Year 3 - History
Changing agriculture in Britain during the Iron Age
Bronze and Iron Age Britain: how did life change during this time?
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This pupil-friendly study guide includes a unit summary, clear notes, common mistakes, and quick questions with answers.
Unit Summary
This unit analyses how life changed in Britain between the Bronze and Iron Ages. It examines how the use of bronze changed life in Britain and how agriculture, settlement, and trade changed further in the Iron Age. Life in the two periods is compared and contrasted.
Lesson Summary
You will learn to describe how the use of iron impacted farming during the Iron Age.
Key Notes
- Iron farming tools like the ard plough could be used in heavy clay soils and wetter conditions.
- This allowed a greater variety of crops to be grown, such as oats, and more land to become available for farming.
- Iron also allowed the creation of stronger tools, such as axes, meaning further clearing of the wildwood.
- With more farming, the number of enclosed settlements grew and land ownership became more important.
Vocabulary To Learn
- crops: plants grown for food are called crops
- ard plough: an ard plough was an iron tool used by Iron Age farmers to create lines in the soil for planting seeds
- sickle: a sickle was an iron tool used by Iron Age farmers to cut crops when they were ready to harvest
- wildwood: forest or woodland areas growing naturally are called wildwood
- enclosed: if an area is enclosed it is surrounded by a wall or fence
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- Farmers in the Iron Age had the same tools farmers have today such as tractors.
3 Quick Questions (With Answers)
1. Summarise this historical learning in two key ideas.
Iron farming tools like the ard plough could be used in heavy clay soils and wetter conditions. This allowed a greater variety of crops to be grown, such as oats, and more land to become available for farming.
2. Define this history term and explain why it matters in this topic. 'crops'
plants grown for food are called crops.
3. Correct this common history misconception using evidence language.
Mistake: Farmers in the Iron Age had the same tools farmers have today such as tractors. Correction: Ensure children understand that farming was done by hand with a few iron tools to help. New tools such as the ard plough and iron sickle made a huge impact on farming.
More Lessons In This Unit
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