KS1: The Great Fire of London
War, Plague & Fire gallery
Teachers notes
These activities are designed to help KS1 pupils studying the Great Fire of 1666 to
search for information and study the artefacts, paintings and text in the War, Plague
& Fire gallery, with support from accompanying adults.
They are designed for use by schools making self-directed gallery visits as well as
schools attending booked sessions.
Schools planning self-directed visits should book one hour exclusive use of the
War, Plague & Fire gallery. On some days the gallery will be booked exclusively for
use by other schools and if you have not booked it is likely that you will not be able
to access this gallery.
They are offered in Microsoft Word format so that teachers can adapt for their
pupils’ needs, if they wish.
We suggest you encourage some chronological understanding by discussing
events before and after the fire, such as the plague of 1665 and you may also like to
book for the Medieval London gallery and Expanding City gallery.
In the Medieval London gallery pupils could draw a picture of the model of St Paul’s
Cathedral as it looked before the fire. The London from Southwark painting shows
the spire of St Paul’s missing, as it was at the time of the fire. The spire had been hit
by lightening a few years before and had not yet been rebuilt.
We suggest you split the class into groups and allocate each group a different
starting point, so that pupils are spread across the gallery.
Please remember to photocopy these activity sheets before your visit. Pupils could
also bring sketch pads to record their visit.
© Museum of London 2011. This sheet is designed to be edited by teachers.
The Museum cannot take responsibility for edited content.
KS1: The Great Fire of London
War, Plague & Fire gallery
Notes for adults
Please support your pupils by:
 reading and discussing text panels
 expanding on the questions within the activity sheets
 discussing why London was a fire risk
 discussing the uses of the artefacts on display and whether we use similar
things today.
 Pepys described many people rescuing virginals on boats. Listen to the
music and find the virginal (a type of keyboard instrument) in the 17th century
room interior and discuss life at the time
 as they look at the paintings, ask the children to imagine the heat, smoke and
falling buildings and how people would have felt
 which hero and villain stories grab their attention most?
 can they find the fire hook? Why did pulling down houses help fight a fire?
This map will help you and your pupils to find your way around
Please supervise your pupils at all times.
© Museum of London 2011. This sheet is designed to be edited by teachers.
The Museum cannot take responsibility for edited content.
KS1: The Great Fire of London
War, Plague & Fire gallery
Find the 17th century room interior.
Discuss what it would be like to live in a home like this.
Draw a picture of some of the things in this room.
Listen to the music of the virginal. Pepys describes people rescuing virginals on boats.
What other things do you think people would try to save?
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
Tick when you have found the penner (portable pen case) in the Widening
horizons display. This is the sort of pen Pepys would have written with.
© Museum of London 2011. This sheet is designed to be edited by teachers.
The Museum cannot take responsibility for edited content.
KS1: The Great Fire of London
War, Plague & Fire gallery
London before the Great Fire
What were most houses made from in 1666? _______________________
Tick when you have found the wooden brackets and model
of a timber framed house. What is a jettie?
Tick when you have found the bread oven.
Draw a house from 1666
Draw one of the objects
Where did the fire start? P____________ L ____________
Why did the fire spread so fast and so far?
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
© Museum of London 2011. This sheet is designed to be edited by teachers.
The Museum cannot take responsibility for edited content.
KS1: The Great Fire of London
War, Plague & Fire gallery
Eyewitness accounts
Watch the film and look at the model. Who are the eyewitness accounts from?
Samuel P ____________
Thomas V _____________
John E ______________
Draw Pepys writing in his diary
Listen carefully. Can you find out:

What the Lord Mayor did?

How much was paid for a cart?

How the fire was stopped?

Where people went?
Write some notes on what people did and felt.
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
© Museum of London 2011. This sheet is designed to be edited by teachers.
The Museum cannot take responsibility for edited content.
KS1: The Great Fire of London
War, Plague & Fire gallery
Look at the paintings.
Tick when you have found:
carts
horses
people in boats
barrels
Draw a picture of people escaping from the fire.
Heroes and villains
Read about what some people did.
Write the name of a hero and a villain and what they did.
Hero
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
Villain
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
© Museum of London 2011. This sheet is designed to be edited by teachers.
The Museum cannot take responsibility for edited content.
KS1: The Great Fire of London
War, Plague & Fire gallery
What did Londoners do after the fire?
How many people were made homeless?
Copy your favourite fire insurance mark.
100
10,000
100,000
About how many died? ______________
Organising the rebuilding
How much did the rebuilding cost?
£5 million
£10 million
Find the property survey. How much was the fine for moving
stakes showing the area of a house to be rebuilt?
A shilling
£5
£10
Fundraising for the homeless. Can you find the receipt
from the village of Cowfold? How much did they raise?
Discuss what fire insurance is.
Look at the official designs for new London houses.
What did houses now have to be built of?
© Museum of London 2011. This sheet is designed to be edited by teachers.
The Museum cannot take responsibility for edited content.
KS1: The Great Fire of London
War, Plague & Fire gallery
Firefighting
Look at the firefighting equipment and try on the helmets.
What do you think is the oldest type of helmet? How are they different?
Draw the bucket. What is it made from?
What is the 1660s helmet made
from? Draw yourself wearing it.
Tick when you have found:
Fire hook
Squirt
Fire engine
Draw one of these pieces of fire-fighting equipment.
© Museum of London 2011. This sheet is designed to be edited by teachers.
The Museum cannot take responsibility for edited content.