Author: Ruth Bailey

Stone Age to Iron Age

Learning Journey—We will be exploring the Stone Age, Bronze Age and Iron Age periods.
We will look at what made these periods in history special exploring the discoveries and inventions. We will look at what cave men were really like and discover what it would have been like to live in those times. We will examine the types of homes people used to live in, what they ate and how they farmed.
The children will develop their history skills by exploring how Britain changed in this time, and will work on their comparison skills.
In Geography we will be focusing on surviving monuments from the Stone, Bronze and Iron age periods, and locating these on a map. We will be exploring using atlases, globes and digital/computer mapping. We will be exploring trading and locating origins or different items traded.

Key vocabulary

Need to know	Nice to know	Super-specialist
bronze	monuments	archaeologist
iron	mammoth	prehistoric
stone	hillforts	neolithic
Stonehenge	tribe	Paleolithic
trade	age	Mesolithic
settlement	celts	druids
hunter-gatherer	man-made	Homo habilis
spear	survival	Homo sapiens
Scara Brae	adapt	alloy
roundhouse	habitat	smithing
natural	weapon	climate change
hunting	wattle	civilization
thatched roof	pottery	hearth

Key facts:
The Stone Age is a period in prehistory during which early humans started using stones, usually flint, to make tools and weapons. It is the earliest known period of human culture.
The Stone Age began around 2.5 million years ago and lasted until around 2300 BC.
The Stone Age is split into three different periods:
The Palaeolithic period (early Stone Age)
The Mesolithic period (middle Stone Age)
The Neolithic period (late Stone Age)
The Bronze Age is the name given to the period of time between the Stone and Iron Ages.
In Britain, the Bronze Age started around 2100BC and ended around 650BC.
The Bronze Age is a time period when bronze replaced stone as the preferred material for making tools and weapons.
'The Iron Age' is the name given to the time period (from approximately 500 BC to 43 AD in Britain) where iron became the preferred choice of metal for making tools.
In Britain the end of the Iron Age is linked to the spread of Roman culture following the Roman invasion of 43 AD.

Links to prior learning:
knowledge of past, present and future
Chronology skills and ordering events
Knowledge of the Celts and Romans and their way of life
Awareness of BC and AD in relation to how long ago an event happened.
Comparison skills.
Ability to locate on a map

Key texts:
Stone Age Boy -Satoshi Kitamura
Stig of the Dump -Clive King
The Stone Age: Hunters, Gatherers and Woolly Mammoths - Marcia Williams
How to Wash a Woolly Mammoth - Michelle Robinson and Kate Hindley
The Secrets of Stonehenge -Mick Manning & Brita Granström
Stone Age Tales: The Great Cave) by Terry Deary
Stone Girl Bone Girl: The Story of Mary Anning of Lyme Regis by Laurence Anholt
The Pebble in My Pocket: A History of Our Earth by Meredith Hooper
DKfindout! Stone Age

Links to future learning:
Chronology of events in our history from Dinosaurs to the Modern Day.
Knowledge of weaponry for Viking topic
Comparison skills
Links to geography skills about land and weather

Suggested Family Learning:
Can you make a Stone Age dessert following the instructions using only blueberries, blackberries and honey? How has food changed since the Stone Age?
Watch the compilation video about the Savage Stone Age: Horrible Histories - Terrible Ways to Live in the Savage Stone Age | Compilation - Bing video
Try to create a 3D model of Stonehenge using biscuits like custard creams and bourbons.
Draw a picture of what you think a caveman might have looked like and label them. Think about the clothing they might be wearing and what it is made from.
Create a stained bookmark using berries and flowers by pressing them in between two pieces of card or muslin to transfer their colour.