Year 6 Benin: Why have people argued about the Benin Bronzes? worksheet

“The Benin Bronzes” is free to print, with no account. It is the first sheet in the Year 6 history unit “Benin: Why have people argued about the Benin Bronzes?”, for children aged 10 to 11, and takes about 20 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 19 to 24 of the year, 6 sheets in the unit.

Free sample · answers on the last page

The Benin Bronzes

Name: ____________ · Date: ____________
Year 6 · History · about 20 minutes
Answers are on the grown-up page

Today I can explain where the Benin Bronzes came from and why people argue about them.

A Look back3 min

1.
The Romans invaded Britain in AD 43. The Tudors began in 1485. How many years from AD 43 to 1485?
2.
Which is earlier, 1066 or 1558? Write 1066 1558, using < or >.
3.
Elizabeth I became queen in 1558. Which century was that? Circle one.
15th century16th century17th century18th century

B Watch me, then you4 min

The Benin Expedition happened in 1897. Nigeria asked for the Benin Bronzes back in 2021. How many years passed between these two events?

Watch me

1897 is the earlier date. 2021 is the later date.

Take the earlier year from the later year: 2021 − 1897 = 124.

124 years passed between the two events.

Now you

1.
Elizabeth I became queen in 1558 and died in 1603. How many years was she queen?

C Your turn6 min

Each row starts at the Benin Expedition in 1897. Only the end year changes. Count on from 1897 to the end year.

1.
From 1897 to 1900, how many years?
2.
From 1897 to 1910, how many years?
3.
From 1897 to 1950, how many years?
4.
From 1897 to 2000, how many years?

Say it out loud: British soldiers took the Bronzes in 1897 and Nigeria asked for them back in 2021. Why might people still argue about where they belong?

D Spot the mistake3 min

A golden brass plaque from the Kingdom of Benin on a plain grey background

Lou says: “The Benin Bronzes come from the modern Republic of Benin, so they were made there.”

1.
Where was the Kingdom of Benin? Write one sentence.

E Think deeper4 min

Sort these cards into the right column of the table. Some cards are things we know from today's lesson. Some are guesses. Some we cannot know yet.

1.
Write each card in the right column.
Soldiers took royal treasures in 1897.Nigeria asked for them back in 2021.Benin was in what is now Nigeria.Craftsmen learned from older craftsmen.The museum will send them all home.
We know Good guess No way to know

How did it feel?

I can do it Nearly Not yet

For the grown-up

The Benin Bronzes · 2 minutes to read

Answers, and what a wrong one tells you

A

1. 1442

2. <

3. 16th century your child may have used the first two digits, 15, as the century. Years 1501 to 1600 are the 16th century, so add one.

B

1. 45 your child may have added the two years. Take the earlier year from the later one, then check that 1603 sits between 40 and 50 years after 1558 on the line.

C

1. 3 your child may have counted both end years, so they got 4. Count on from 1897: 1898, 1899, 1900. That is 3 jumps.

2. 13 your child may have started counting at 1898 and got 12. Ask which year the first jump starts from, then count again.

3. 53

4. 103

D

1. Look for: Says the Kingdom of Benin was in what is now Nigeria, and not the modern Republic of Benin. If your child writes the Republic of Benin, they have mixed up the two names. Show them a map of West Africa and point to Nigeria, then to the Republic of Benin on its western border.

E

1. We know: Soldiers took royal treasures in 1897., Nigeria asked for them back in 2021., Benin was in what is now Nigeria. · Good guess: Craftsmen learned from older craftsmen. · No way to know: The museum will send them all home.

Words to use

Say“Where was the Kingdom of Benin? Why might people argue about where the Bronzes belong?”

Instead of“Just take the two numbers and do whatever sum comes to mind.”

After the sheet

Write down your birth year and this year on a strip of paper, mark each ten years along it, and count the years between the two dates.

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:

Benin City in the rainforest(with a plan)
The Oba of Benin(with a plan)
Reading the Osun brass head(with a plan)
Trade or loot? Benin and Europe(with a plan)
Who wants the bronzes back?(with a plan)

Every Year 6 history worksheet

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