Week 7: Knights (450 AD to 1500 AD)
Read K – 3: Knights in Shining Armor by Gail Gibbons
4– 6: Knights & Castles by Will Osborne & Mary Pope Osborne (Chps 6 – 8)
7– 8: In the Time of Knights by Shelley Tanaka
- What was the first stage in becoming a knight? (boy became a page at age 7)
- What was a page’s responsibilities? (learn how to fight & hunt, played games of skill; served master)
- What was the second stage in becoming a knight? (boy became squire around age 14)
- What was a squire’s responsibilities? (handled weapons, became skilled horseman, served master, went to battle with master)
- How did a squire become a knight? (years of practice, around age 21, special “dubbing ceremony; given title “Sir” before name)
- What was a knight’s coat of arms? (symbol on knight’s shield)
- What was a knight’s most valuable possession? (his horse)
- What weapons did a knight use? (lance, sword, flail, battle-ax, mace)
- What armor did a knight wear in the early middle ages? (hauberk: tunic made of chain mail & steel helmet)
- What armor did a knight wear in the late middle ages? (plate armor, helmet with a visor)
- What was a tournament? (festival where knights tested each other’s skill by fighting with blunted swords & lances)
- What was the “Code of Chivalry”? (promise of knight to be generous to the poor, protect their faith & church, defend the helpless, honor their lady)
- Can people be dubbed knights today? Why? (yes, for performing a great deed that benefits others)
Questions for grades 4 – 8:
- T/F Most knights came from wealthy families. (True)
- What was a joust? (game where knights on horseback tried to knock their opponent off his horse with a lance)
- T/F Knights could be killed in tournaments. (true)
Activities: K – 3: Using the blank shield and coat of arms printables from this site, create your own shield. http://www.activityvillage.co.uk/knight_printables.htm If you like, you can also create your own helmet using an empty ice cream container by following the directions on this site: http://usscouts.org/bbugle/bb0610/bb_packdenactivities.html. (Scroll down page for helmet instructions.) Tin foil can be used instead of silver spray paint.
4 – 6: Complete the Knights & Castles Crossword and the Knights & Castles Wordsearch listed on this site: http://bogglesworldesl.com/knights.htm
7 – 8: Using the pages on this site for help: http://www.fleurdelis.com/meanings.htm and http://www.fleurdelis.com/symbolism.htm design your own coat of arms. Make sure you use appropriate colors for the meaning you wish to convey, and use four of the symbolic items mentioned. Then, write a brief essay describing why you’ve chosen the color scheme and symbols you have for your coat of arms.
Copyright July 24th, 2014 by Gwen Fredette
Week 6: Castles (450 AD to 1500 AD)
Read K – 3: Ms. Frizzle’s Adventures: Medieval Castle by Joanna Cole
4– 6: Knights & Castles by Will Osborne & Mary Pope Osborne (Chps 1 – 5; & Chps 9 – 10)
7– 8: Knights & Castles by Will Osborne & Mary Pope Osborne (entire book)
- When were most castles built? (During the Middle Ages)
- What were the first castles made of? (wood)
- Why did people start building them from stone? (stronger, wouldn’t burn)
- Describe the following castle parts: Keep? (great look-out tower in the middle of the castle)
- Portcullis? (sliding door of iron bars leading into castle)
- Moat? (water around castle)
- Drawbridge? (Wooden doorway that could be opened over the moat or to close up the castle)
- Who were some important craftsman inside the castle and what did they do? (blacksmith – made tools and other objects from metal)
- Carpenter (Worked to repair things made of wood)
- Stone Mason (Worked to repair things made of stone)
- Who was the Lord? (owner of the castle)
- Who was the Lady? (his wife – she was in charge of running the castle while he was away)
- Who were the “Ladies-In-Waiting”? (Companions and helpers to the Lady of the Castle)
- Explain the difference between Knights, Squires, Pages, & Men-at-Arms. (Knights were horse-riders and protectors of the castle; squires were their assistants; pages were young boys who would eventually be squires; Men-At-Arms were foot soldiers who fought for their Lord)
- Who were some other workers at the castle? (cooks, servers, scullions [cleaners] stable boys, etc.)
- What were Peasants and what did they do? (farmers who took care of the land around the castle)
- What does it mean if a castle is under Siege? (Enemy army surrounds the castle)
- What were Siege towers (or belfrys)? (wooden towers on wheels that could be pushed close to the castles, making it easier for men to get in)
- How were castle windows designed? (slits in the stone so archers could shoot out but enemies couldn’t get in)
- What were catapults? (Large wooden slingshots that could hurl stones)
- What other ways could enemies attack? (flaming arrows; cut off food or water supply; dig tunnel to ruin part of castle’s foundation)
- What was the danger of being under siege for too long? (castle dwellers could starve to death)
- How could people defend their castle? (dropping hot sand, boiling oil, and stones; shooting arrows; send messages to call for help)
- How were castles decorated? (beautiful tapestries)
- What types of entertainment did Lords & Ladies have at their castles? (music, jugglers, jesters, minstrels)
- Why did people stop building castles? (Cannonballs & gunpowder made it easy to destroy castle walls)
Questions for Grades 4 – 8:
- What was scaffolding? (Wooden framework used to help build castles)
- At what age did many Lords & Ladies get married? (14)
- What was the job of the castle chaplain or priest? (lead prayers, conduct religious services, perform marriages, teach children)
- Describe how Lords & Ladies dressed? (Ladies: long dresses, covered hair, fancy hats, Lords: tights & tunics, large hats)
- What were murder holes? (holes in upper floors of the castle; if an enemy got in, arrows or rocks could be sent through to kill intruders)
- What was the dungeon? (dark, damp basement room where prisoners were kept)
Activities K – 2: Build your own castle out of Legos or blocks. Try to include the following: a keep, a drawbridge, and a moat. (You can use construction paper for the moat.)
3 – 5: Label the parts of a castle. Print out this worksheet and paste the names of the castle parts in the appropriate spaces. http://www.parkfieldict.co.uk/infant/castles/castlelabel.html. You may need to look up a few of the “Castle Feature” definitions in a dictionary to complete the worksheet. Then, build your own castle out of empty cereal boxes and toilet paper rolls. You can look on Google images for ideas: https://www.google.com/imghp?hl=en&tab=wi&ei=Wp_IU7H0M9KlyATfloL4Dg&ved=0CAQQqi4oAg Try typing the words “Castles made from cardboard” for lots of cool pictures.
7 – 8: Using the picture of a Medieval Castle on this site for help: http://www.castles.org/Kids_Section/Castle_Story/images/kidcastle1.jpg draw your own detailed picture of a medieval castle. Also, include a siege tower and a catapult in your drawing. Then, label the following: the portcullis, moat, drawbridge, arrow slits, keep, barbican, bailey, parapet walk, siege tower, and catapult.
Copyright July 18th, 2014 by Gwen Fredette
Week 5: Feudalism
View K – 5: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Riz5HdoHRE (Kids can follow along by copying the drawings in the video. See “Activities” section below.)
View and Read 6 – 8: All of the following:
- The system of protection developed during the Middle Ages that divided people into various classes and responsibilities was called what? (Feudalism)
- Who owned the largest pieces of land during the Middle Ages? (The king or kings)
- Who did the king delegate his land to? (Nobles or lords)
- What is the name we give for Medieval warriors? (knights)
- What did knights do? (fight to protect people & land from invaders)
- What did peasants do? (rented land, grew food, created weapons and tools)
- How did each of these classes of people rely on each other? (peasants provided food, etc., in return for protection; knights provided protection in return for food & territory from nobles, nobles offered the services of their knights to the king in return for land; king provided land in return for all services of others)
Questions for Grades 6 – 8:
- When was someone a “Lord” and when was someone a “vassal”? (Someone was a Lord if he gave land; someone was a vassal if he received land.)
- What was a “Manor”? (the land a vassal received from his Lord)
- What important things were located on a Manor? (look at the map of the video if you need help) (Manor house or castle, village for the peasants, church, land to farm, woods to hunt in, water supply for drinking, etc.)
- Most people living during the Middle Ages belonged to what class of people? (the peasants)
- What were the homes of peasants like? (small, crowded, dirty)
- Did most peasants go to school? (No)
- What clothes did peasants wear? (clothes made of wool, women wore long dresses, woolen stockings, and a cloak; men wore woolen stockings, breeches, & a cloak)
- How did nobles dress? (clothes made of finer fabrics: silk, velvet, & wool)
- What did peasants eat? (bread & stew with vegetables)
- What did nobles eat? (bread, stew, meat, & sweet puddings)
Activities: K – 5: Using a large, blank piece of paper, draw your own area of Feudal land similar to one in the video. Divide the land into sections for nobles. Draw knights on your land to fight and peasants to work. Create a king at the top to be responsible for all that goes on in his kingdom.
6 – 8:
- Print & Complete the following worksheet: http://www.ducksters.com/questions/print_quiz.php?quiz=Daily%20Life%20in%20the%20Middle%20Ages (Answer Key: 1d,2a,3c,4b,5e,6b,7a, 8d,9b, 10c)
- Then, using the map on the “Manorialism” video for help, and/or the map on this site: http://socialstudies-vdh.wikispaces.com/ or this site: http://gossamerstrands.com/Hist100/lecture14new.htm create your own map of a medieval manor.
Copyright July 11th, 2014 by Gwen Fredette
Week 4: St. Patrick & the Christian Church
Read K – 3: Saint Patrick by Ann Tompert
4 – 8: Saint Patrick by Ann Tompert & Read “Note” (see below)
At the heart of any community in the Middle Ages was the Christian church. It held great economic, religious, and political power over the people. It also greatly influenced the decisions of a community. The following were key members/objects/aspects of the Christian community of the Middle Ages:
- Monks: Monks were men who lived lives of prayer. They lived in monasteries where no man had personal belongings, but shared everything with the other monks of the community. They could not marry. Monasteries often became centers of great wealth because of the donations of the rich who wanted the monks to pray for them. They were also centers of great learning. Very few people living during the Middle Ages could read and write. However, monks spent much of their time reading and making copies of the Bible and other great literary works. They would make copies by hand and decorate them with beautiful illustrations. Schools were often set up in monasteries so their knowledge could be passed on to others. Nevertheless, many monasteries were secluded from daily Feudal life.
- Friars: Friars were religious men who lived among the people. They depended on the charity of others for their basic needs and did not own property. They traveled from town to town, preaching the gospel, helping the community, and taking care of the sick.
- Nuns: Nuns were religious women who devoted their lives to God. They lived as a community in buildings called convents. In addition to prayer, nuns spent time teaching and sewing. Although they were somewhat secluded from village life, they sought to be a help to villagers who were sick or in need.
- Priests: Priests were men in charge of a local church in a community. The church was considered by many to be the most important building in a village. A priest’s responsibilities included baptizing infants, burying the dead, organizing celebrations on Holy Days, organizing religious plays, and conducting mass or church services. Most church services were done in Latin, which few people could understand.
- Bishops: Bishops were men in charge of a larger geographical area containing many churches. They had great influence over the Lords, Ladies, and Kings in their community. A bishop would make a circuit each year, visiting the local churches in his geographical area.
- Archbishops: Archbishops were men responsible for overseeing the work of several bishops. They also had great influence over the Lords, Ladies, and Kings in their communities. During the Middle Ages, enormous cathedrals were built for the Glory of God. Archbishops and Bishops performed church services in these magnificent structures. The wealth of the church was very evident in these structures, especially in comparison to the simple homes of the peasants living around them.
- The Pope: The Pope was the man considered to be the head of the Christian church. He selected and oversaw the work of bishops and archbishops. He coronated Kings and other political leaders. In general, most of the Popes served from the city of Rome. Popes of the Middle Ages played a major role in the Crusades, a series of Christian “Holy Wars” fought during this time.
- Religious Relics: Relics were religious objects during the Middle Ages. They could be such things as the bones of a saint, a fragment of Jesus’s cross, the material in which Jesus was buried, etc. They were highly valued and kept in special areas of a church. People often traveled great distances and paid to see them, increasing the wealth of the church that housed them. Many people believed by seeing or touching a relic they could have an illness cured, win a battle, see a miracle, receive Spiritual healing, or even forgiveness of sins.
- Pilgrimages: People of the Middle Ages would go on great pilgrimages or travel great distances to see or touch important relics. They also often traveled to Jerusalem, Israel, or “The Holy Land” to receive Spiritual healing or forgiveness of sins. The Medieval Church taught that a man who wasn’t a saint must go to Purgatory and pay for his sins after he died. A trip to Jerusalem was a way for a man to help pay for his sins and shorten his time in Purgatory.
- What was Patrick’s real name? (Succat)
- What happened to Patrick when he was 16? (captured by Irish Pirates and sold into slavery)
- As a slave, Patrick began to remember the teachings of the church. What did he do about 100 times a day? (pray)
- After he had been a slave for 6 years, Patrick heard a voice one night. What did the voice say and what did he do? (the voice said “You will soon go to your own country,” and “Your ship is ready.” Patrick escaped from his master. He traveled at night and hid by day.)
- After Patrick’s ship landed in Britain, he and his shipmates got lost in the woods and ran out of food. How did God provide for Patrick and his companions? (herd of pigs; finally found a village)
- Did Patrick find his family again? (yes)
- Why did Patrick decide to travel back to Ireland? (to preach the gospel to the people of Ireland)
- What did Patrick do first to prepare for the mission? (studied God’s word and became a deacon, then a priest, and eventually a bishop.)
- Describe Patrick’s ministry in Ireland? ( baptized thousands of people; preached to all who would listen)
- What other troubles did Patrick face in Ireland? (threatened & imprisoned; missed family)
- On what day did St. Patrick die? (March 17th; Saint Patrick’s Day)
Questions for Grades 4 – 8:
- What group of Christian men spent much of their time making copies of the Bible? (monks)
- What group of Christian men spent much of their time traveling from place to place, preaching the gospel? (Friars)
- What group of Christian women lived in convents and devoted their live to God? (nuns)
- What group of Christian men were in charge of local churches? (priests)
- Bishops and Archbishops often said mass in magnificent large churches called …. (cathedrals)
- Who was considered to be the religious and political leader of the Christian church during the Middle Ages? (the Pope)
- What were relics? (bones of a saint, a piece of Jesus’s cross, or other religious items that were said to have powers to heal and perform miracles)
- T/F The Christian church of the Middle ages was wealthy compared to the common people. (True)
- Why did people of the Middle ages go on Pilgrimages? (to see religious relics, to travel to the Holy Land, to receive physical or spiritual healing)
Activities K – 2: Online coloring page: http://www.oncoloring.com/a-bishop-a-nun-and-a-monk-or-a-friar-members-of-the-clergy-coloring-page_1331.html
3 – 5: Fold a piece of paper in half. Then fold it again. Then again. Open up your piece of paper. It should be divided evenly into 8 sections. Do the following for each of the 8 sections:
• Section 1: Write the word “Monk”. Draw a picture of a man with a Bible and a feather pen.
• Section 2: Write the word “Friar”. Draw a picture of a man with a walking stick. Create a cartoon bubble to show that he is speaking. Write the words “Come to Christ” in the bubble.
• Section 3: Write the word “Nun.” Draw a picture of a woman in long robes.
• Section 4: Write the word “Priest.” Draw a picture of a man in front of a small church.
• Section 5: Write the word “Bishop.” Draw a picture of a man in front of many small churches.
• Section 6: Write the word “Archbishop.” Draw a picture of a man in front of a large cathedral. Give him a fancy hat with a cross on it.
• Section 7: Write the word “Pope”. Draw a picture of a man wearing a fancy hat with a cross on it and fancy robes. Next to him draw a picture of a king.
• Section 8: Write the word “Relics”. Draw a picture of a bone, a piece of Jesus’ cross, and a piece of material.
• On the back of your paper, write the words “Pilgrimage” in big letters. Then, draw a picture of a road. Draw people traveling on the road to go on a pilgrimage.
6 – 8: Pretend you must choose to be a member of the clergy. Any position is available to you whether you are male or female. What job would you prefer? (Monk, Friar, Nun, Priest, Bishop, Archbishop, Pope) Why? Write an essay discussing your views.
Copyright July 4th, 2014 by Gwen Fredette