An informative and interesting article providing a strong foundation for an understanding of Viking society. It also provides evidence of Viking achievement, lifting the veil on many common misunderstandings and misconceptions about Vikings. This article provides a great overview of the Viking age, ships, exploration and myths. The language used will contain unfamiliar references to geographical regions or practices, however a good level of detail is provided, supported by scientific evidence and anthropological discoveries. It is suitable for year 7 and 8 history students.
This site, ‘Live Science’, provides scientific explanations for many popular stories and discoveries.
Structure and features
The 'Viking history: facts and myths' resource provides:
- excellent information about Viking history and behaviour
- evidence-based explanations linking ‘our knowing‘ to ‘our discovering’
- images to support understanding
- links to related articles.
For teachers
The article provides a great background on Viking history and can be used to support lower middle school History students who are introducing or developing their understanding of the Viking world. The article is well written using rich language where necessary which may require unpacking and support.
The overviews and descriptions can help students build content knowledge as well as show how evidence helps us develop understanding. The article discusses Viking history and the Viking age as well as Viking ships, exploration and common Viking myths around their behaviour and society.
Teachers can use this source to develop a more detailed individual investigation on one element of Norse society, or create a task that allows students to creatively demonstrate where they believe common truths or Viking misconceptions originate.
