The Kingdom of Benin

Take your class to West Africa and explore the fascinating Kingdom of Benin civilisation together. In this Kingdom of Benin History scheme of work, you will find out where the Kingdom of Benin was located, what life was like, and how society was organised. You will also investigate the artefacts and evidence that remain of this civilisation.

Completely prepared with seven detailed lesson plans, slideshows, differentiated learning activities and a range of printable resources, this downloadable KS2 History 'Kingdom of Benin' scheme of work is ready to download and teach, leaving you free to just enjoy the lessons with your class.

A Knowledge Organiser is available to support the learning in this scheme. It is included in the Complete Series download or can be purchased individually.

You may also like our Amazing Africa Topic Bundle containing four ready-to-teach schemes of work covering Geography, History, Art and DT. 

Where was it?

The first lesson in this series starts by introducing your class to where modern-day Benin is and which countries are near it in West Africa. They will discover that the Kingdom of Benin was located in modern day Nigeria, place the Benin Empire on a timeline and think about what was happening in Britain during the time of the Kingdom of Benin.

This downloadable lesson comes with a lesson plan, a slideshow presentation and printable teaching resources.

View Lesson 1

Artefacts Versus Oral Histories

This lesson gives your class a brief overview of the Benin civilisation between 900 and 1300. Your class will look at a variety of Benin artefacts and deduce facts from them, as well as exploring a timeline of Benin and British history and reading a Benin creation story.

This downloadable lesson comes with a lesson plan, a slideshow presentation and printable teaching resources.

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Obas

This lesson starts by challenging your class to think about a bronze artefact. They will discuss who they think the artefact is depicting and what we can learn about the leaders of Benin from it. They will then find out about different Obas of Benin and have the opportunity to compare them to a British monarch who ruled at the same time.

This downloadable lesson comes with a lesson plan, a slideshow presentation and printable teaching resources.

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Everyday Life

This lesson starts by challenging your class to share what they remember about the royalty of Benin. Then they then will think about the people who made the bronze sculptures we learnt so much from and continue to thinking about the jobs and lives of other ordinary people in Benin.

This downloadable lesson comes with a lesson plan, a slideshow presentation and printable teaching resources.

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Trade

Now that your class have more of an understanding about Benin society as a whole, they will explore the effect trade routes had on the kingdom and consider the way in which Europeans carried out trade with Benin. They will find out about the different resources imported to and exported from the Kingdom of Benin, including ivory, pepper, rubber and enslaved people.

This downloadable lesson comes with a lesson plan, a slideshow presentation and printable teaching resources.

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The Golden Age

This fascinating lesson teaches your class what a golden age is and what the Kingdom of Benin achieved during their own golden age, specifically trade with Europeans and the expansion of their territory. They are lots of possible learning opportunities in this lesson, such as comparing events of the Golden Age of Benin with events of the same time in Britain, or looking at the role the army played in the expansion of the empire.

This downloadable lesson comes with a lesson plan, a slideshow presentation and printable teaching resources.

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Decline and Destruction

The final lesson in this series starts by recapping the achievements during the Benin Golden Age and goes on to explore the decline of Benin. Your class will think about the effect that many years of civil wars can have on a civilisation, before finding out about the abolition of slavery and other factors that led to the kingdom's ultimate collapse, including the 'Scramble for Africa' and the part Britain played in the destruction of Benin.

This downloadable lesson comes with a lesson plan, a slideshow presentation and printable teaching resources.

View Lesson 7

This Year 6 History Knowledge Organiser has been created to complement our History 'Non European Societies' strand. It is designed to support your children’s understanding of key vocabulary linked to this scheme of work. Enquiry questions have been included to encourage your children to think like a historian within this topic.

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