History · Year 2

Active learning ideas

Edith Cavell: Bravery in WWI

Active learning helps Year 2 pupils grasp Edith Cavell’s bravery by moving beyond facts to lived experience. Through role play and hands-on tasks, students connect emotionally with her choices, which builds empathy and deepens understanding of quiet courage in extraordinary circumstances.

• National Curriculum Attainment Targets
• KS1: History - Significant individuals in the past
• KS1: History - Events beyond living memory

• 25–40 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Role Play
• 35 min · Small Groups

Timeline Build: Cavell's Key Moments

Provide pupils with images and facts about Cavell's birth, move to Belgium, hospital work, arrests, and execution. In small groups, they sequence events on a large timeline strip, add captions, and present to the class. Conclude with a class vote on her most brave act.

Who was Edith Cavell and what was her job during the First World War?

Facilitation Tip

For the Timeline Build, provide pre-printed key events on cards so pairs can physically sequence them while discussing cause and effect.

What to look for

Students draw a picture of Edith Cavell helping someone. Below the picture, they write one sentence explaining who she is helping and one word describing her bravery.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness

Activity 02

• Role Play
• 40 min · Pairs

Role Play: Nurse's Dilemma

Assign roles as Cavell, soldiers, and German officers. Pairs act out a scene where she decides to help an escaping soldier, discussing risks aloud. Debrief in whole class about feelings and choices, linking to her real words.

How did Edith Cavell help people even when it was dangerous?

Facilitation Tip

In the Role Play, give each group a simple prop set (bandages, paper soldiers, a classroom 'door') to ground their scene in concrete materials.

What to look for

Ask students: 'What was the most dangerous thing Edith Cavell did? Why do you think she did it even though it was dangerous? What makes someone a hero?' Record student responses on a chart.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness

Activity 03

• Role Play
• 30 min · Small Groups

Hero Sort: Qualities Debate

List traits like brave, kind, strong on cards. Pupils in small groups sort them into 'Cavell had these' piles, justify with evidence from her story, then share in circle time. Extend by drawing their own hero inspired by her.

What do you think made Edith Cavell a hero? Why?

Facilitation Tip

During the Hero Sort, display the qualities on large cards so groups can physically move them into 'Cavell' and 'not Cavell' piles as they debate.

What to look for

Present students with three simple scenarios: 1. A nurse giving medicine to a sick soldier. 2. A nurse hiding a soldier from enemy forces. 3. A nurse training new nurses. Ask students to point to the scenario that shows Edith Cavell being brave and explain why.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness

Activity 04

• Role Play
• 25 min · Individual

Map Mark: WWI Escape Routes

Give blank maps of Europe. Individually, pupils mark Belgium, Netherlands, and Allied lines, draw escape paths with arrows, and note dangers. Share maps to build class display.

Who was Edith Cavell and what was her job during the First World War?

Facilitation Tip

Have students trace her escape routes on a large map with colored string to show complexity and distance.

What to look for

Students draw a picture of Edith Cavell helping someone. Below the picture, they write one sentence explaining who she is helping and one word describing her bravery.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness

A few notes on teaching this unit

Teachers find success by balancing emotional engagement with factual grounding. Use Cavell’s own words to anchor discussions, and avoid framing her solely as a martyr. Pair concrete props with thoughtful prompts to help young learners process heavy themes without overwhelming them. Research suggests that children this age connect most deeply through stories and enactment, so prioritize those pathways over abstract explanations.

By the end of these activities, pupils will describe Cavell’s actions, explain why they were dangerous, and identify her heroic qualities. They will also articulate that bravery can appear in different forms, not just fighting.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During the Role Play activity, watch for students who assume heroes must carry weapons or fight openly. Use the props and scenario cards to redirect them to the tools of a nurse—compassion, secrecy, and care.

  During the Role Play activity, hand each group a nurse’s toolkit (bandages, a notebook, a small flag) and explicitly ask them to show how Cavell used these tools to outwit danger, not fight it.

• During the Hero Sort activity, watch for students to label Cavell as only helping British soldiers because of patriotism.

  During the Hero Sort activity, provide a set of soldier cards showing uniforms from multiple countries. Challenge groups to sort the helpers and soldiers fairly, using the timeline events to prove she cared for all sides.

• During the Timeline Build activity, watch for students to dismiss WWI as too distant to matter.

  During the Timeline Build activity, include a modern connection card showing a nurse or aid worker today doing similar work. Ask students to place it next to Cavell’s 1915 arrest to see the ongoing pattern.

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Methods used in this brief

• Role Play