Description

Bring one of the most significant events in Irish history into the classroom with this comprehensive 132-slide Great Irish Famine PowerPoint for P7 and Upper KS2.

Ideal for teaching the Great Irish Famine, Irish Potato Famine, Irish history, Irish immigration and the Irish diaspora in UK, Irish and international classrooms.

Designed to move beyond a simple account of the potato blight, this detailed resource helps pupils investigate why the failure of one crop developed into a devastating famine and how the crisis transformed Ireland and the lives of its people.

The presentation begins by exploring Ireland before the Famine, including population, rural poverty, tenant farming and the extraordinary importance of the potato to poorer families.

Pupils then discover how potato blight arrived in 1845, why the crop failed and why the much more severe failure of 1846 pushed vulnerable communities towards catastrophe.

The Great Famine in Depth

The presentation explores:

Ireland before the Great Famine
why the potato was so important
dependence on a single crop
the arrival of potato blight
the crop failures of 1845 and 1846
how crop failure developed into famine
poverty and access to food
landlords and tenant farmers
rent and eviction
Black ’47
hunger and disease
public works schemes
the Soup Kitchen Act and emergency food relief
the Irish workhouse system
conditions inside workhouses
evictions during the Famine
mass emigration
destinations including Britain, the United States, Canada and Australia
steerage conditions and the “coffin ships”
Grosse Île and Irish migration to Canada
Irish immigration to the United States
migration to Liverpool, Glasgow and other parts of Britain
population loss
food production and food exports
the British government’s response
Sir Robert Peel and Lord John Russell
government policy and the historical debate surrounding responsibility
Quaker relief
the Choctaw donation
American relief and the USS Jamestown
the Irish diaspora
the long-term effects on Ireland
Famine memorials and remembrance
a Great Famine timeline
historical causation and interpretation
an end-of-topic knowledge quiz

More Than Dates and Facts

Throughout the presentation, pupils are encouraged to think like historians.

Rather than presenting potato blight as the only explanation for the catastrophe, pupils consider the interaction between:

potato blight • poverty • dependence on the potato • land ownership • access to food • trade and exports • government policy • relief

They are challenged to evaluate evidence, consider different factors and develop their own supported historical judgements.

Questions such as “Was potato blight alone responsible for the Great Famine?” encourage deeper discussion of historical cause and consequence.

Emigration and the Irish Diaspora

A substantial section examines the extraordinary movement of people caused by the Famine.

Pupils explore journeys to Britain, Canada and the United States, conditions aboard emigrant ships, the quarantine station at Grosse Île and the challenges faced by Irish immigrants as they established new communities overseas.

This makes the resource particularly useful for classrooms outside Ireland where pupils may be exploring Irish migration and ancestry.

Government, Relief and Responsibility

Age-appropriate sections introduce pupils to public works, soup kitchens, workhouses and the policies of the British government.

The presentation also addresses the important fact that other food continued to be produced and exported from Ireland during the Famine, encouraging pupils to consider poverty, purchasing power, trade, government intervention and access to food.

Rather than giving pupils a simplistic explanation, the resource encourages them to consider why historians continue to debate government policy and responsibility.

Remembering the Great Famine

The final sections examine the enormous demographic and social consequences of the Famine and how it is remembered today.

Pupils encounter memorials in Ireland and overseas and consider why societies continue to commemorate traumatic historical events generations later.

A clear 1845–1851 timeline, historical enquiry activity and eight-question knowledge quiz help consolidate learning at the end of the topic.

Suitable For

P7 History
Upper KS2 History
Years 5–6
Ages approximately 9–11
The Great Irish Famine
The Great Famine / Irish Potato Famine
Irish history
19th-century history
local history
migration and emigration topics
Irish immigration to the United States
Irish immigration to Canada
Irish migration to Britain
population and demographic change
historical cause and consequence
historical enquiry and interpretation
citizenship and discussion
cross-curricular History and Geography
home education
UK and Irish classrooms
US, Canadian and Australian classrooms exploring Irish history and migration

Why Teachers Love This Resource

132 comprehensive slides
Covers the Famine from its background and causes through to its long-term legacy
Explains why potatoes were so important to poorer families
Introduces potato blight in accessible language
Explores Black ’47
Covers hunger, disease, poverty and eviction sensitively
Detailed sections on public works, soup kitchens and workhouses
Explores landlords and tenant farmers without oversimplifying their experiences
Extensive coverage of emigration and the Irish diaspora
Includes Britain, the United States and Canada
Explains “coffin ships” without suggesting every emigrant vessel was one
Includes Grosse Île
Examines continuing food production and exports
Introduces the British government’s response and historical debate
Includes Peel and Russell
Explores international assistance, including the Choctaw Nation, Quakers and USS Jamestown
Encourages historical enquiry rather than simple memorisation
Develops understanding of cause and consequence
Includes frequent Think About It discussion questions
Includes a chronological recap
Includes a Think Like a Historian enquiry
Includes an end-of-topic quiz and answers
Strong visual support throughout
Suitable for individual lessons or an extended Famine topic
Ready to teach with minimal preparation

File Type

Microsoft PowerPoint (.pptx)

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