Life aboard the SS Great Britain
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can describe what life was like on board the SS Great Britain.
Key learning points
- The SS Great Britain was an iron-hulled steamship and was the world's largest ship at the time.
- Her role was to carry passengers across the Atlantic, and then to carry passengers to Australia.
- The passengers were divided into first-class and steerage; first-class paid more and had more luxurious cabins.
- Fresh food was taken but would be eaten at the start of the journey.
- First-class passengers had four meals with a huge choice; steerage passengers had to make do with simpler food.
Keywords
Iron-hulled - an iron-hulled boat has its hull made of iron, rather than wood or some other material
Cabin - a cabin is a room in a ship
Steerage - steerage tickets were the cheapest tickets on the ship and did not include a cabin to sleep in
Common misconception
Pupils may think that in the past ships only carried sailors, captains or other people working on the ship.
About 200 years ago, people began to travel through choice. People that travel on ships but do not work on them are called passengers.
Teacher tip
In its day, the SS Great Britain was the largest steamship ever built. Today's ocean liners are gigantic in comparison. Share some facts or pictures comparing the SS Great Britain and modern ships like the Wonder of the Seas.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Who designed the SS Great Britain?
Q2.At the time of Brunel, which ocean were seafarers racing to cross?
Q3.Which two of these were features of the SS Great Western?
Q4.Which ship won the 'race across the Atlantic'?
Q5.Which of these materials is a type of metal used for ship building?
Q6.Complete the sentence. The SS Great Britain was the first steamship to have an iron...
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Match the words to the definitions.
a private room on a ship
the cheapest tickets on the ship
Q2.Which of these countries did the SS Great Britain take passengers to?
Q3.Put the types of ticket in order from most expensive to least expensive.
Q4.Why were so many people impressed when they saw the SS Great Britain?
Q5.Which sentence is correct?
Q6.What problem often happened on long ocean voyages?
To help you plan your 1 history lesson on: Life aboard the SS Great Britain, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 1 history lesson on: Life aboard the SS Great Britain, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 1 history lessons from the John Cabot and Brunel unit, dive into the full primary history curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.