The graves of Anglo-Saxon women
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can understand some of the different roles women had in Anglo-Saxon society and how historians know about these.
Key learning points
- The graves of Anglo-Saxon women have provided various objects that provide clues about their lives and status.
- One Anglo-Saxon woman's grave in Canterbury seems to be of a high status woman as it contained lots of fine jewellery.
- A brooch of foreign silver and garnet, likely to be a gift from the Kentish king, shows women could hold high status.
- Girdle-hangers have been found, imitating keys or latch-lifters, suggesting women controlled access to the home.
- Alongside domestic goods in female graves, they seem to symbolise the idea that women controlled access to the home.
Keywords
Grave goods - grave goods are objects buried in people's graves, providing insights into their culture and daily life
Brooch - a brooch is a decorative pin used to fasten clothing together or as a fashion accessory
Girdle - a girdle is a belt or sash worn around the waist, typically used to hold clothes in place or as a fashion accessory
Symbolise - to symbolise means to represent or stand for something else, often conveying a deeper meaning or significance
Domestic - something domestic is something related to the home, like household chores or items inside the house
Common misconception
Children may be confused by the etymology of 'girdle-hangers' .
Though they symbolise keys, girdle-hangers are called this because they hang from the girdle (belt or sash).
Teacher tip
It may be beneficial to see what Anglo-Saxon female graves have been found near your setting and discuss the status of the woman/women found in them. This should be done sensitively regarding the discussion around wealth and importance.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What were the objects buried alongside individuals in Anglo-Saxon burial sites called?
Q2.What is the main reason that grave goods are valuable artefacts to archaeologists?
Q3.What was the name of the Anglo-Saxon burial site found in 1938?
Q4.What type of person was buried at Sutton Hoo?
Q5.Complete the sentence: Artefacts from Sutton Hoo included items covered with that may have come from India.
Q6.Which objects found at Sutton Hoo showed that warfare was an important part of Anglo-Saxon life?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What source do historians draw most of their understanding about Anglo-Saxon women from?
Q2.What is a girdle?
Q3.Complete the sentence: Something is something related to the home, like household chores or items inside the house.
Q4.What was found at the grave of an Anglo-Saxon women's burial site in Kent which suggests she was important?
Q5.What do some historians believe girdle-hangers symbolise?
Q6.Complete the sentence: Historians believe that finding items in female graves suggests that taking care of their families was one of the main jobs.
To help you plan your 5 history lesson on: The graves of Anglo-Saxon women, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 5 history lesson on: The graves of Anglo-Saxon women, 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 The Anglo-Saxons: how do we know about life in Anglo-Saxon England? unit, dive into the full primary history curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.