Building knowledge of the historical context of 'Sherlock Holmes'
I can explain the historical context of 'Sherlock Holmes' and explore the story 'The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle'.
Building knowledge of the historical context of 'Sherlock Holmes'
I can explain the historical context of 'Sherlock Holmes' and explore the story 'The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle'.
These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.
Lesson details
Key learning points
- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote the ’Sherlock Holmes’ stories starting in 1886.
- 'Sherlock Holmes' was written in the Victorian Era.
- The Victorian city of London was a city of startling contrast between rich and poor.
- The Holmes stories are written in the first person from Watson's perspective.
Keywords
Victorian era - the period of Queen Victoria’s reign (1837-1901)
Private detective - someone who does not work for the police but whose job is to discover information about crimes
First person perspective - the point of view where the speaker or narrator of the story is the 'I' character, providing a personal account of events or experiences
Slum - an overcrowded city area where very poor people lived
Common misconception
Pupils may struggle to understand the sequence of events in the story or certain vocabulary in the text.
As you read aloud, you can provide brief interjections to show the meaning of challenging vocabulary. You can also talk as a reader, saying what you are **realising** about the plot as an aside as you read, e.g., 'Ah, he must have ...'.
To help you plan your year 6 english lesson on: Building knowledge of the historical context of 'Sherlock Holmes', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your year 6 english lesson on: Building knowledge of the historical context of 'Sherlock Holmes', 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 english lessons from the 'Sherlock Holmes': descriptive and letter writing unit, dive into the full secondary english curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.
Content guidance
- Depiction or discussion of serious crime
Supervision
Adult supervision required
Licence
Lesson video
Loading...
