Topic Britains Viking History Information sheet for the
Topic Britain’s Viking History
Information sheet for the topic
Why did the Vikings come to Britain? Think about why people travel around the world today. Why do people go to other countries? Are they all for good reason? See how many you can think of.
Did you get any of these? �A better life � To work � Family � To flee war/famine � To experience new cultures � Holidays � To study � To invade
The Vikings? The Vikings moved for three main reasons – land, treasure and trade. www. bbc. com/bitesize/clips/z 3 gj mnb Most of the Vikings were looking for better land for farming. Their land was generally not good for their animals or growing crops. Norway was very hilly, Sweden had dense forests and Denmark had sandy soil. More land meant more space, more animals, more food, more money and more opportunities for trade.
Invading for treasure. Vikings believed that their gods lived in a place called Asgard, which was joined to the earth by a rainbow bridge. Death in battle meant that the warrior went to Odin’s heavenly hall of Valhalla. Because the Vikings had very different beliefs and were not Christian, they did not think that raiding the monasteries in Britain and killing the monks was wrong. A monastery was a religious building were monks (Anglo Saxon Christians) lived, worked and prayed together. They would have lots of gold, money and farm produce because they looked after it for the community. The Vikings knew it was easy to attack because monks were peaceful people.
Task - To write a speech as a Viking leader to persuade your people to come with you to invade Britain. You will need to include: � An introduction – who are you and why are you writing � The reasons for your invasion (what is bad about home and what is good about Britain) � Powerful adjectives (describing words) � Paragraphs – SEE THE NEXT SLIDE � Conjunctions (however, therefore, because) � Rhetorical questions � A conclusion to sum up why it is a fantastic idea Extension – consider the points about staying at home – example – even though you will be leaving behind your friends, you will be able to _____.
How to set out your speech Which persuasive techniques will you include in your speech? Asking a rhetorical question Would you like it if. . . ? Using exaggeration If this happens, I’ll go wild! Involving facts or numbers to support your ideas 75% of our farmers think that. . . Words that involve emotions or feelings Poor helpless animals suffer when they have not enough food to eat. . . Repeating phrases using pronouns We have listened. We have learned. We have tried to make things better. Paragraph 1 – Who are you and why are you making this speech? Paragraph 2 – What is your first reason for invading Britain? Paragraph 3 – What is your next reason? Paragraph 4 – Conclusion – summarise why you should invade.
- Slides: 8