Recorded webinar series: From Cyrus to Cleopatra: The ancient history adventure

Free webinar series for secondary teachers from the Historical Association and the Classical Association

Have you thought about offering Ancient History at Key Stage 3, GCSE or A-level?

This webinar series, offered in collaboration with the Classical Association, explores how ancient history can be embedded across the key stages at secondary level. Across this series, we will show you how teaching ancient history is relevant today, enriches modern classrooms and gives learners the opportunity to explore some key and distinct ancient civilisations, such as Persia, Greece and Rome. These sessions are led by practicing ancient history teachers and academics who will demonstrate how the study of ancient history can engender a wide sense of diversity and inclusion in the curriculum, as well as a deeper and broader understanding of the past.

  • How is the series structured and delivered?

    The series consists of five recorded webinars, originally recorded in 2023.

  • What does each session cover?

    Introduction to Ancient History
    Presented by Gráinne Cassidy, Steve Mastin, Dr Arlene Holmes-Henderson and James Renshaw
    What is Ancient History? Why offer it in your school? In this first session, we explore why Ancient History is an exciting subject for teachers to teach and pupils to study, how Ancient History is relevant to many areas of today’s school curriculum, and the support available to get started. We also give a teacher’s eye on two fascinating sources: the Cyrus Cylinder is an icon of Persian religious ideology and tolerance which was discovered in the ancient city of Babylon. The temple of Hathor at Dendera in Egypt contains carved images of the famous Queen Cleopatra and her son and is a stunning example of the fusion of Greek and Egyptian cultures. In combination, these two sources bring together three continents – Africa, Asia, and Europe – and so illustrate the diverse perspectives Ancient History can offer.

    Greek History 101
    Presented by Gráinne Cassidy, Steve Mastin, Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones and Emma Beetham
    Known as the birthplace of democracy, in this session we'll travel back to Ancient Greece to explore the cultural and political achievements of this remarkable civilisation. As we reflect on centuries of history, we'll explore the Persian Wars, the great cities of Athens and Sparta, and the changing relationships between these state

    Roman History 101
    Presented by Gráinne Cassidy, Steve Mastin, Anthony Smart and Tara Atkinson
    In this session, we take a look at the key events from the foundations of Rome and the early kings, through the fall of the Republic and into the time of Rome's first emperors. We encounter remarkable figures such as Julius Caesar, Augustus, Cleopatra and Hannibal, consider how Rome interacted with its neighbours, including Egypt and Britain, and understand the legacy of this great empire.

    Developing an ancient history curriculum
    Presented by Gráinne Cassidy, Steve Mastin, Anna McOmish and Emma Beetham
    In this practical session, three experienced subject leaders share their experiences of how they have successfully embedded the teaching of Ancient History into their curriculums — from Year 7, all the way through to sixth form. Offering guidance, tips and strategies, this session is designed to support teachers who would like to begin embedding the teaching of the ancient world into their schemes of work.

    Starting to teach GCSE Ancient History
    Presented by Gráinne Cassidy, Steve Mastin, Mike Goddard and Alex Orgee 
    Two OCR Subject Advisors, Alex Orgee for Classics, and Mike Goddard for History, will help you better understand the GCSE specification, including the structure, question format and assessments. We also discuss the range of support, resources and expertise available to you to help you get started with the GCSE.

  • Who is the series for?

    This series is a fantastic opportunity if you’re interested in what teaching ancient history can offer you and your students, but don’t know where to start. Whether you’re a key stage or department lead, or a teacher looking to develop your experience, these webinars will show you how Ancient History can drive educationally important conversations and enhance historical skills through new and exciting material.

  • Who is leading the series?

    These sessions are led by practicing ancient history teachers and academics, with support from the Historical Association and Classical Association.

  • What does it cost?

    These webinars are free for anyone to access and have been produced with support from the Historical Association and Classical Association.

    Did you know? Historical Association members can access exclusive free monthly subject knowledge webinars and recordings, plus a range of other benefits all year round. Find out more about Secondary membership

  • How do I take part?

    The webinars will take place online over Zoom. While we strongly recommend participating live, if you are unable to attend for any reason a recording link will be made available. This will be emailed to all registered participants to access for a limited period until the end of the term.

    If you have missed a session, we will be making the recordings available on this page in due course.

    For any enquiries, please contact events@history.org.uk. Please read the HA CPD terms and conditions before registering.

Please note: while these webinars have been produced by the Historical Association, any opinions expressed by the presenter(s) are their own and do not necessarily represent HA policy.