New
New
Year 1

Aethelflaed, Lady of Mercia

I can describe the early life of Aethelflaed and her return to court following the Viking invasion of Wessex.

New
New
Year 1

Aethelflaed, Lady of Mercia

I can describe the early life of Aethelflaed and her return to court following the Viking invasion of Wessex.

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Aethelflaed was the daughter of Alfred, a king of a place in Britain called Wessex.
  2. Aethelflaed lived in Britain at a time when her people, the Anglo-Saxons, were under attack from the Vikings.
  3. The Vikings had travelled across the sea to settle in Britain, and they were willing to fight for their new lands.
  4. As Aethelflaed grew up, the Vikings took more and more land, almost capturing Alfred and his family.
  5. When Aethelflaed was around the age of 16, her father Alfred won a big victory against the Vikings and made peace.

Keywords

  • Anglo-Saxons - the Anglo-Saxons were the people who lived in Britain at the time of Aethelflaed and Alfred

  • Court - the place where a ruler spends time ruling is known as their court

  • Vikings - the Vikings were raiders from Scandinavia who attacked and settled in Britain at the time of Aethelflaed and Alfred

  • Victory - when someone or a group of people win something it is called a victory

Common misconception

The Anglo-Saxons only had one king in Britain.

The Anglo-Saxons had different kingdoms in Britain, each with its own king.

Share a fun fact with the children: the word England comes from the word Anglo-land.
Teacher tip

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering

Supervision

Adult supervision recommended

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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6 Questions

Q1.
Who was Robert the Bruce?
Correct answer: The King of Scotland
The King of England
The King of France
The King of Spain
Q2.
Pick the right word to finish the name of this famous story: Robert the Bruce and the .
frog
bat
Correct answer: spider
Q3.
Where did Robert the Bruce hide from the English soldiers in the story 'Robert the Bruce and the spider'?
Correct answer: a cave
a house
a boat
Q4.
True or false? The spider couldn't get its web across the cave but it tried again and again and did it!
Correct answer: True
False
Q5.
What is a 'moral' of a story?
the pictures you see in it
Correct answer: the meaning you can learn from it
the words you can read in it
Q6.
What did Robert the Bruce learn from the spider?
to keep on hiding in the cave with the spider
Correct answer: to carry on fighting the English soldiers
to run away from the English soldiers

6 Questions

Q1.
Where did Aethelflaed live?
Correct answer: Britain
Scotland
Wales
Q2.
True or false? Aethelflaed lived with her parents on a farm.
True
Correct answer: False
Q3.
Who was Aethelflaed’s father?
an Anglo-Saxon builder
Correct answer: an Anglo-Saxon king
an Anglo-Saxon teacher
Q4.
Who attacked Wessex, one grey winter's morning?
the Anglo Saxons
the Celts
Correct answer: the Vikings
Q5.
Where did Aethelflaed and her family hide from the Vikings?
a small fishing village
Correct answer: a small farming village
a small mountain village
Q6.
What happens at the end of the story?
Correct answer: Aethelflaed's father led a large army and battled the Vikings and won.
Aethelflaed's father led a large army and battled the Vikings and lost.
Aethelflaed's father led a large army and battled the Vikings and they drew.

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