🥽 VR Learning Experience

Black History Worksheet

Years 5 & 6 — after your VR session

Your Name

Class

Date

National Curriculum Links — History Upper KS2

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Significant Individuals Study of people who have contributed to national and international achievements

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British History Understand key events, including empire and its legacy, and their impact on British society

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Historical Enquiry Ask and answer questions using a range of sources, weighing evidence

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Interpretations Understand that the past is represented and interpreted in different ways

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Cause & Consequence Understand how events lead to change over time

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Empathy & Perspectives Understand different viewpoints and lived experiences

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Scene 1

The British Empire

📌 Key Facts

🌍 Ruled about a quarter of the world⛓️ Britain shipped enslaved Africans across the Atlantic📜 Slave trade abolished 1807; slavery 1833🇬🇧 56 Commonwealth nations today

1 Roughly how much of the world did the British Empire rule at its height? 📚 Knowledge

About a quarterAbout halfAll of it

2 In what year was slavery itself abolished across the British Empire? 📚 Chronology

180718331901

3 Why do so many families in Britain today have roots in the Caribbean, Africa and South Asia? 📚 Society

Because those countries were part of the Empire and people held British passportsBecause Britain has always been one single communityIt happened by chance

4 Historians say the Empire brought opportunity for some and conquest, slavery and loss for many. Why is it important to tell both parts of the story? 🤔 Interpretation

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Scene 2

Rosa Parks

📌 Key Facts

📅 1st December 1955, Montgomery, Alabama🚌 Rosa refused to give up her seat⛔ Segregation meant separate seats, schools and fountains🚶 The bus boycott lasted 381 days

5 In what year did Rosa Parks refuse to give up her seat? 📚 Knowledge

194519551965

6 How long did the Montgomery Bus Boycott last? 📚 Knowledge

381 days38 days3 days

7 What does segregation mean? 📚 Society

Keeping people apart by law because of their raceEveryone sharing the same spacesA type of bus ticket

8 Rosa Parks stayed in her seat and said nothing loudly. Why can a quiet action still be powerful? 🤔 Significance

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Scene 3

The Civil Rights Movement

📌 Key Facts

🪧 People marched to change unfair laws🗣️ 1963 March on Washington — about 250,000 people📜 Civil Rights Act passed in 1964🤝 Ordinary people made it happen

9 Roughly how many people joined the 1963 March on Washington? 📚 Knowledge

About 2,500About 25,000About 250,000

10 What were the marchers asking for? 📚 Knowledge

Equal rights and fair laws for everyoneCheaper bus ticketsA longer summer holiday

11 Which year was the Civil Rights Act passed? 📚 Chronology

195419641974

12 Thousands of ordinary people walked to work for over a year rather than ride the buses. What would have made that hard to keep going? 🤔 Empathy

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Scene 4

Remembering Dr King

📌 Key Facts

🕊️ Believed in peaceful, non-violent protest🏅 Nobel Peace Prize 1964, aged 35🗣️ "I Have a Dream" speech, 1963🗿 Statues honour him around the world

13 What did Dr King believe was the best way to change unfair laws? 📚 Knowledge

Peaceful, non-violent protestStaying silentWaiting for others to act

14 Which prize did Dr King receive in 1964? 📚 Knowledge

The Nobel Peace PrizeAn Olympic medalThe Turner Prize

15 Why do communities build statues? 📚 Interpretation

To show who and what mattered to themTo fill empty spaceBecause the law says so

16 Black History Month 2026 asks us to honour our communities. Who in your school or your street would you build a statue for, and why? 💛 Community

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Scene 5

Black Heroes in STEM

📌 Key Facts

🧮 Mary Jackson — NASA’s first Black female engineer🚀 Her maths helped send astronauts into space🛰️ Astronauts live and work on the ISS today🔬 Science needs every kind of mind

17 What was Mary Jackson’s job at NASA? 📚 Knowledge

An engineer whose work helped send people into spaceShe flew the first aeroplaneShe built the space station alone

18 Mary Jackson had to go to court for permission to take engineering classes. Why? 📚 Society

Because of segregation laws at the timeBecause she was too youngBecause the classes were full

19 Mary Jackson’s work was hidden for decades. What might we lose as a country when people are stopped from doing what they are good at? 🤔 Significance

📖 Words to Know

Use these words when you talk and write about what you saw.

empire

A group of countries ruled by one country.

abolition

Bringing something to an end by law — such as slavery.

segregation

Keeping people apart by law because of race.

boycott

Refusing to use a service to force change.

civil rights

The rights every citizen should have, equally.

legacy

What is left behind and still affects us today.

🕑 Build the timeline

Number the boxes 1 to 6 in chronological order. One of these is much earlier than the rest — look carefully.

Slavery abolished across the British Empire (1833).
Mary Seacole travels to nurse wounded soldiers (1850s).
Rosa Parks refuses to give up her seat (1955).
The March on Washington (1963).
The Civil Rights Act becomes law (1964).
Mary Jackson becomes NASA’s first Black female engineer (1958).

✍️ Write a newspaper report

You are a reporter who witnessed one of these events. Write the opening of your report.

Start with a headline
Answer who, what, where and when in the first paragraph
Include one quotation from somebody who was there
Keep it factual — report what happened, not what you wish had happened

20 Write your headline and opening paragraphs here. ✍️ Journalism

⭐ Challenge

For anyone who finishes early.

21 Some people say statues of historical figures should be removed; others say they should stay with fuller explanations. Give one argument for each side, then say what you think and why. ⭐ Challenge