Learning objective
- To understand how the rainforest influenced ancient Maya life.
Success criteria
- I can identify the challenges of settling in
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National curriculum
History
The
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Cross-curricular links
Curriculum links
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Before the lesson
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Lesson plan
Recap and recall
Show the Presentation: Discussion. Ask the children to discuss the questions on the slide in pairs. Encourage them to draw on the knowledge they learned in Year 3: What was important to ancient Egyptians?
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Adaptive teaching
Pupils needing extra support:
- Could use the Knowledge organiser for vocabulary support during their discussions in the Main event and Wrapping up.
- Could match fewer solutions to the challenges in the Main event.
Pupils working at greater depth:
- Could explain more than one benefit of each solution.
- Could compare the solutions and justify which had the greatest impact, giving clear reasons or evidence.
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Assessing progress and understanding
Pupils with secure understanding can:
- Identify key challenges of living in the rainforest.
- Describe
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Vocabulary definitions
-
achievement
A significant accomplishment or contribution that had a lasting impact.
-
ancient
From a very long time ago.
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In this unit
Assessment - History Y4: The ancient Maya
Lesson 1: How did the ancient Maya settle in a rainforest?
Lesson 2: What do remains tell us about ancient Maya cities?
Lesson 3: What did the ancient Maya believe?
Lesson 4: How did the Maya reflect world beliefs in their inventions?
Lesson 5: How important was cacao to the ancient Maya?
Lesson 6: What caused the decline of the ancient Maya cities?
Maintained by: Kapow Primary team
Last update: 16th March, 2026
Lesson 6: What caused the decline of the ancient Maya cities?
Investigating the end of the Classic period Maya city states.
Lesson 5: How important was cacao to the ancient Maya?
Exploring the importance of cacao to draw conclusions about ancient Maya life.
Lesson 4: How did the Maya reflect world beliefs in their inventions?
Acting as archivists, the children explore and record some of the inventions of the ancient...
Lesson 3: What did the ancient Maya believe?
Investigating ancient Maya beliefs and the characteristics of Maya gods.
