Napoleon Exploration and Discovery Lesson Plan

Sep 29, 2025

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Below you’ll find my lesson plan focused on Phase 2: Napoleon and Early Missions Exploration and Discovery Week from “World Empires, World Missions, World Wars” by Diana Waring, part of the History Revealed curriculum. This lesson covers students presenting their research projects, a discussion over William Wilberforce, a Timeline, and a Vocabulary Taboo Game. I used this during a weekly 50-minute homeschool co-op world history class!

Exploration and Discovery Presentations

Presentation on William Carey

Presentation on Napoleon and the Louisiana Purchase

Students present their Exploration and Discovery research reports. Pass out tickets based on what they scored on the rubric. (If a student scores 8 points, they get 8 tickets.)

YOU WILL NEED:

tickets and “Rubrics for Grading Creative Projects in the History Revealed Curriculum” by Diana Waring

William Wilberforce

William Wilberforce (1759-1833) – Portrait by Karl Anton Hickel, c. 1794

“Am I Not A Man And A Brother?” Medallion created as part of anti-slavery campaign by Josiah Wedgwood, 1787

Go over William Wilberforce. (Pass out tickets to students who answer the questions or read the Bible verses.)

What about William Wilberforce? Who was he? Why was he important?

Briefly discuss the slave trade. Why would Christians enslave people?

Have a student read I Timothy 6:9-10 – How does this relate to our discussion?

Why do you think the British, after centuries of lucrative African slave trade, ended in 1807?

Have a student read Psalm 127:12-14 – How does this relate to our discussion?

YOU WILL NEED:

tickets, World Empires, World Missions, World Wars by Diana Waring (brought by students) and a Bible

How were these 3 great men of the time related to each other?

William Carey had to be concerned about Napoleon’s French ships attacking them when he left England to go to India. He didn’t get mail from England or money to support him and his family for the first 1 1/2 years they lived in India because Napoleon’s French ships were looting British ships delivering mail to India.

William Wilberforce was one of the many Christians in England who sent money to William Carey after Carey’s print shop was burned to the ground.

The British East India Company controlled India. They didn’t want Christian missionaries in India because they didn’t want Indians to learn about Christianity and the freedom it brings. William Wilberforce not only pioneered for the abolition of slavery, he also fought for the East India Company to amend their charter to encourage “useful” religious and moral teachings among the Indians. In 1813, Wilberforce successfully led Parliament to amend their charter, allowing many Christian missionaries to spread God’s Truth in India.

Watch “William Wilberforce & the End of the African Slave Trade – Christian History Made Easy Rose Publishing.”

Timeline

Beginning of the Timeline

Begin completing the timeline on p. 43.

The Teacher’s Edition includes the Key Events, Key People in the Church, and Key People in the World that can be added.

Ask the students about the events and people as you add them to the timeline. Reward students with tickets for answering.

YOU WILL NEED:

tickets, “World Empires, World Missions, World Wars” by Diana Waring (brought by students), and the Teacher’s Edition

Vocabulary Taboo

Image credit: https://cepr.org/sites/default/files/styles/16_9_small/public/voxeu-cover-image/AdobeStock_40202385.jpeg?itok=T-os7l7v

(Optional – if there’s extra time) Play Vocabulary Taboo.

Ahead of time print off the Vocabulary Definitions from the Teacher’s Edition in Appendix B. Cut each word with its definition into a strip of paper, fold it, and place it in a bowl.

Have students open their books to p. 44.

Divide students into 2 teams. Each team will take a turn having a student select a vocabulary word and definition and try to get the other students on their team to guess the word by using words other than the ones on the sheet & without saying letters (such as. “It starts with an E.”)

After someone gets it correct, the student reads the word and its definition.

YOU WILL NEED:

tickets, “World Empires, World Missions, World Wars” by Diana Waring (brought by students), and Teacher’s Edition

Rubrics and Homework

YOU WILL NEED: “Rubrics for Grading Creative Projects in the History Revealed Curriculum” by Diana Waring

Review homework for this week:

Using pp. 54-57 for ideas, consider which Creative Expression project you’ll do. Begin working on it. It should be on a different person/event than your research project. It will be presented on Oct. 2.

Complete one or both of the maps on pp. 47-48. The directions are on p. 46. (You’ll get 4 tickets per map you complete.)

Optional: Listen to tracks 1-3 of Digging Deeper OR watch a YouTube video on the Protestant Era.

Review Phase 4 projects that are due in 2 weeks.

Pass out the rubrics from “Rubrics for Grading Creative Projects in the History Revealed Curriculum” by Diana Waring so students will know what to include in their projects.

Encourage students to select a different person/event from the one they did for their Exploration & Discovery Research Project.

YOU WILL NEED:

“Rubrics for Grading Creative Projects in the History Revealed Curriculum” by Diana Waring

Homework

Using pp. 54-57 for ideas, consider which Creative Expression project you’ll do. Begin working on it. It should be on a different person/event than your research project. It will be presented on Oct. 2.