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Year 10
AQA

Castle Acre Priory - sources and historical context

I can explain the strengths and limitations of key sources for Norman England.

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New
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Year 10
AQA

Castle Acre Priory - sources and historical context

I can explain the strengths and limitations of key sources for Norman England.

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Share activities with pupils
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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Different types of sources provide insights into the historical context of Norman England.
  2. Three types of sources are visual sources, text sources and material sources.
  3. Each type of source has strengths and limitations.
  4. The pope supported the reforms
  5. Historians study the changing rules within the English Church

Keywords

  • Source - a direct or first-hand piece of evidence from the past

  • Historical context - what is happening at the time of a historical event, possibly shaping it

  • Contemporary - from the same time as something

Common misconception

There are relatively few sources for Norman England, so historians have less to say about this period than later periods of English history.

Historians have plenty to say about Norman England because they are able to interpret the sources available in many different ways to support many different theories.

This lesson is designed to work with all the Norman England Historic Environments, but could easily be adapted to a specific site, for example, in conjunction with the AQA resource pack for that site.
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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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Which word describes the language spoken by ordinary people in a region or country?
Correct Answer: vernacular
Q2.
Which word describes the ability to choose and appoint bishops and abbots?
Correct Answer: investiture
Q3.
Complete the sentence: There are key topics making up the historical context of Norman England.
one
two
Correct answer: three
four
Q4.
Which topics does 'Life under the Normans' not cover?
Correct answer: the Church
economic and social changes and their consequences
Correct answer: military aspects
feudalism and government
Correct answer: establishing and maintaining control
Q5.
Which of the following relate to monasticism in Norman England?
Archbishop Lanfranc and reform of the English Church
Correct answer: Latin usage and the vernacular
Correct answer: the building of abbeys and monasteries
the Investiture Controversy
Q6.
Which word describes the support that an overlord provided to their vassal in return for homage?
Correct Answer: patronage

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Match the following words to their correct definitions.
Correct Answer:source,a direct or first-hand piece of evidence from the past

a direct or first-hand piece of evidence from the past

Correct Answer:historical context,what is happening at the time of a historical event, possibly shaping

what is happening at the time of a historical event, possibly shaping

Correct Answer:contemporary, from the same time as something

from the same time as something

Q2.
Historical sources have both strengths and ...
Correct Answer: limitations, weaknesses
Q3.
Two things historians can learn about Norman England from the Bayeux Tapestry are ...
Correct answer: aspects of everyday life such as food and religious practices.
the Anglo-Saxon preparations for the Viking invasion.
Correct answer: features of Norman warfare such as weapons and equipment.
the details of William I's coronation.
Q4.
For Norman England, buildings are an example of sources.
Correct Answer: material
Q5.
Norman England has relatively few sources.
Correct Answer: text, written
Q6.
What do historians do with sources to produce evidence for a particular enquiry?
take them at face value
ignore them
preserve them
Correct answer: ask questions to test them for their reliability and utility