The main focus of this exercise is on the use of historical sources. Pupils are presented with a problem in the murder of Becket. They are presented with a range of possible explanations and they are also presented with a range of sources. The aim is to use the sources to decide which of the explanations seems most plausible in the light of the available source material and to use the sources as evidence to substantiate this judgement.
The introductory page is designed to introduce Becket as an important historical figure and also provide a way of leading students into this topic. You could expand on this by discussing a contemporary high profile murder case which may have been in the news. Any such case should raise the issues of the difficulty of determining motive and evidence.
The narrative telling of the story of Henry's relationship with Becket is the next obvious thing to look at. Teachers may want pupils to simply read through the text to get a feel for the story. They may want to read the text to pupils, or use class reading with a printed version of the story.
The activity page looks at the different historical views of Becket's Death and suggests an inquiry students could do on the subject.
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