Emily Davison: A Suffragette's SacrificeActivities & Teaching Strategies
Active learning helps students grasp the emotional and ethical weight of Emily Davison’s story in a way that passive reading cannot. By stepping into roles, debating trade-offs, and building timelines, students connect intellectual understanding to personal stakes and historical consequences.
Learning Objectives
- 1Identify Emily Davison as a significant individual within the Suffragette movement.
- 2Explain the primary goal of the Suffragette movement using evidence from Emily Davison's actions.
- 3Compare the methods used by Emily Davison to express her beliefs with methods used by people today to advocate for causes.
- 4Analyze the risks Emily Davison took and evaluate their potential impact on public opinion at the time.
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Pairs Role-Play: Suffragette Protest
Pairs select roles as Emily Davison or a fellow Suffragette. They practice chanting slogans and holding signs made from card. Perform short skits for the class, then discuss feelings involved. Wrap up with reflections on risks taken.
Prepare & details
Who was Emily Davison and why is she remembered?
Facilitation Tip: During the Suffragette Protest role-play, assign one student as Davison and another as police, then rotate roles so all participants experience both perspectives.
Setup: Groups at tables with case materials
Materials: Case study packet (3-5 pages), Analysis framework worksheet, Presentation template
Small Groups Timeline: Davison's Life
Provide key dates on cards. Groups sequence them on a large timeline strip, adding drawings of events like prison hunger strikes. Present to class and explain one event's importance. Extend by linking to today's rights.
Prepare & details
How did Emily Davison show how strongly she felt about votes for women?
Facilitation Tip: When building the timeline in small groups, provide pre-cut event cards with dates and brief descriptions to help students sequence Davison’s life events accurately.
Setup: Groups at tables with case materials
Materials: Case study packet (3-5 pages), Analysis framework worksheet, Presentation template
Whole Class Debate: Taking Risks
Pose the key question on risks for beliefs. Divide class into agree/disagree sides. Each side shares two reasons with evidence from Davison's story. Vote and reflect on changes she helped bring.
Prepare & details
What do you think makes someone willing to take a big risk for something they believe in?
Facilitation Tip: For the risk-taking debate, give each side a notecard with three possible counterarguments to practice during rebuttals.
Setup: Groups at tables with case materials
Materials: Case study packet (3-5 pages), Analysis framework worksheet, Presentation template
Individual Poster: Davison's Legacy
Students draw Emily Davison with symbols of her fight, like purple banners. Write one sentence on why she is remembered. Display posters and gallery walk to share peer insights.
Prepare & details
Who was Emily Davison and why is she remembered?
Facilitation Tip: Have students sketch their poster drafts on scrap paper before finalizing to encourage thoughtful design and clarity of message.
Setup: Groups at tables with case materials
Materials: Case study packet (3-5 pages), Analysis framework worksheet, Presentation template
Teaching This Topic
Teaching this topic benefits from balancing respect for Davison’s sacrifice with critical historical analysis. Avoid turning her into a one-dimensional martyr; instead, ask students to weigh the ethics of her tactics and the movement’s escalation. Research shows students retain more when they grapple with ambiguity rather than being given a single ‘right answer.’ Use primary sources sparingly to avoid overwhelming students, but enough to ground discussions in reality.
What to Expect
Successful learning shows up when students move from surface facts to deeper questions about courage, justice, and consequence. They should articulate why Davison’s actions mattered beyond headlines, using evidence from the activities to support their views.
These activities are a starting point. A full mission is the experience.
- Complete facilitation script with teacher dialogue
- Printable student materials, ready for class
- Differentiation strategies for every learner
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
Common MisconceptionDuring the Suffragette Protest role-play, watch for students who dismiss early peaceful actions as ineffective or unimportant.
What to Teach Instead
Use the role-play to guide students through a staged escalation: start with a petition delivery, then a march, and finally an interruption. Ask them to reflect in pairs after each stage about why the Suffragettes felt compelled to increase the intensity of their actions.
Common MisconceptionDuring the Small Groups Timeline activity, watch for students who believe the Derby protest instantly led to immediate voting rights.
What to Teach Instead
Provide blank space between the 1913 Derby event and the 1918 voting rights on the timeline. Ask groups to fill this gap with other key events, such as Davison’s funeral or the Representation of the People Act, to illustrate the time lag and other contributing factors.
Common MisconceptionDuring the Whole Class Debate on Taking Risks, watch for students who label Davison’s Derby protest as impulsive or meaningless.
What to Teach Instead
Give each debater a ‘fact card’ with details about the Derby protest’s planning and Davison’s prior arrests. Require them to cite at least one piece of evidence in their arguments to ground abstract claims in historical reality.
Assessment Ideas
After the Individual Poster activity, collect posters and use a simple rubric to check for evidence of Davison’s actions and one clear sentence explaining her legacy. Return posters the next day with brief written feedback focusing on clarity and historical accuracy.
During the Whole Class Debate, listen for students to connect Davison’s bravery to personal examples they share. After the debate, ask three students to summarize one bravery example shared by a peer and explain how it relates to the Suffragette cause.
After displaying protest images during the quick-check, have students hold up fingers to vote: one for the image that best matches Davison’s Derby protest, two for another Suffragette method, three for a modern protest. Ask three volunteers to explain their choices in one sentence each.
Extensions & Scaffolding
- Challenge: Ask students to research another suffragette’s strategy and compare it to Davison’s, then present a 2-minute argument for which approach was more effective.
- Scaffolding: Provide sentence starters for the poster activity, such as "Emily Davison is remembered because..." or "Her sacrifice changed..."
- Deeper exploration: Have students interview a family member or neighbor about a cause they believe in and present findings on how modern protests compare to Davison’s era.
Key Vocabulary
| Suffragette | A member of a women's organization in the early 20th century who, among other methods, used strong protests and civil disobedience to fight for women's right to vote. |
| Votes for Women | The slogan and main objective of the Suffragette movement, advocating for women to have the right to participate in elections. |
| Protest | An expression of objection, often in opposition to a policy or course of action, which can take many forms from peaceful demonstration to more disruptive actions. |
| Sacrifice | Giving up something important or valuable, sometimes one's life, for the sake of a greater cause or principle. |
Suggested Methodologies
Planning templates for History
5E Model
The 5E Model structures lessons through five phases (Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, and Evaluate), guiding students from curiosity to deep understanding through inquiry-based learning.
Unit PlannerThematic Unit
Organize a multi-week unit around a central theme or essential question that cuts across topics, texts, and disciplines, helping students see connections and build deeper understanding.
RubricSingle-Point Rubric
Build a single-point rubric that defines only the "meets standard" level, leaving space for teachers to document what exceeded and what fell short. Simple to create, easy for students to understand.
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