Year 5 The Vikings: why did they come to the British Isles? worksheet

“Raiders at Lindisfarne” is free to print, with no account. It is the first sheet in the Year 5 history unit “The Vikings: why did they come to the British Isles?”, for children aged 9 to 10, and takes about 22 minutes.

Print it on A4. The child's pages come first; the answers, and what each wrong answer tells you, are on the grown-up page that follows. Weeks 31 to 36 of the year, 6 sheets in the unit.

Free sample · answers on the last page

Raiders at Lindisfarne

Name: ____________ · Date: ____________
Year 5 · History · about 22 minutes
Answers are on the grown-up page

Today I can explain why the Vikings raided Lindisfarne, and what they wanted.

A Look back3 min

1.
The Romans arrived in Britain in 43 CE. The Battle of Hastings was in 1066 CE. Which came first? Circle one.
The Romans arrivingThe Battle of Hastings
2.
Is 50 BCE earlier or later than 50 CE? Circle one.
earlierlater
3.
The Battle of Hastings was in 1066. Which century was that? Circle one.
10th century11th century12th century

B Watch me, then you4 min

A priory on a small island was raided by sea. Use the timeline to read when the raids happened.

A stone priory on a small island with a grey sea around it

Watch me

Lindisfarne was raided in 793 CE.

Jarrow was raided in 794 CE.

794 comes one year after 793, so Jarrow came next.

Now you

1.
Jarrow was raided in 794 CE, one year after Lindisfarne. What does this tell us about the raiders?

C Your turn8 min

Lindisfarne priory stood on a small island close to the coast, with no strong walls. The monks kept gold cups and silver book covers there. Use these facts to answer.

A long wooden longboat drawn on shallow water near a sandy shore

1.
Why could the Vikings reach Lindisfarne so easily? Circle one.
It sat on the coastIt had a deep moatIt was far inland
2.
What were the raiders mainly after? Circle one.
valuable gold and silvera place to grow cropsa school for children
3.
Write each card in the right column. The Vikings left no writing about why they raided.
The raid happened in 793 CE.What the monks said to the raiders.The Vikings came in longboats.They chose it because it held treasure.
We know Good guess No way to know
4.
Draw a line from each place to its raid date.
LindisfarneJarrowIona
raided by 795 CEransacked in 793 CEransacked in 794 CE

Say it out loud: What made Lindisfarne a good target? Say the pattern you notice across these questions.

D Spot the mistake3 min

A shelf in a stone room holding a gold cup and silver book covers

Lu says: “The Vikings went to Lindisfarne to hurt the monks.”

1.
Lu's idea is wrong. What was the real reason for the raid? Explain in one or two sentences.

E Think deeper4 min

A simple sea map showing a small island near a coast

1.
Give two reasons Lindisfarne was an easy and rich target. Which reason mattered most? Explain why.

How did it feel?

I can do it Nearly Not yet

For the grown-up

Raiders at Lindisfarne · 2 minutes to read

Answers, and what a wrong one tells you

A

1. The Romans arriving

2. earlier

3. 11th century

B

1. Look for: Says the raiders soon returned to raid another rich place, so the raids carried on. If they only repeat the dates, ask: did the raiders stop after Lindisfarne, or come back for more?

C

1. It sat on the coast If they circle the moat, ask: did the priory have walls to keep raiders out? Lindisfarne had no proper defence.

2. valuable gold and silver If they circle the crops, ask: what was the priory full of that a raider could carry away and sell?

3. We know: The raid happened in 793 CE., The Vikings came in longboats. · Good guess: They chose it because it held treasure. · No way to know: What the monks said to the raiders. If a card is in the wrong column, ask: could we check this in a book, or is it a guess that no one can prove?

4. Lindisfarne → ransacked in 793 CE; Jarrow → ransacked in 794 CE; Iona → raided by 795 CE

D

1. Look for: Says the raiders wanted to steal valuable gold or silver, and that harm to monks was a result, not the reason. If they say the monks were the target, ask: what was inside the priory that a raider could sell?

E

1. Look for: Gives two reasons (coast or no defence, and gold or silver), picks one, and explains the choice.

Words to use

Say“Which thing did the raiders want most, and how do you know?”

Instead of“Tell them the answer straight away, or say the monks were the reason for the raid.”

After the sheet

Put a few coins in a cup to stand for the priory's treasure, and set it on an upturned box for the island. Ask your child why raiders coming by sea would pick this spot.

Tick what your child got right in StudyDen. Anything missed comes back in a later Look back box, so there's no need to redo the sheet.

The rest of this unit

5 more sheets come with a StudyDen plan, in teaching order:

Raiders, traders and settlers(with a plan)
The Great Heathen Army(with a plan)
Wessex and the Viking army(with a plan)
Alfred fights back(with a plan)
Why the Vikings came(with a plan)

Every Year 5 history worksheet

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