The conversion of the British Isles
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can describe how Christianity returned to the British Isles.
Key learning points
- With the departure of the Romans and the invasion of the pagan Anglo-Saxons, Christianity had declined in Britain.
- The Pope sent Augustine to convert the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms to Christianity in 597CE, starting with Aethelbert of Kent.
- While the Anglo-Saxons settled in Britain, the Scots, a group from Ireland, began to settle in western Scotland.
- Irish missionaries had been converting Scotland and the north of England since the 6th century.
- Two forms of Christianity existed in Britain; the Synod of Whitby ruled Roman Catholic practices would be followed.
Keywords
Pagan - pagan religious beliefs and practices are those that are different from the main or recognised religions
Convert - to convert someone to a new religion means to change their religious beliefs to that of your own
Missionary - a missionary is a person sent on a religious mission, especially to promote Christianity in foreign countries
Practices - practices are ways of doing something such as religious rituals like prayer
Common misconception
Pupils might think that pagan beliefs were polytheistic and all non-pagan beliefs are monotheistic.
Though many pagan religions were polytheistic, there are non-pagan religions that are polytheistic such as Hinduism.
Teacher tip
Augustine, Columbanus and Hilda are all mentioned in this lesson. They are now all saints and you may wish to add this in to your lesson.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What is a kingdom?
Q2.When did the Anglo-Saxons begin to arrive in Britain?
Q3.Complete the sentence: When Anglo-Saxon tribes settled in Britain, they established settlements close to water and with good...
Q4.Match the Anglo-Saxon tribe to the area they chose to settle in.
Q5.The seven Anglo-Saxon kingdoms were Northumbria, Mercia, Essex, Kent, Sussex, Wessex and ...
Q6.Select all the words that could finish this sentence: The Anglo-Saxon kingdoms all had different ...
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Who was sent by the Pope to convert the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms to Christianity in 597 CE?
Q2.Match the word to its definition.
Q3.Where did the Scots tribe come from before settling in Britain?
Q4.The pagan Anglo-Saxons believed in many gods and goddesses before converting to Christianity. Which of the following were Anglo-Saxon gods and goddesses?
Q5.What Christian religious festival did Celtic Christians and Roman Christians disagree on the dates of?
Q6.It was decided at the Synod of Whitby that people in Britain would follow…
To help you plan your 5 history lesson on: The conversion of the British Isles, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 5 history lesson on: The conversion of the British Isles, 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 2 history lessons from the Britain's settlement by Anglo-Saxons: what changed after the Romans left? unit, dive into the full primary history curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.