KS2 History: World War Two Teaching Resource

Mr Dilly’s KS2 WORLD WAR TWO free history teaching resource

Discover the characters who epitomise wartime Britain from a soldier returned from the frontline to an Air Raid Warden in the Blitz, to the Home Guard and an East End Civilian. Mr Dilly’s Key Stage 2 Second World War educational video presents a range of historical detail, events and characters from World War II, respectfully marking the momentous occasion of VE Day and uncovering the incredible timeline of events leading up to it. Can be used in teaching to introduce the topic of Wartime Britain to children, reinforce their learning and celebrate topic work. Run time: 20 mins

KS2 World War II - Discover more about:

The Air Raid Warden – a Wardens’ his duties; the beginning of the Blitz; air raid shelters and the Blackout

The Civilian – the VE Day street party celebrations as Victory in Europe is declared!

The Soldier – Churchill addressing the nation; the victory celebrations by Buckingham Palace with King George and the Royals as the war in Europe finally ends

The Local Defence Volunteer – the enlisting of men to protect Britain from the new threat of the enemy using parachuted troops to attack Britain

The News Reporter - the momentous WWII events that led to the whole country celebrating Victory in Europe, and that the war with Japan rages on

Narrative throughout adds further content including an overview of Germany invading Poland, using real footage, and war being declared by Neville Chamberlain. Evacuation and Operation Pied Piper are touched upon as well as Rationing. The Battle for Britain and Dunkirk are also put into the timeline of events with real archive footage for student's to gain a wider understanding and context, which ends with the importance of the DDay landings, and how that led to the liberation of Europe and eventually victory. The end of the video offers a respectful and poignant moment about remembrance and the human cost and impact of the war. Mr Dilly's KS2 history WWII educational video is a respectful and accessible introduction to WWII, the Homefront and Remembrance.

How to use Mr Dilly’s KS2 WWII Video:

Mr Dilly’s WWII video would work well as part of a whole year group or class topic introduction and for general lesson enrichment, or as an end-of-topic celebration. We suggest you watch the video before sharing it with children so you can see what content links you could make with lesson plans. Once you have viewed the video, we would suggest children watch it through initially for enjoyment and enrichment and then following this, watch it again and complete Mr Dilly’s World War II Quiz to reinforce their knowledge. You might like to introduce a fun, competitive element and invite children to work in pairs to answer the quiz questions with prizes for the winners. The video can then be used to support ongoing topic work, using sections as required as a reminder or to focus on particular aspects of World War II. Children can then build on knowledge gained with further research.

KS2 Second World War - Video Chapters:

(video chapter links will play on YouTube)
00:15 Churchill VE Day speech introduction
00:38 How did people celebrate when the war in Europe was over? Meet The Soldier
01:50 When and why did Britain declare war on Germany? Hear from Neville Chamberlain
02:31 What did Winston Churchill say to the people on the streets of London?
04:19 What was evacuation and why did it happen?
04:43 What was rationing and why was it necessary?
05:05 'The moment we've all been waiting for' Victory in Europe Day
05:57 Who were the Local Defence Volunteers? Meet the Homeguard
06:53 What was Dunkirk? How many people were rescued?
07:25 How many times did King George and the Royal Family appear on the balcony?
08:09 What happened during The Battle of Britain?
08:52 When did The Blitz begin and what was it?
09:05 What did an Air Raid Warden have to do? Meet an Air Raid Warden
09:43 Tell me about The Blackout?
10:17 When did The Blitz begin?
10:46 What was Black Saturday?
11:45 What types of air raid shelters were there?
12:50 What was London like after the first air raid of the Blitz?
14:23 Was D-Day the largest invasion in history?
15:24 What were street parties like on VE Day in 1945? Meet The Civilian
16:47 What did civilians have to have with them at all times during WWII?
17:52 'It's hard to believe the war is over...' 8th May 1945 How Britain celebrated
19:25 How many people died in the Second World War?