Lesson video

Hello, my name is Mrs. Tipping and I am really looking forward to learning with you today all about significant turning points and thinking about in what ways Britain changed after World War II.

So, shall we get started?

Let's go!

By the end of today's lesson, you will be able to describe some of the social and cultural changes that took place in Britain in the 1960s.

Before we start, I would like to introduce you to some keywords.

We'll be using these keywords during the lesson, so it might be a good idea to write these words down.

The keywords we'll be using today are Baby Boomers, disposable income, rock and roll.

I'm going to say those again and I'd like you to repeat them after me.

Baby Boomers, disposable income, rock and roll.

Good job.

Now, let's think in more detail about what these keywords mean.

Here are the definitions for each of our keywords.

The generation born just after the Second World War were known as Baby Boomers.

Money that people earn that is left over after they have paid their bills is called disposable income.

An American musical style that became popular in Britain in the 1960s was called rock and roll.

Pause the video here to make a note of these key words and their definitions and when you're ready to continue, press play.

These are the learning cycles that we'll be working through together in today's lesson.

Who were the Baby Boomers?

New music, new fashions.

In the first learning cycle, we'll explore who the Baby Boomers were.

At the end of the Second World War, there was a baby boom.

This is when there is a large increase in the number of babies born in a year and this had happened at the end of World War I, too.

The generation of babies born just after the Second World War in Britain are known as the Baby Boomers.

Let's take a moment to pause and check our understanding.

What happens in a baby boom?

The same number of babies are born, a large decrease in the number of babies are born, a large increase in the number of babies born.

Hmm, what do you think?

Pause the video here and when you're ready to hear the answer, press play.

If you said a large increase in the number of babies born, you're absolutely right.

Well done.

By the time of the 1960s, these babies had grown up into young and were now around the age of 20.

They had much more freedom and fewer responsibilities than their parents had.

This was because there was no longer a war, rationing had ended and the country had been rebuilt.

Before 1960, men aged between 17 and 21 all had to serve in the armed forces for a year and a half.

When this ended in 1960, the young men had freedom to choose careers they wanted and begin earning money.

Lots of the Baby Boomer generation earned more money than they needed to pay their bills and so had disposable income to spend on new trends like fashion and music.

In the mid-1960s, 40% of the population were under 25.

Let's take a moment to pause here.

Baby Boomers had more disposable income to spend than their parents had.

Is that true or false?

What do you think?

True or false?

Baby Boomers had more disposable income to spend than their parents had.

If you said that's true, you're absolutely right.

Now take a look at these two statements which one would help to justify your answer?

They earned less money than they needed to pay their bills.

They earned more money than they needed to pay their bills.

Pause the video here have a discussion with your partner which of these two statements helps to justify your answer, and press play when you're ready to continue.

What did you think?

If you said they earned more money than they needed to pay their bills, you're absolutely right.

Well done.

Now this brings us to our first learning task.

Explain to your learning partner what life was like for the Baby Boomer generation in the 1960s.

So pause the video here, give yourself enough time to explain to your learning partner what life was like for the Baby Boomer generation in the 1960s, and press play when you're ready to continue.

How did that go?

Shall we take a look at an example?

So your answer could include: In the 1960s, the Baby Boomer generation were around the age of 20.

They had more freedom because there was no war, and they earned more money than their parents had.

They could spend their disposable income on new trends like fashion and music.

Well done for completing that first learning task.

We're now ready to move on to the second part of this lesson.

We're going to explore new music.

Rock and roll music was very popular in the United States in the 1950s.

By the 1960s, there were lots of British musicians who were making their own new music inspired by rock and roll.

This included a group of British musicians from Liverpool who created a new band called The Beatles, one of the most popular bands of all time.

You can see a photo of The Beatles there on stage.

The Beatles were very famous and had lots of fans across the world.

Fans followed The Beatles everywhere they went.

There were thousands of them screaming, wanting to see and meet them.

This became known as Beatlemania.

Other British bands began in the 1960s and became popular too, such as The Rolling Stones.

You can see another photo of the Beatles there.

Not all music was influenced by rock and roll.

Modern jazz and soul music were very popular too and they inspired new bands such as The Who.

Back then people had to go to the shops to buy new music on records or cassettes.

It could not be downloaded like music today.

Let's take a moment to pause and check our understanding.

The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and The Who are all examples of British films, British street names, British music bands.

Hmm, what do you think?

Pause the video here and when you're ready to continue, press play.

If you said that they are British music bands, you're absolutely right.

Well done.

This brings us to our second learning task.

I'd like you to put a tick or cross to indicate whether each statement below is true or false.

I'd then like you to rewrite the statements that are incorrect.

So, looking at the statements, we've got Rock and Roll music was popular in the US in the 1950s.

The Beatles were influenced by modern jazz music.

The Beatles were musicians from London.

Modern jazz and soul music was not popular in the 1950s.

The Who was a band influenced by modern jazz and soul.

So firstly put a tick or cross to indicate whether each statement below is true or false and with the ones you think are false, rewrite those statements.

So pause the video here, make sure that you have a pen and some paper and you give yourself enough time and press play when you're ready to continue.

How did that go?

Shall we take a look at some answers?

So, rock and roll music was popular in the US in the 1950s.

That's true.

The Beatles were influenced by modern jazz music.

That is false.

The Beatles were musicians from London.

That is false.

Modern jazz and soul music was not popular in the 1950s.

That is false.

The Who was a band influenced by modern jazz and soul.

That's true.

Well done if you got those correct.

Now let's take a look at those statements that were false and how we should correct them.

So the second one, the Beatles were influenced by rock and roll music.

The Beatles were musicians from Liverpool, not London.

Modern jazz and soul music was also popular in the 1950s.

So well done if you were able to rewrite those statements correctly.

And well done for completing that learning task.

We're now ready to move on to the third part of this lesson.

We're going to explore new fashions.

For the Baby Boomers in the 1960s who had disposable income to spend, a favorite place to go shopping for the newest fashions and music was Carnaby Street.

It was the most famous shopping Street in London in the 1960s.

Shops played loud new music and were as brightly colored as the clothes they sold.

Famous new celebrities from bands such as The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, as well as fashion models, shopped there often and lots of people claimed to have met these people.

Fashion models had not been celebrities before, but lots became famous in the 1960s, such as a model named Twiggy.

Let's take a moment to pause and check our understanding.

Which street in London was the most famous for shopping in the 1960s?

Oxford Street, Carnaby Street or Regent Street?

Pause the video here and have a quick discussion with your partner and press play when you're to continue.

If you said that the most famous shopping street in London in the 1960s was Carnaby Street, you're absolutely right.

Well done.

Now these models like Twiggy usually wore the new miniskirts which women had not worn before the 1960s.

Big flowers, bright colors, short hairstyles and bright makeup were all part of the new fashions.

Men who often listened to modern jazz music became known as mods and were inspired by Italian fashion, wanting to be different from their parents' generations.

They wore slim-fitting suits or long coats and lots would ride Italian motorcycles.

Let's take a moment here to pause and check our understanding.

In the 1960s, fashion only changed for women.

Is that true or false?

Hmm, What do you think?

In the 1960s, fashion only changed for women.

True or false?

If you said that's false you're absolutely right.

Well done.

Now looking at these two statements which one would help to justify your answer?

It was popular for men to wear slim-fitting suits and women to wear miniskirts.

It was popular for women to wear long dresses.

Pause the video here and have a discussion with your partner.

Which of these two statements would help to justify your answer?

And press play when you're ready to continue.

What did you think?

If you said it was popular for men to wear slim-fitting suits and women to wear miniskirts, you're absolutely right.

Well done.

Now there were so many changes in the 1960s that in 1966 the very popular Time Magazine called London the Swinging City.

This meant it was cool and exciting with lots of new ideas.

Take a look there at that photo of women dressed in 1960s fashion.

Let's take a moment to pause and check our understanding.

Select all the reasons why London became known as the "Swinging City" in the 1960s.

There were new fashions.

There were new musicians and bands.

Young people had money to do lots of shopping.

There were lots of fashion models.

So, pause the video here, have a discussion with your partner and select all the reasons why London became known as the Swinging City in the 1960s and press play when you're ready to continue.

What did you think?

Shall we take a look at some answers?

So, there were new fashions, there were new musicians and bands, young people had money to do lots of shopping and there were lots of fashion models.

So, these are all reasons why London became known as the Swinging City in the 1960s.

Now, this brings us to our final learning task.

Complete the flowcharts to describe how the baby boom after the Second World War led to lots of changes in the 1960s.

So we've got there was a baby boom just after World War II and then we've got by the 1960s.

So fill in the rest of that flowchart to describe how the baby boom after the Second World War led to lots of changes in the 1960s.

Pause the video here and give yourself enough time and when you're ready to continue, press play.

How did you get on?

Shall we take a look at an example?

So there was a baby boom just after World War II.

By the 1960s, these babies had grown up to be young people.

The war was over and they had lots more freedom than their parents had.

These Baby Boomers had lots of disposable income.

They spent money on fashion and music.

They shopped in places like Carnaby Street.

Fashion models and musicians became very famous.

New rock and roll and fashions like the miniskirt were very popular.

Well done for completing that learning task.

Now before we finish this lesson, let's summarize what we've learnt about social and cultural change in the 1960s.

A baby boom in Britain after World War II meant large numbers of young people in the 1960s who were known as the Baby Boomers.

They had more freedom than their parents' generations and wanted to be different to them.

Baby Boomers had more disposable income to spend on things like fashion and music.

New fashions such as the miniskirt for women and the mod slim-fitting suits for men became very popular.

New British bands like The Beatles were influenced by rock and roll.

In 1966, Time Magazine named London the Swinging City.

Thank you for joining me in this lesson today and and I hope to see you in the next one.

See you next time.