John Cabot's journeys across the Atlantic
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can describe the journeys of John Cabot.
Key learning points
- Shortly after Zheng He's voyages, an Italian navigator and explorer called John Cabot was living in Bristol.
- He was sent by the English king, Henry VII, to find a shorter route to Asia, and to claim new lands for England.
- He tried to sail across the Atlantic but bad weather, food shortages and arguments with his crew meant he failed.
- He tried again the next year with a small ship, 'The Matthew', and a crew of just 18, reaching what is now Canada.
- The next year, the king sent Cabot on another trip to try and reach even further; Cabot and his ships never returned.
Keywords
Atlantic Ocean - the Atlantic Ocean is the ocean between Europe and the Americas
Americas - the Americas are the continents of North and South America
Asia - the continent to the east of Europe is called Asia
Common misconception
Pupils might find it confusing that John Cabot sounds like a very English name yet he was Italian.
John Cabot is the English version of the name he was born as, Giovanni Caboto. He lived in England for so long he was known by John Cabot.
Teacher tip
Pupils have not yet encountered Roman Numerals in Maths, so be sure to clarify that VII means '7th'. Henry was the 7th king of England that had the name Henry (Henry was not the 7th king of England). Use the maps to help explain oceans and continents.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of upsetting content
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering
Supervision
Adult supervision required
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Which part of a ship helps to catch strong sea winds?
Q2.What were Chinese boats called?
Q3.What did Chinese junks have that helped them to turn around in water?
Q4.Chinese explorers were the first people to use this at sea
Q5.Complete the sentence: Using a compass...
Q6.A compass always points...
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Who wanted John Cabot to go on journeys of exploration?
Q2.Where did the king of England want Cabot to sail to?
Q3.What problems caused Cabot's first journey to end without reaching land?
Q4.What did John Cabot cross on his journeys?
Q5.What was different about John Cabot's second journey?
Q6.What did John Cabot call the place he landed in?
To help you plan your 1 history lesson on: John Cabot's journeys across the Atlantic, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 1 history lesson on: John Cabot's journeys across the Atlantic, 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 John Franklin unit, dive into the full primary history curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.