Teachers across the UK can find loads of free and paid resources to bring World War 2 alive in primary classrooms. These range from hands-on artefact analysis to timeline activities and cross-curricular projects. These materials help children in Key Stage 2 get to grips with not just major battles and events, but also what daily life was like for families during wartime.
Whether you’re teaching about rationing, air raids or the role of technology in the conflict, having the right resources makes tough historical ideas much more accessible for young learners.
Michelle Connolly, founder of LearningMole and a former primary teacher with over 15 years in the classroom, says, “World War 2 resonates with children when they can connect it to real experiences through primary sources and interactive activities.” The UK educational platform offers curriculum-aligned materials that fit well alongside dedicated World War II primary school learning resources from museums and heritage organisations.
You’ll find everything from Anderson shelter construction projects to science and technology lessons showing how innovation helped win the war.
The best teaching approaches mix factual knowledge about key events with opportunities for children to explore personal stories and local history. From looking at high school yearbooks from the war years to creating wartime vegetable gardens, these activities help pupils build empathy while meeting National Curriculum objectives for history, literacy and citizenship.
Teachers can pick from a broad selection of free and paid materials to bring World War 2 history into primary classrooms. You’ll find detailed lesson plans about rationing and evacuation, hands-on worksheets and video content that support the key learning objectives for KS2 history.
The National WWII Museum shares free primary-source driven lesson plans so teachers can put together engaging lessons without hours of prep. These plans usually include clear learning objectives, starter activities and tasks for mixed-ability classes.
LearningMole has curriculum-aligned videos and teaching materials that break down tricky Second World War topics into content children aged 4-11 can understand. Their resources work for whole-class teaching or even just quick revision.
Many WW2 lesson plans focus on topics like the Blitz, the Home Front and evacuation. These structured plans save you time and make sure you cover National Curriculum requirements.
Most plans include extension activities for higher-ability pupils and support materials for those who need extra help. The best lesson plans use real photographs, diary entries and artefacts to help children connect with people from the war years.
Worksheets still work really well for reinforcing learning about WWII. World War 2 primary resources include activity sheets on topics from air raid shelters to rationing booklets.
Try worksheets that get children to analyse primary sources, not just fill in blanks. Activities like comparing modern life with wartime Britain or designing propaganda posters encourage critical thinking.
Many worksheet packs come with answer keys and marking guidance to make assessment easier. You’ll also find printable resources that support cross-curricular learning. Maths worksheets might look at rationing calculations, while literacy tasks could involve writing evacuation diary entries.
These different approaches help children see how the Second World War affected every part of daily life.
Video content and interactive digital materials help make abstract historical concepts more concrete for young learners. BBC Teach offers World War Two resources for both primary and secondary pupils, including archive footage and expert explanations.
Digital resources work well for introducing new topics or reviewing key events. Short films about the Battle of Britain or the role of women during wartime grab attention and spark discussion.
You can pause videos to check understanding or replay tricky sections. Many schools now use STEM-integrated World War 2 materials that show how science and technology played a part in winning the war.
These resources link history to modern subjects, helping children see connections across the curriculum. Audio recordings of air raid sirens and Winston Churchill’s speeches add another sensory layer to your lessons.
Teaching children about the key turning points of World War 2 helps them see how the conflict unfolded over six years. Timeline activities work especially well for Year 5 and Year 6 pupils studying this period as part of the UK National Curriculum for history.
World War 2 started on 1st September 1939 when Germany invaded Poland. Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later, on 3rd September 1939.
Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain announced the news to the British public on the radio that morning. You can use interactive timeline PowerPoints to help pupils picture these opening events.
Many teachers play recordings of Chamberlain’s actual speech to make this moment real for children. The period between September 1939 and April 1940 became known as the ‘Phoney War’ because fighting in Western Europe barely happened.
This changed in May 1940 when Germany invaded France, Belgium and the Netherlands.
The Battle of Britain ran from July to October 1940 when the German air force tried to control British skies. RAF pilots flew Spitfires and Hurricanes to defend against German bombers attacking cities and airfields.
This aerial battle mattered because it stopped a German invasion of Britain. Other big battles include the Battle of the Atlantic, which lasted through the war as German submarines attacked supply ships coming to Britain.
The D-Day landings on 6th June 1944 saw Allied forces land on Normandy beaches in France, starting the liberation of Western Europe.
Primary source materials from museums let pupils examine photographs, maps and first-hand accounts from these battles. You might also try LearningMole, which offers curriculum-aligned videos about WW2 battles for Key Stage 2 learners.
Victory in Europe Day arrived on 8th May 1945 when Germany surrendered to the Allied forces. People across Britain celebrated in the streets with parties, dancing and bonfires.
Children can look at photographs and wartime yearbooks to see how young people their age experienced this huge day. The war in the Pacific carried on until Japan surrendered on 15th August 1945, after the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
This date became VJ Day (Victory over Japan Day). When pupils create their own timelines, they can sequence these events and get a sense of the six-year span of the Second World War.
Many teachers use large classroom displays where children add events, dates and images to build a visual record of how the conflict developed.
During World War 2, families across Britain faced big changes in their daily routines. Rationing limited what they could eat and buy, women took on new work roles, and children learned how to stay safe during air raids.
The homefront changed British households between 1939 and 1945. Families adapted to strict rules about what they could buy and use.
Food rationing started in January 1940 and affected almost everything people ate. Each person got a ration book with coupons for set amounts of butter, sugar, meat, eggs, cheese and tea.
Weekly rations were tiny: just 4 ounces of bacon, 2 ounces of butter and one egg per person. People grew vegetables in their gardens and allotments as part of the ‘Dig for Victory’ campaign.
They turned lawns, parks and even railway embankments into growing spaces. Families cooked creatively with limited ingredients, using Ministry of Food recipes that made meals from potatoes, carrots and other home-grown produce.
Clothes rationing began in 1941, giving each person 66 coupons a year. A dress took 11 coupons and a pair of shoes used 5.
Families mended old clothes, shared items and made new garments from curtains or blankets. You can explore World War 2 primary resources that help children understand these daily challenges.
Women stepped into jobs men left behind when they joined the armed forces. They worked in factories making weapons, ammunition and aircraft.
Others joined the Land Army, farming the land to grow food for the nation. Children helped the war effort too.
They collected scrap metal, paper and rubber for recycling into war materials. Many schools organised collection drives where pupils brought items from home.
Children on the homefront joined knitting circles, making socks and scarves for soldiers. Some helped their mothers queue for rationed goods or looked after vegetable patches.
Older children often cared for younger siblings while their mothers worked long shifts in factories. Schools carried on during the war, though many city children evacuated to the countryside for safety.
Those who stayed learned lessons in between air raid drills and trips to shelters.
Air raid shelters became crucial parts of British homes during World War 2. The Anderson shelter was a small metal structure buried in back gardens and covered with soil.
Families slept in these cramped spaces during bombing raids, sometimes for several nights in a row. Morrison shelters were large metal cages kept indoors, usually in the kitchen or living room.
These looked like tables with wire mesh sides and could protect a family of two or three from falling debris. Public shelters in Underground stations gave safety to thousands in cities like London.
During the Blitz, families brought blankets, food and games to spend whole nights underground. Some stations had up to 10,000 people sheltering at once.
Children practised air raid drills at school, learning to move quickly and quietly to shelter areas. They carried gas masks everywhere in cardboard boxes slung around their necks.
Teachers use lesson presentations and worksheets to help pupils today understand these safety measures.
During World War 2, Britain set up a strict rationing system. People found everyday foods like meat, butter and sugar suddenly limited.
Teachers can make this history feel real with cooking activities and meal planning tasks. These help pupils see what wartime challenges felt like.
Food rationing started in January 1940 and didn’t end until 1954. The government took control of supplies after German submarines attacked ships bringing goods to Britain.
Everyone got a ration book filled with coupons. These coupons set strict limits on what people could buy each week.
The system treated everyone equally. Rich or poor, families received the same amount of food. Some poorer families actually ate better during the war than before.
The government aimed to keep everyone healthy, especially children who needed good nutrition to grow.
Pupils can explore rationing through personal memories from people who lived through the war. These stories help children see what daily life was like.
Some children spent years without seeing bananas or oranges.
A single adult’s weekly rations looked shockingly small:
Some foods escaped rationing. Potatoes, vegetables, bread (until after the war), and fish stayed available, though they weren’t always easy to find.
The government pushed people to grow their own food through the Dig for Victory campaign. Families dug up gardens and parks for vegetable plots.
Sweets and chocolate came in at just 12 ounces per month per person. Kids had to make their treats last.
The government even promoted carrots as a sweet substitute, inventing a character called Dr Carrot to make vegetables more appealing.
Wartime recipes used simple ingredients that people could grow or find without coupons. Carrot cookies, potato pastry and eggless cakes became kitchen staples. People got creative with what little they had.
Teachers can use wartime recipe booklets to help pupils plan meals with only rationed amounts. This kind of activity links history with maths as children weigh ingredients and work out portions.
Pupils can compare their current meals to what children ate 80 years ago.
LearningMole includes videos about wartime Britain that fit well with cooking activities. The platform has resources for Key Stage 2 history topics.
Schools can try growing vegetables like potatoes or cress to recreate the Dig for Victory spirit, even in a small classroom.
The Ministry of Food created characters like Potato Pete to promote healthy eating during rationing. Pupils can invent their own food characters and write catchy slogans to get people eating more vegetables.
This task blends history, literacy and art, and gives a taste of wartime propaganda.
The Battle of Britain stands out as a turning point in World War 2. The Royal Air Force defended Britain against German air attacks between July and October 1940.
Understanding what happened during the Battle of Britain helps pupils see how ordinary people showed courage. It also shows how new technology like radar changed warfare.
Hitler planned to invade Britain after conquering France in 1940. The German Luftwaffe had to destroy the Royal Air Force first, so German troops could cross the Channel.
The battle started on 10th July 1940 and lasted three and a half months.
Fighting happened in four main stages. German bombers first attacked shipping convoys and coastal towns. Then they targeted RAF airfields and radar stations, hoping to knock out Britain’s defences.
When this didn’t work, the Luftwaffe switched to bombing London and other cities in September.
Britain held some key advantages. Radar technology let the RAF spot enemy planes early. Fighter pilots flew Spitfires and Hurricanes that matched German aircraft.
The RAF fought over home territory, so rescued pilots could return to duty quickly.
The Blitz began on 7th September 1940. German bombers attacked London night after night for 57 days. Cities like Coventry, Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester suffered heavy bombing too.
Air raid sirens warned people to take shelter in Anderson shelters in gardens or Morrison shelters indoors.
Children often slept in Underground stations. Families claimed the same spots each night.
You can explore how daily life changed during the war using primary sources that show real experiences.
Blackout rules meant people had to cover windows with thick curtains. No streetlights could shine at night.
Many children left the cities and moved to the countryside for safety. They lived with host families, often apart from their parents for months or years.
Schools sometimes held lessons in shelters during heavy bombing.
Bombing killed over 40,000 civilians during the Blitz. More than one million homes were destroyed or damaged. Families could lose everything in a single night.
Rationing grew stricter as German submarines attacked supply ships bringing food to Britain.
Women started working in factories making aircraft and weapons while men fought. The ‘dig for victory’ campaign encouraged families to grow vegetables in gardens and parks.
Communities set up fire-watching rotas. Volunteers stayed awake to spot incendiary bombs.
Defeating the Luftwaffe changed how Britain saw itself in WW2. Hitler cancelled his invasion plans.
LearningMole offers video resources that help pupils understand civilian life during wartime. The content matches the National Curriculum for Key Stage 2 history.
Teaching children about war memorials helps them see how communities honour those who served in the Second World War. Remembrance activities give children meaningful ways to connect with this period in history.
War memorials tell the stories of local people who fought in World War II. Most towns and villages in Britain have memorials listing residents who died in the conflict.
War memorials commemorate different aspects of the war, from battles to evacuees and home front workers.
When you visit a local memorial with your class, children can read the names and research these people. Sometimes they discover someone lived on their street or went to their school.
You can use memorial visits to teach Key Stage 2 pupils about sacrifice and community. Ask children to make rubbings of names or take photos.
They can then research these individuals using local archives or talk to elderly relatives who remember them.
Memorial plaques often show symbols like poppies, crosses or military badges. These help children understand different branches of service and types of remembrance.
Creating a classroom display with local memorial photos lets pupils compare designs. They can talk about why communities chose particular styles.
Worksheets that get children thinking about how we remember World War II work well with Year 6. You can plan activities around dates like Armistice Day on 11th November or VE Day on 8th May.
Making poppy displays, writing letters to veterans, or holding two minutes of silence gives children a way to connect emotionally with remembrance.
You could have pupils research someone from your local memorial and present their findings to the class.
The BBC’s People’s War archive has extracts that work well for remembrance lessons. Children can read first-hand accounts and reflect on real experiences. This approach makes remembrance personal.
Try setting up a remembrance corner in your classroom with artefacts, photos and medals. LearningMole includes free videos about how communities remember World War II, which work well with hands-on activities.
VE Day is 8th May 1945, when Britain celebrated victory in Europe. Teaching about this day helps children understand the relief and excitement people felt when the war in Europe ended.
You can recreate VE Day celebrations in your classroom with bunting, wartime music and foods like spam sandwiches or carrot cookies. Children love dressing up in 1940s clothes and learning old dances.
Street party activities work well, letting pupils experience the community spirit of the time.
Many schools hold VE Day events for the whole school. Parents and grandparents can share family stories about how their relatives celebrated.
You might organise a parade, sing wartime songs or make victory posters in 1940s style.
Comparing VE Day with VJ Day (15th August 1945) helps children realise the war continued elsewhere. This teaches them about the global nature of World War II and why countries remember different dates.
Primary pupils remember best when they can touch, make and explore real objects from history. These activities connect World War 2 to art, design technology and English, ticking off Key Stage 2 curriculum topics.
Children can make paper models of famous World War 2 aircraft like Spitfires and Lancaster bombers. Free templates online make this easy.
These design technology projects help Year 5 and Year 6 pupils understand the engineering challenges British forces faced. You can ask pupils to research why certain design features mattered in battle.
LearningMole has video tutorials explaining basic engineering principles. These fit neatly with wartime technology projects.
Anderson shelters make great group construction projects using cardboard boxes and papier-mâché. Pupils work in teams to create scale models, practising measuring and cutting skills from the DT curriculum.
Building ration books or gas mask boxes gives younger pupils at Key Stage 1 simple craft activities to introduce wartime life. These projects work well with classroom role play areas.
Diary entries from the view of evacuee children help pupils build empathy and practise narrative writing skills. You can give sentence starters like “The day I left London” or “My new home in the countryside” to support reluctant writers.
Teachers often notice that imagining life during the Blitz sparks some of the most creative work from Year 4 and Year 5.
Letter writing between evacuees and their families teaches formal writing and explores emotional themes from the war. Pupils can use primary sources at the National WWII Museum to make their writing more authentic.
Newspaper reports about events like VE Day give children a chance to practise non-fiction writing in a real historical context. You can provide worksheet templates with proper newspaper layouts, headlines, columns and photos.
Propaganda posters mix art lessons with learning about persuasive techniques from World War 2. Year 6 pupils can look at real wartime posters showing messages like “Dig for Victory” or “Keep Calm and Carry On” before sketching their own. This fits the Key Stage 2 art curriculum, where pupils study great artists and designers from history.
Making poppies from tissue paper or fabric builds fine motor skills while introducing remembrance traditions. These crafts suit whole-school projects in November, just before Remembrance Day assemblies.
Camouflage pattern artwork lets pupils explore military strategy through visual tasks. They can play with colours and shapes to hide toy soldiers or vehicles in different backgrounds. This connects art to science topics about adaptation and survival.
Nazi Germany rose to power in the 1930s and caused World War II by expanding aggressively across Europe. When pupils learn how the Nazi regime took control and what followed, they start to understand the causes and effects of this global conflict.
Nazi Germany started when Adolf Hitler became Chancellor in 1933. Germany struggled after World War I, facing economic hardship and political chaos.
The Treaty of Versailles forced Germany to accept blame for World War I and pay large amounts to other countries. Many Germans felt angry and humiliated. Hitler and the Nazi Party promised to restore Germany’s strength.
The Nazis blamed Germany’s problems on specific groups, especially Jewish communities. They spread their ideas using propaganda in posters, films and radio broadcasts.
By 1934, Hitler had taken full control of Germany. He banned other political parties and ruled as a dictator. Teaching resources about Nazi propaganda help pupils see how the regime spread its message.
The regime built up Germany’s military, ignoring rules set by the Treaty of Versailles. This military expansion soon threatened peace across Europe.
Nazi Germany invaded Poland on 1st September 1939. Britain and France declared war, starting World War II.
Over the next six years, Nazi forces invaded much of Europe. Countries like France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway and Denmark fell under German control. The choices and actions of German police forces affected millions during this time.
The Nazi regime murdered six million Jewish people during the Holocaust, along with millions of others. This genocide stands as one of history’s darkest moments.
Pupils can learn about these topics using age-appropriate materials. The National WWII Museum offers primary-source driven lesson plans that make World War II lessons more hands-on. LearningMole provides curriculum-aligned videos to help Key Stage 2 pupils understand this complex period visually.
Primary sources really bring World War II to life for young learners. Pupils can examine real documents, images and accounts from the time. These materials help children develop historical enquiry skills and connect emotionally with people from the past.
Photographs from World War II show pupils what life looked like in the 1940s. You can find images of evacuee children with gas masks, families in Anderson shelters and bombed buildings on high streets. The National WWII Museum offers image galleries that suit Key Stage 2 lessons.
Propaganda posters are great for teaching visual literacy. Pupils can look at messages like “Dig for Victory” or “Careless Talk Costs Lives” to see how the government spoke to citizens. These colourful posters spark discussions about persuasive techniques, linking to English curriculum goals.
LearningMole offers video resources that guide younger pupils through historical photographs and visual sources, suitable for ages 7-11.
Real stories from children and adults during the war help pupils understand emotions and daily life. Letters from evacuees to their parents show homesickness and how they adapted to new places. Diary entries reveal fears during air raids and excitement over rationed sweets.
School yearbooks from the 1940s let pupils see themselves in World War II history through the eyes of teenagers. These documents show how young people balanced school with wartime responsibilities like collecting scrap metal.
Ration books, identity cards and evacuation notices are bits of history pupils can actually hold and study. Primary sources freely available on the web include government documents that explain the rules children followed during the war.
Maps showing bombing patterns and battle locations help pupils see the conflict’s geography. You might use these with modern maps so your class can spot places they know today.
Technology brings World War 2 history alive for primary students. Interactive websites and virtual museum experiences add to traditional lessons.
Digital platforms give you World War 2 teaching resources that make lessons more hands-on. LearningMole has curriculum-aligned videos explaining key events and concepts in a way primary learners can grasp.
The National WWII Museum offers free primary-source driven lesson plans with image galleries and interactive materials. Their Operation Footlocker programme lets students examine real World War II artefacts. Get in the Scrap connects to wartime recycling efforts through modern service learning projects for Years 4-6.
Technology resources show students innovations like radar, submarines and secret codes. These work well when teaching how science shaped the war.
BBC Teach provides classroom resources for both primary and secondary schools. You can find activities for building Anderson shelters, designing victory gardens and exploring communications technology from the 1940s.
Virtual reality gives your class a way to experience World War 2 history without leaving school. History workshops using VR technology are made for Key Stage 2, letting pupils step into the 1940s and see life during the conflict.
These immersive experiences help students develop empathy for people from the past. They can explore the home front, check out wartime machinery and get a sense of civilian life in ways that textbooks can’t match.
Virtual museum tours open up collections from museums around the world. Students can view artefacts, read personal accounts and explore exhibitions without the cost or hassle of a field trip.
Each pupil learns in their own way, so World War 2 topics work best when you adjust materials to fit different needs and learning styles. Accessible worksheets and specialised resources help all children engage with this important period of history.
You can find teaching resources made for primary World War 2 lessons with differentiated materials for pupils with special educational needs. These often use visual supports, simpler language and clear layouts for children with dyslexia, autism or processing difficulties.
LearningMole has free video content that breaks big World War 2 topics into short, engaging pieces. The visual approach helps pupils who find lots of text tricky.
Try using resources with:
Ready-made worksheets and activity prompts give you a base that you can tweak for different ability levels. You might simplify questions for some pupils, while adding extension tasks for others.
Teachers often cut down how much writing pupils need to do. You can use sentence starters, word banks or fill-in-the-blank questions instead of open-ended ones. For pupils who need more challenge, add research tasks or comparison questions.
Role play activities work well because they let pupils show what they know without just writing. Some children might act out evacuation scenes, while others create identity cards or ration books at their own pace.
Teachers and parents often ask similar questions when looking for World War 2 materials for primary pupils. Free lesson plans, interactive websites and age-appropriate activities come up a lot.
The National WWII Museum has free primary-source driven lesson plans for your classroom. Their resources include image galleries and interactive activities.
Blitz School offers free WW2 lesson plans for Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 pupils. Their materials focus on the Blitz and come with a full scheme of work.
The BBC has a collection of classroom resources for both primary and secondary schools. LearningMole also provides curriculum-aligned history videos and teaching materials for pupils aged 4-11.
You can get ready-made lesson plans from War Memorials Trust, which has five separate lesson plans for Key Stage 2 covering different events and aspects of World War II. Each lesson comes with extra resources to help your teaching.
PBS LearningMedia provides lessons on World War II for all grades with free interactive resources for classroom and home. The National WWII Museum includes special programmes like Operation Footlocker, giving hands-on opportunities to explore history through WWII artefacts.
Their Real World Science curriculum mixes STEM and history, showing pupils how science and technology played a role during the war. This cross-curricular approach suits upper Key Stage 2 classes.
Mrs Mac Activity shares downloadable World War 2 resources like lesson presentations and worksheets. These materials fit the National Curriculum and cover topics such as the Home Front, the Battle of Britain and the Allies.
Twinkl has Second World War history activities and worksheets for children aged 5-11. You’ll find craft challenges and maths activities tied to the war.
You might need to create a free account or start a trial to access some resources. A few sites offer extra premium options, so you can pick what matches your needs and budget.
The National WWII Museum creates classroom resources that include full units with several lessons using primary sources. Their Get in the Scrap programme encourages pupils in years 4-8 to think about recycling and energy conservation, all inspired by wartime stories.
War Memorials Trust gives you unit materials with five linked lesson plans. Each lesson builds on what pupils have already learned and introduces something new about the war or its memorials.
You can use these resources to organise your own unit. Try mixing lessons on the Home Front with activities about evacuation or rationing for a topic that lasts several weeks.
National Geographic Kids has World War 2 facts for kids that explain when the war began, who fought and how it shaped history. The reading level fits primary-aged pupils.
PBS LearningMedia brings interactive resources that work on whiteboards or tablets. Their collection includes videos, games and activities to keep pupils interested while they learn about the war.
The National WWII Museum’s online resources feature the See You Next Year project. This project uses real high school yearbooks from WWII so pupils can connect with teenagers from that time, making the history feel closer and more personal.
TTS Group supplies WW2 artefacts and history resources that let pupils role-play as evacuees or examine replica incendiary bombs. These hands-on activities suit Key Stage 2 classes.
Operation Footlocker from the National WWII Museum lets schools handle real WWII artefacts. This tactile approach gives younger pupils a sense of what life was like during the war.
You can set up classroom displays by using templates and resources from Teaching Ideas. They offer free display materials, like World War II banners.
Craft activities, making timelines and letter writing exercises help pupils in Years 3-6 explore the topic in their own way. Mixing different activities keeps things interesting and gives everyone a chance to get involved.
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