Module 1: Introduction (Who were the Vikings?)
Task 1.1: Click on the image and answer the question on Padlet. Look up Viking on the internet. What images come up? Try and find an image/Viking someone has not already used.
Task 1.2: On the same padlet write at least 2 things you know about the vikings. If you think you do not know anything find 2 interesting facts about the vikings and write those down instead. Don't forget to write your name in your padlet post.
The vikings were around from 780CE to 1066CE.
They came from the 3 countries which make up Scandinavia.
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What did the Vikings do?
Raiding and Pillaging
Raiding and Pillaging
- They traveled by sea or up rivers in their fast and beautiful longships to attack and seize treasures from monasteries, towns, and churches.
- The Norse were traders and skilled craftspeople in wood, jewelry, stone, and ivory.
- In Asia, they traded goods, often slaves, with Arabic merchants and brought back home exotic goods like glass and spices.
- They created trade networks and settlements throughout Europe and across the North Atlantic Ocean to Iceland, Greenland, and the North American Mainland.
- All vikings had a basic knowledge of how to build longships. There were experts in each village.
Module 2: Viking Society
Just like every society the Vikings had a social hierarchy. You may think we do not have one right now but think about the image below:
•At the start of the Viking age the society was made up of a number of independent tribes.
•Each was typically ruled by a Konungr (King), though not a king as we understand it. Some were just warrior chieftains that were the leaders of their tribes. •In each community there were Jarls, Karls and Thralls. Task 2.1: After reading the class descriptions of the different classes (below) I want you to draw the social structure with a brief description of your own (1 sentence each) explain who they are and what they did. |
Jarls:
•Jarls were powerful noblemen. •They were the heads of influential families, often interlinked through marriage. •Jarls were wealthy, wore fine clothes and elaborate jewellery. They lived in large and well-appointed longhouses. |
Karls:
•Karls were farmers and craftsmen such as silversmiths, boat builders and merchants. •Many Karls became warriors for a raid. •Karls were ‘free’ people who made up most of the population. •They were loyal to and paid taxes to either a Jarl or the King directly. |
Thralls:
•Thralls were slaves (prisoners of war), criminals and the poorest of the poor. •They did most of the hard work and had no rights under the law, but most were treated well. |
Module 2.1: Viking Women and Children in society
A women’s main role (if the man was home or not) was to look after the children and manage the home.
They made the family’s clothes, cooked the two meals a day most families ate. Women on farms also milked the cows and made cheese. |
Common tasks included:
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Task 2.1.1: Write a short diary entry as though you are a viking woman for a day and your husband is away raiding. What did you do all day? Do you have any children or animals you care for? How do you feel about your life?
Viking Children:
- Daughters helped their mothers in the home, just as sons helped their fathers on the farm or in the workshop. By 15 or 16 they were considered adults.
- The education of children took place in the home because there were no schools. History, religion and Viking law were taught to children by their parents through stories and songs.
- It was very important for boys to learn to stay fit, to skate, to wrestle, to use swords and to ride horses.
- A Viking boy was usually named after his father. For example Asmund, son of Ake would have been called Asmund Akeson. Girls were usually named after their mothers and grandmothers.
- Babies were given little Thor’s hammer charms to protect them from evil spirits and sickness.
Task 2.1.2: Complete the following activities
- If you were a viking child would you prefer to be a daughter or son? why?
- What would you name be if you were a viking child?
- Design your own little Thor's hammer charm.
Module 3: Viking Villages and Homes
The majority of Vikings lived on small farms, but sometimes in prosperous areas the farms joined together to create villages.
Some buildings in the village include:
Both the farms and villages were located on a slope or higher ground because it was better for drainage and provided good visibility of visitors - friendly or otherwise. Viking villages and farms were often located near water, making it easier to load and unload ships. This could include small waterways or larger coves. Viking ships were very versatile. Click on this link to watch videos exploring a viking village recreation. |
Task 3.1: Using the map below draw where you would put the following and write why.
- A viking village
- A viking farm with grazing stock
Viking homes were called longhouses. They were generally dark and smelly places with dirt floors and no windows.
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Task 3.3: Explain why a viking longhouse might potentially be each of the following:
- Cosy
- Smelly
- Noisy
Module 4: Viking Runes and Rune Masters
Some vikings could read and write, but they didn't write in English or use the Alphabet as we know it. They had their own system of writing and their own 'alphabet' called futhark. Each 'letter' was called a rune.
They were scored or carved into hard surfaces like rock, bone or wood. Futhark was used to express poetry and ownership. Runes were written on everything from great stone monuments to common household items. |
Rune Masters were the experts in futhark and were specially trained to bring magical powers out of the runes. The Rune Masters held positions of great importance in the viking world. They are also skilled in the art of rune casting, a method of divination using runes carved on flat pebbles or bark.
Viking warriors even used runes in war. Weapons were inscribed with runes asking the gods for either protection or to bring pain the misery to their enemies. The runic symbol for Tyr, the god of war, was customarily carved on viking shields so they could charge fearlessly into battle with the belief in the power of runes.
Viking warriors even used runes in war. Weapons were inscribed with runes asking the gods for either protection or to bring pain the misery to their enemies. The runic symbol for Tyr, the god of war, was customarily carved on viking shields so they could charge fearlessly into battle with the belief in the power of runes.
Task 4.1: Using the futhark write the following phrases
Task 4.3: Answer the following questions
- Your name
- This item belongs to your name.
Task 4.3: Answer the following questions
- In what ways are our alphabet's letters different from the futhark runes?
- Why do you think the vikings would have had to write this way? Remember they wrote on stone, bones and wood.
Module 5: Viking beliefs and mythology
When a viking died they were either buried or cremated (burned)— with some of their belonging to take with them into the next world. Some Viking Konugrs and Jarls were given ship burials with treasure, weapons and favourite animals with them. The vikings believed that a warrior killed in battle went to Valhalla,a great hall where dead heroes feasted at long tables. Odin sent his warrior-maidens, the Valkyries, riding through the skies to bring dead warriors to Valhalla.
Task 5.1: Answer the following
- What are the differences between a viking burial and a Christian burial?
- The vikings eventually became Christians. Why do you think archeologists know more about earlier vikings than the later ones?
The vikings were pagan, meaning they worshiped more than one god. These gods lived Asgard, one of the nine worlds. The vikings believed the gods controlled different aspects of the world such as Thor, the god of thunder, Frey, the god of peace and Tyr, the god of war. They worshiped and sacrificed for their gods.
Task 5.2: Pick three of the Gods and create a profile of who they are, what they were responsible for in the world and what their runic symbol was. Don't forget to include a picture (drawn or from the internet).
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Module 5: Viking Ships and Weapons
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Watch the youtube video from Terry Schappert's Warrior series on the history channel.
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Module 6: Viking Explorers
Lindisfarne
Normandy Invasion - integration into Europe, especially France
Settlement in America
Further Information Websites
http://www.danishnet.com/vikings/
http://www.lore-and-saga.co.uk/html/vikings.html
http://www.legendsandchronicles.com/ancient-civilizations/the-vikings/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/vikings/
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/vikings/
http://www.history.com/topics/exploration/vikings-history
http://www.lore-and-saga.co.uk/html/vikings.html
http://www.legendsandchronicles.com/ancient-civilizations/the-vikings/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/vikings/
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/vikings/
http://www.history.com/topics/exploration/vikings-history