What's included in the Great Fire of London History Stem Sentences resource and why is it useful?

KS1 The Great Fire of London History Stem Sentences is a set of sentence stems that give children a clear starting point for discussion and written answers about the topic. The content includes 24 stem sentences across 6 pages, covering London in 1666, how the fire started and spread, how people tried to stop it, Samuel Pepys’s diary, how the fire was put out and how London was rebuilt.

Each stem gives children the first part of a sentence, so they can focus on the history rather than how to begin. Children practise using topic vocabulary, explaining causes and consequences, and giving reasons with "because". This builds the oracy and extended writing skills they need to show what they know.

London in 1666

Stems about what London was like and why the fire spread so quickly, such as "The city was dangerous for fires because…"

Evidence from Samuel Pepys

Stems that help children explain how we know about the fire, such as "His diary is a good source because…"

Rebuilding and Change

Stems about Sir Christopher Wren, rebuilding the city and fire safety today, such as "Our homes are safer today because…"

How do our history stem sentences work?

Our stem sentences sit alongside our history scheme. Display a stem on the board or print the pages for tables, and children finish the sentence aloud or in writing. You can also use them:

• as a lesson starter to recap learning from the previous lesson
• with talk partners, who finish a stem together and then share their answer
• as a writing frame for extended answers in books
• on a working wall, so children can refer back to them across the topic
• at the end of the unit, to see what children can explain on their own

Stretch confident learners by asking them to add a second reason or a piece of evidence. Support others by modelling a complete sentence first.

Teach the full unit with our six Great Fire of London lessons.

Supporting Children with EAL and SEND

Stem sentences reduce the language load of a task, so every child can take part in the discussion. Read stems aloud together, point to the photo on each strip and give a word bank of key vocabulary from the topic. Children can answer with a single word or a drawing before building to a full sentence.