Why the Vikings came to Britain
I can retell the story of how the Vikings came to settle in large parts of Britain.
Why the Vikings came to Britain
I can retell the story of how the Vikings came to settle in large parts of Britain.
These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.
Lesson details
Key learning points
- The Vikings first came to Britain in small raids on monasteries and these grew more frequent.
- The Great Heathen Army came to Britain, bringing lots of Vikings who began to settle on Anglo-Saxon land.
- The Great Heathen Army overcame all of the Saxon kingdoms apart from Wessex, which came to be ruled by King Alfred.
- Fighting back against Guthrum and the Great Heathen Army, Alfred managed to confine the Vikings to the Danelaw.
- A good story of how the Vikings came to settle in large parts of Britain will use knowledge from across this unit.
Keywords
Raid - a raid is a rapid surprise attack, usually involving stealing something
Monastery - a monastery is a building lived in by a community of monks who follow religious vows
Settled - when you are settled you make a permanent home somewhere
Danelaw - the area that Alfred allowed the Vikings to rule was called the Danelaw
Common misconception
Pupils may not understand that the Vikings came to Britain for different reasons over a long period of time.
The Vikings first came to Britain to raid monasteries; they then invaded and settled in some Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. Finally, they tried to capture all of Britain but were unsuccessful. However, they were able to stay and control the Danelaw.
To help you plan your year 5 history lesson on: Why the Vikings came to Britain, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your year 5 history lesson on: Why the Vikings came to Britain, 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 Vikings: why did they come to the British Isles? unit, dive into the full secondary history curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.
Content guidance
- Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
- Depiction or discussion of serious crime
- Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering
Supervision
Adult supervision required
Licence
Lesson video
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Starter quiz
6 Questions
a town where the Vikings almost captured Alfred
a town in southwestern England where Alfred defeated Guthrum
the area that Alfred allowed the Vikings to rule