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Magna Carta Game Age Range: KS2, KS3 Duration: 2 – 3 hours Contents: Teacher Pack (18 pages) and PowerPoint (12 slides) Price: £2.50 |
This game is designed to be played by a whole class simultaneously. It may be adapted to various levels of difficulty for KS2 and KS3. In 2015 we marked 800 years since the writing of the Magna Carta. For the first time a monarch agreed that the law was more powerful than the king. At a time when schools are thinking about 'British Values', enabling children to understand how England was the first nation to enshrine personal liberty, the power of the law and to pave the way for parliament and trial by jury, will allow a long view of these now much more widely held values. During the game, the children will learn about 13th century agriculture, its inherent difficulties and the ways in which King John’s actions made it even more challenging. They will become involved in the successful running of their manor and therefore will experience these difficulties firsthand. During the year, they will farm their land, sell surplus goods at market, pay their taxes and give service as required. At the end of the game, the manor groups will discuss together the things that made their year difficult and decide which of these were the king’s fault. They will list their grievances and take them to the king. Having experienced some of the issues which were raised in Magna Carta, the children will gain a deeper understanding of the barons’ demands and the ways in which they make society function more fairly today. No previous knowledge of the period is required to play the game. Click here for a free teacher briefing. |
The children will develop these key skills:
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Magna Carta Farm Game Age Range: KS1,KS2 Duration: 2 hours Contents: Teacher Pack and Powerpont slides Price £2.50 |
This game is a variation on the game described above. It is designed for use with children in KS1 and lower KS2 (Y1, Y2, Y3 and Y4) The children work in families to produce goods to sell at market. the goods are produced in various ways: 'cutting' fleece, 'scything and gathering' wheat, and sowing peas and beans. This version suggests that you use some physical goods, such as dried peas and beans and drinking straws. You may even wan to go 'hunting' outside to collect game. The children will be interrupted in their tasks by the decrees of the king. Through these decrees they will learn about the root causes of the Magna Carta. |
The children will develop these key skills:
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