Study Hub

Study Guides

This pupil-friendly study guide includes a unit summary, clear notes, common mistakes, and quick questions with answers.

Back to Study HubBrowse Year 1 History Guides

Year 1 - History

John Cabot's journeys across the Atlantic

John Cabot and John Franklin

Unit Summary

This unit on explorers and seafaring gives students a clear sense of change over time, highlighting technological, economic, and cultural shifts. It covers the sea's role in trade and exploration and explores material culture, craftsmanship, and the influence of seafaring on language and art.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to describe the journeys of John Cabot.

Key Notes

  • Shortly after Zheng He's voyages, an Italian navigator and explorer called John Cabot was living in Bristol.
  • He was sent by the English king, Henry VII, to find a shorter route to Asia, and to claim new lands for England.
  • He tried to sail across the Atlantic but bad weather, food shortages and arguments with his crew meant he failed.
  • He tried again the next year with a small ship, 'The Matthew', and a crew of just 18, reaching what is now Canada.
  • The next year, the king sent Cabot on another trip to try and reach even further; Cabot and his ships never returned.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • Atlantic Ocean: the Atlantic Ocean is the ocean between Europe and the Americas
  • Americas: the Americas are the continents of North and South America
  • Asia: the continent to the east of Europe is called Asia

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • Pupils might find it confusing that John Cabot sounds like a very English name yet he was Italian.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

1. Summarise this historical learning in two key ideas.

Shortly after Zheng He's voyages, an Italian navigator and explorer called John Cabot was living in Bristol. He was sent by the English king, Henry VII, to find a shorter route to Asia, and to claim new lands for England.

2. Define this history term and explain why it matters in this topic. 'Atlantic Ocean'

the Atlantic Ocean is the ocean between Europe and the Americas.

3. Correct this common history misconception using evidence language.

Mistake: Pupils might find it confusing that John Cabot sounds like a very English name yet he was Italian. Correction: John Cabot is the English version of the name he was born as, Giovanni Caboto. He lived in England for so long he was known by John Cabot.

More Lessons In This Unit

Browse all guides in the Year 1 History guide library.