Teaching notes and ideas
Name of resource:
Events leading to WWI
Age group(s)
Subject(s)
12 to 14, 15 to 16, 17 to 18
History
Topic
Language Level
World War I
Intermediate/Advanced
EAL Nexus
Description of resource
 PowerPoint with reasons for WWI including vocabulary list and map (Europe
before WWI)
 Sequencing activity in English only and as dual-language resource
(English/Polish, English/Persian and English/German)
 PowerPoint with cartoon and speech frame to discuss who is to blame for WWI
and to practise use of tenses in conditional sentences
Preparation needed
You will need:




A4 copies of Slide 2 of the Europe before WWI PowerPoint – one per group or
pair of EAL learners
copies of the sequencing worksheet for each pair or group
a few copies of the answer key for the sequencing worksheet
A4 copies of the cartoon on Slide 2 of the Discussion work PowerPoint for each
pair or group
You will need to:
 print out worksheets and PowerPoint slides as explained above
 provide internet access for some extension tasks (optional).
Curriculum objectives
 Understand how Europe was split into alliances in 1914
 Understand which events and underlying political interests led to WWI
 Compare how the course of events was anticipated at the time (cartoon) with
the actual course of events
 Develop an idea of the chronology of events
 Use historical facts to support arguments
 Imagine other potential scenarios
This project and its actions were made possible due to co-financing by the European Fund for the Integration of Third-Country Nationals
© British Council 2014
EAL Nexus
Language/Literacy objectives
Functions
Structures
 Describing key
events leading to
WWI
Short, simple sentences in the simple past
 Arguing
Phrases to introduce one’s opinion
 Predicting what will
happen under given
conditions
 if sentences (type 1): simple present in the ifclause and will future in the main clause
 Expressing
hypothetical
conditions that
cannot be fulfilled
any longer
 if sentences (type 3): past perfect in the if-clause
and conditional perfect in the main clause
(modelled)
More information on conditional clauses can be
found here:
https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/grammarreference/conditionals-1
http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/grammarreference/conditionals-2
http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/englishgrammar/verbs/verbs-time-clauses-and-if-clauses
Vocabulary
 Political terms: war, triple, raw materials, colony, Kaiser, fleet, alliance, heir,
treaty, withdraw, invade
 Phrases to present arguments: There is no doubt that …, In my opinion …, I
think …, To my mind …, I think it is fair to say …, Looking at … I come to the
conclusion that …
This resource could be used:
 whole class
 one to one or small group
 independent learning
This project and its actions were made possible due to co-financing by the European Fund for the Integration of Third-Country Nationals
© British Council 2014
EAL Nexus
Ideas for using the resource
What to do
Using the first PowerPoint: Europe before World War I
 Hand out copies of Slide 2 headed ‘Words you need to know’ to EAL learners.
Alternatively, play a matching game. For this you cut up the words and definitions
into individual strips (to make this easier, you may want to print the slide in A3).
You should have 11 words and 11 definitions. Give one slip (either definition or
word) to each learner (or pair of learners, which is an opportunity to pair EAL
learners with good models of English). Ask the learners to move around the room
and find their ‘partner’, i.e. match words and their definitions. The words and
definitions can then be displayed in the classroom. Explain that all these words
are important for the topic ‘Events that led to WW I’.
 Show the map on Slide 3 to visualise the European borders. Ask if learners spot
differences to a 21st-century map of Europe. Mention important differences:
- no Poland (split between Austria-Hungary)
- Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia as well as parts of some Balkan States
belong to Austria-Hungary
- borders of Balkan States are different from today
- Russia includes Baltic States, Ukraine and Belarus
- Ottoman Empire covers today’s Turkey and other Middle Eastern countries.
 Ask learners for ideas why different colours are used. Refer to the title of the
slide.
 Show Slides 4–11. Explain any historical points.
 Learners then consolidate the events leading to WWI using the ‘sequencing
exercise’ worksheet. This provides an opportunity for collaborative group work as
the sequencing task could be done in pairs or small groups; discussion should be
conducted in small groups and then shared with the whole class.
Using the second PowerPoint: Discussion work
 Show Slide 2 with the cartoon on. Explain that it was published in an American
newspaper in July 1914. Discuss what the ‘chain of friendship’ means in terms of
war. Point out that the soldiers in the cartoon all only say half a sentence.
 Use Slide 3 to finish the sentences in the speech bubbles cartoon. You could ask
the learners to write new speech bubbles on Post-it notes and display the new
version of the cartoon in the classroom. To indicate that these threats are made
before WWI starts and the consequences are therefore in the future, choose a
heading such as ‘Europe in July 1914’.
 The speaking frame on Slide 5 can be used to prepare short presentations in
answer to the question ‘Who is to blame for WWI?’ Make Slides 8 to 11 of the
first PowerPoint available as a handout so that learners can find reasons. Explain
that although we cannot change the events in 1914 any longer, we can imagine
This project and its actions were made possible due to co-financing by the European Fund for the Integration of Third-Country Nationals
© British Council 2014
EAL Nexus
that they were different. This could form the basis of a group discussion and then
the presentation can be prepared as a group.
 You may want to give some examples and focus on the grammar to express this
imaginary situation using Slides 6, 8 and 9 (opportunity for integrating grammar
into topic).
 There is an opportunity for a speaking/listening activity on hypothetical conditions
with an if-chain game. One learner or the teacher starts with one if-sentence, the
idea in the main sentence is then used for a new if-sentence by the next speaker
and so forth (see Slide 8).
Other ideas for making the best use of this resource
 For EAL learners who are literate in Polish, Persian or German, there are
bilingual versions of the sequencing worksheet so that they can make use of
their first language. All EAL learners should have access to a bilingual dictionary
or monolingual learner’s dictionary.
Extension activities

Extension tasks Slides 4–8 from the Europe before WWI PowerPoint, which will
provide an opportunity for exploratory talk if done in pairs or groups:
1. Research the modern-day names and boundaries of the countries in the
Triple Alliance and Triple Entente and find out if today’s flag is the same or
different. (Requirements: atlases and internet access)
2. Research the family relationships between George V, Nicolai III and Wilhelm
II.
3. Investigate the raw materials further (e.g. copper, cotton, rubber, tea, tin).

Learners could be asked to write more ‘if-sentences type 3’ according to the
model. Each learner could be recorded (e.g. on a tablet or digital recorder);
learners could then transcribe each other’s sentences and correct them,
especially with regard to correct use of tenses. (This is likely to be a challenge for
EAL learners and native speakers alike.)
This project and its actions were made possible due to co-financing by the European Fund for the Integration of Third-Country Nationals
© British Council 2014