GCSE Guide

We have created a new page showing what will be available for GCSE students for 2012-2014. For more information, click here.

GCSE Revision Lists

GCSE Revision Lists have now been published on the History Dept Blog. Click here for a direct link. They are also available on Fronter. It will also tell you why this picture has been chosen for this post!

GCSE Revision

This section of the schoolhistory.co.uk site has some really helpful information for GCSE revision,including links to other sites. The interactive diagrams seem particularly useful - you can even customise and print off your own. Year 10 revisers may also find this of use!

Revision Materials

It will soon be time for Years 11, 12 and 13 to go on study leave, and hopefully Nonsuch HP can be of help for the final preparations for the exams. The History Dept and Politics Dept blogs contain links to lists of questions and mark schemes. Also make the most of Fronter where you can find material specific to your classes.

The Exam Board websites are quite helpful. Here are some links to try.

AQA GCSE History
2009 Paper 1 Question Paper and Mark Scheme
2009 Paper 2 Question Paper and Mark Scheme

AQA AS History
Unit 1B (Henry) Specimen Question Paper and Mark Scheme
Unit 2S (Liberal Democracies) Question Paper and Mark Scheme

AQA A2 History
Unit 3B (Elizabeth) Specimen Question Paper and Mark Scheme

Edexcel A-Level Politics Resources Area (This is not as helpful a website as many downloads are "secure" but it can give you a general idea of what to expect.) The AS Unit 1 question paper and markscheme are available.

If you would like other materials to be added or need further guidance on what to look for on these websites please leave a comment below and we will see what can be done.

Blitz Street

Channel Four's Blitz Street attempts to recreate what is must have been like to experience being bombed during World War 2. They have recreated some typical 1940s houses on an army base and have then subjected them to various bombs to see what the explosions must have been like. The explosions are of course very impressive but even more interesting are the eye witness testimonies from people (often children at the time) who experienced being bombed. The programme is on Mondays and you can watch episodes on YouTube here.

PS: If you only have 5 minutes - go to minute 36 of the first episode!
PPS: Here is the Telegraph's review of the programme.

GCSE History Presentation

Here is a powerpoint that gives more details about studying GCSE History at Nonsuch. If you have any further questions, please get in touch with a member of the department.

Land Girls

BBC1 have dropped the Weakest Link in favour of drama called "The Land Girls" this week to mark the anniversary of the outbreak of World War 2. More details (and iPlayer links) here and here. If you watch it, please let us know what you think - proper historical drama, or daytime TV with turnips and 1940s fashions?

In other news, the BBC People's War archive is an excellent resource of people's memories of life in the conflict and on the home front. It can be found here.

UPDATE: Thanks for the comments so far - glad that people are enjoying it! If there are any interesting storylines, characters or historical situations please let us know.

Soviet Posters at the Tate

Nonsuch HP went to Tate Modern on Saturday and found an impressive collection of Soviet Propaganda posters on display. They show images from the 1917 Revolution through to World War 2 and are well worth seeing, particularly for students beginning the A2 course. You can find them on the 5th floor in room 11 of the "States of Flux" exhibition (free entry). More details can be found here. This website doesn't show the pictures but googling the names of the artists mentioned quickly finds some good examples. www.soviethistory.org is another good source for images.

Apollo 11

Today is the 40th anniversary of the launch of the Apollo 11 mission, which on 20 July 1969 successfuly landed Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the moon. There is of course a huge amount of material on the web for the anniversary, including contributions from the BBC, the Daily Telegraph and NASA itself. This article puts the conflict firmly within the context of the Cold War, showing that Kennedy's speech in 1961 to put a man on the moon by the end of the decade was a clear response to American fears that the USSR was dominating the space race. It was thought that such a mission would help to rebuild national prestige and restore Kennedy's reputation after the recent debacle at the Bay of Pigs. After Kennedy's assassination it almost became a sacred duty for Lyndon Johnson to fulfil this pledge, despite the massive expense of the Apollo programme

Polish elections

On 4 June 1989 Solidarity won the first free elections in Poland since the Second World War. It was hugely significant for Eastern Europe, showing that a democratic party could be allowed to triumph against the ruling communist government and influenced many of the events that followed in Hungary, East Germany and elsewhere.
More information here and here.

D-Day

Here is a thoughtful piece on the significance of D-Day, the 65th Anniversary of which will be marked on Saturday 6 June.

The BBC has an excellent website on D-Day and the events that followed here with maps articles and animations.

Plenty of video footage can be found here.