandparents were born.

World War II began a little bit after your great-grandparents were probably born.

So it was a long, long time ago.

A quick check for understanding again now.

So what did Elizabeth enjoy doing when she was a child?

So there are some images on the screen.

Choose the ones that you think she enjoyed doing.

Pause the video whilst you're doing that, and I'll see you again in just a moment.

Okay, if you said that Elizabeth enjoyed doing the activities from pictures A, then congratulations, that is the correct answer.

So picture A show a chess board and a horse there, because Elizabeth enjoyed playing chess and she enjoyed riding horses.

Alright, let's have our first task for today.

So how was Princess Elizabeth's childhood similar to and different to yours?

I want you to tell your partner one or two things that are similar and one or two things that are different.

If you can think of any more than that, that's absolutely brilliant though.

So have a little think about games and activities.

What did Elizabeth like to do and what do you like to do?

Have a little think about family.

Who was in Elizabeth's family and who is in your family?

Have a little think about when she lived.

Was it a long time ago or was it recently?

Have a think about what happened during her childhood.

Did anything big happen in her childhood?

And has anything big happened in your own childhood?

So whilst you are thinking about this and completing the activity, pause the video and I'll see you again in just a moment.

Okay, welcome back.

Hopefully you got on absolutely fine with that task.

Let's think about then what you might have said.

So you might have said that Princess Elizabeth's childhood was similar to mine because she had a happy childhood with her family, and I have a happy childhood too.

She had a younger sister called Margaret, and I have a younger brother, that's quite similar.

And she liked playing games and swimming, and I like those things too.

You might have also said that Princess Elizabeth's childhood was different from mine because she lived a very long time ago when my great-grandparents were children, not now.

Her father became the king when she was 10, but my father is not a king.

And the biggest difference is that when she was 13, World War II started, and this war finished a long time ago and it's not happening now.

If you've got something different to what I've got on the screen, don't worry.

As long as you thought about similarities and differences, I'm sure your answer is perfectly fine.

Let's have a go at another task now.

So Elizabeth was a princess.

Can you tell your partner two things that show that she was a princess?

Have a little think about that and pause the video, and I'll see you again in just a moment.

Okay, welcome back.

So hopefully you got on fine with that task as well.

Let's have a little think about what you might have said.

So two things that show Elizabeth was a princess, well, you could have said that Elizabeth's grandparents were the king and queen of the United Kingdom.

And you might have also said that Elizabeth's father became the king when she was 10 years old.

So both of those things mean that Elizabeth was a princess.

You might have also said that Elizabeth was a member of the royal family and that she lived in a palace in London.

That palace is Buckingham Palace.

You might have seen it.

Elizabeth was also going to become the queen after her father.

So all of these things mean that Elizabeth was a princess.

Hopefully you got one or two of those as well.

Let's move on then to our next part of the lesson, which is looking at air raids and shelters.

Now, long ago during World War II, wars were very dangerous.

And unfortunately that's exactly the same as what it's like today as well.

Wars are very dangerous.

Wars are often fought between soldiers.

However, they can also be very dangerous even for people who are not soldiers.

And this was true for people living in the United Kingdom during World War II, as even though soldiers weren't fighting in our country, many bombs were dropped on towns and cities, and these destroyed lots and lots of buildings and homes.

Let's have a quick check for understanding now.

So what are countries doing when they are at war?

Are they fighting?

Are they sharing food?

Or are they playing football?

So pause the video and have a little think about that.

Okay, if you said that when countries are at war, they are fighting, then congratulations, that is the correct answer.

Now, changes were made in the United Kingdom during World War II to try and keep people safe.

Many people built their own air raid shelters, which gave them a safer place to hide when bombs were being dropped.

These shelters were like small rooms, and they were often underground or in gardens where families could stay safe.

People would take important items in the shelters with them, like torches for instance, because it was very dark inside.

And they also took food and water because they might need to stay in there for a long time.

In London, many people used underground stations as air raid shelters.

Now a quick check for understanding.

Which of the images on the screen in front of you here shows an air raid shelter?

Is it image A, image B, or image C?

So pause the video now whilst you're answering that question and I'll see you again in just a moment.

Okay, hopefully you got the correct answer, which is image C.

Very well done if you did.

Now, another change that was made in the United Kingdom during World War II was moving people from the cities to the countrysides.

Living in the cities during the war was dangerous as these were the places that were most likely to be bombed.

Many children left the cities and went to live with families in the countryside where it was safer, whilst their parents stayed in the cities.

And this is also true for Princess Elizabeth and her sister, Princess Margaret.

They moved out of their home in London.

They moved out of Buckingham Palace and went to Windsor, which is just a short distance away from London.

Elizabeth's parents, the king and queen, they stayed in London to help support all of the people who were still in the city, which is a very brave thing to do, but it's also a very dangerous thing for them to do as well.

And a year later, in September 1940, their home at Buckingham Palace was bombed.

Thankfully though, her parents and everybody else who was in the palace at the time, they were not hurt and they were safe.

So that's a really good thing.

Let's have a quick check for understanding.

So where was it more dangerous to be during the war?

Was it more dangerous in the cities or was it more dangerous in the countryside?

Have a little think about that question now.

Okay, if you said that it was more dangerous to be in the cities during the war, then very well done, that is the correct answer.

And another quick check for understanding now.

What happened to Elizabeth's home during the war?

Was it bombed, or was it used by people whose homes were bombed?

So have a little think about that question as well.

Okay, if you said that Elizabeth's home was bombed during the war, then that is correct.

Very well done.

Right, let's have another go at a task today.

So there are some pictures on the screen in front of you.

Have a little look at them.

Now, a long time ago during the war, people used some of these objects in air raid shelters.

I want you to think, which of these items do you think would be useful to take into an air raid shelter?

Pause the video whilst you're thinking about this and we'll come back together again in just a moment.

Okay, welcome back.

Hopefully you got on okay with that task.

Let's have a little think about what you might have said.

So on the screen in front of us now I've got a torch, I've got a blanket, I've got some food, and I've got some water.

And I think that those would be useful things to take into an air raid shelter.

Maybe you've got the same as me and maybe you've got some things that are a little bit different, but that's okay.

As long as you've had a good think about it, then that's exactly what I want to see.

But let's think about our next task though.

I want to think about why we are going to take these objects into the air raid shelter with us.

So my torch, my blanket, my food, and my water.

How do these objects help us understand what it was like in an air raid shelter?

Why would people take those objects in?

So why would they need a torch?

Why would they need a blanket?

Have a little think about that task and explain your ideas to your partner.

Pause the video whilst you're doing that, and I'll see you again in just a moment.

Welcome back.

Hopefully you got on fine with that task.

Let's have a little think about what you might have said.

So you might have said that the torch helps us understand that air raid shelters were dark, so people needed light.

That's why they took a torch in with them.

You might have said that the blanket tells us that air raid shelters were cold, so people needed warmth.

If they were underground and it was dark, that it may very well be cold.

And the food and water tells us that people had to stay in the shelter for a long time, maybe during meal times, so they needed things to eat and drink.

So hopefully you had a good think about those items and why they were needed and what it tells us about air raid shelters.

And you've got a good reason for why you chose them as well.

Let's move on then now to our third part of the lesson, which is learning courage.

Now, Elizabeth didn't want to be away from her parents, as I'm sure you wouldn't want to either, but she knew that like many other children at the time, she had to show courage.

And because she was a princess, she had to lead by example.

Now, another problem that World War II brought to the United Kingdom was that it meant that there wasn't enough food in the country to feed everybody.

And that's a real problem.

So Elizabeth encouraged people to grow their own food by growing vegetables herself in her garden in Windsor.

And on the screen in front of us there, there's some examples of some of the vegetables that she might have grown.

Okay, let's have a quick check for understanding now.

So what did Princess Elizabeth grow in her garden during the war?

Was it A, fruits; B, flowers; or C, vegetables?

Have a little think about that question now.

Okay, if you said that Princess Elizabeth grew C, vegetables, during the war, then very well done, that's absolutely right.

Now, when Elizabeth turned 18, she also joined the Army as a mechanic and an ambulance driver.

She learned how to drive and fix cars and trucks amongst many other things.

Elizabeth did these brave things because she wanted the people to know that even though life was difficult and dangerous during the war, she and the rest of the royal family knew what people were going through because they were going through the same things themselves.

Let's have another check for understanding now.

So what group did Elizabeth join when she was 18?

Was it A, the Army; B, the Navy; or C, the Air Force?

Have a little think now.

Okay, if you said that Elizabeth joined A, the Army, then very well done.

That's absolutely right.

And one more check for understanding.

What was one job that Elizabeth did when she was in the Army?

And I'll give you a clue for this question.

This is someone who fixes cars and trucks.

So have a little think.

Okay, if you said that Elizabeth was a mechanic when she joined the Army, then well done, that's absolutely right.

And one last check for understanding now.

I've got a statement here, and I want you to figure out whether it's true or false.

So, Elizabeth learned how to fight when she joined the Army.

Is that true or is that a false?

Have a little think now.

Alright, if you said that my statement was false, then well done, you are correct.

But why is that a false statement?

Hmm.

Have a little think about that as well.

Okay, if you said that my statement was false because as a mechanic and ambulance driver, Elizabeth did not fight in World War II, instead, she drove ambulances and fixed cars and trucks, then congratulations, you are absolutely correct.

Very well done.

Okay, let's do another task now.

So why did people grow vegetables during the war?

And to help you with this, let's think about a few things.

Let's think about how was this situation different from today?

Why might it have been hard to get food during the war?

And what did growing vegetables show us about Princess Elizabeth?

Have a little think and explain your ideas to your partner.

Pause the video whilst you do this, and I'll see you again in just a moment.

Okay, welcome back.

Hopefully you got on absolutely fine with that task.

Let's think about the sort of things that you might have said.

So you might have said that people grew vegetables during the war because there wasn't enough food.

You might have also said that this is different from today because nowadays we can buy lots of food at the supermarket, for instance.

And you might have also said that Princess Elizabeth grew vegetables to encourage other people to do the same.

If you got any different answers, then that's absolutely fantastic if you thought about different things as well.

If you've got some of the things that I've got on the screen as well, then that's absolutely brilliant.

Very well done.

And let's try another task now as well.

So how did Princess Elizabeth show courage during the war?

I want you to talk about your answer, and if you can, you can write an answer as well.

That'd be brilliant if you can.

I've got some images on the screen in front of you here to try and give you some clues of what you could say.

So pause the video while you do this task, and I'll see you again in just a moment.

Welcome back.

Hopefully you got on well with that task.

Let's think about then what you might have said.

So you might have said that during the war, Princess Elizabeth lived away from her parents in the countryside.

That can be quite scary.

So that's really brave to go and do that.

You might have also said that she encouraged people to grow their own food by growing vegetables herself in her garden, which is a really good thing for anybody to do.

And you might have said that Princess Elizabeth joined the Army and learned how to drive ambulances and fix cars and trucks.

That's a very brave thing to do as well.

So well done if you've got some of those answers, and very well done if you got any other answers as well.

And one more task for us today.

I'd like you to retell the story of Princess Elizabeth's life up to and including World War II.

So try and include the following things in your retelling your story of Princess Elizabeth's life.

Try to include when Elizabeth was born and who was in her family, what she enjoyed doing as a child, what happened when she was 10, what happened when she was 13, and how did she show courage during the war.

Pause the video whilst you tell the story, and I'll see you again in just a moment.

Welcome back.

Hopefully you had fun telling the story of Princess Elizabeth's early life.

Here are some things you might have said in your story.

So you might have said that Princess Elizabeth was born a long time ago, at the same time as my great-grandparents.

You might have said that she lived in Buckingham Palace in London and she had a happy childhood with her parents and younger sister.

You might have also said that she enjoyed playing games like chess and doing activities like horse riding.

Her father became king when she was 10, and when she was 13, World War II started.

So you might have said these things in your story as well.

You might have also said that during the war, Elizabeth moved to the countryside so that she could be safer.

And she showed great courage during the war by doing such things as growing vegetables in her garden.

And then she joined the Army as a mechanic when she was old enough.

So very well done if you've included these points in your story about Princess Elizabeth's early life.

So let's sum up today's lesson.

What have we learned?

Well, we've learned that Elizabeth was born a princess long ago in the past when your great-grandparents were children, that she had a very happy childhood with her father, her mother, and her younger sister, and that when she was 10, her father became the king.

We also found out that when she was still a child, World War II began.

London was a very dangerous place to be, so she and her sister left the city to live in the countryside where it was much safer.

And we also learned that Elizabeth showed courage by leading by example.

She grew her own vegetables.

And when she was old enough, she joined the Army as a mechanic.

Thank you very much for joining me today.

I hope you've learned lots and had lots of fun too.

And I hope to see you again in the next lesson.

Bye-bye.