KS3 Teachers: Ready Units for Years 7–9 in History, Science and PSHE
KS3 Ready Units for Years 7–9: History, Science and PSHE
It is the second week of a half term and a colleague is off. You have a Year 9 set, a lesson on Thursday and no time to write a sequence from scratch. Or you are building next year's scheme of work and want one or two modules that arrive with answers, keys and a presentation. The units below were written for US classrooms, so they are best read as ready-made international case studies that you adapt: swap in a UK example, trim a lesson, keep the structure.
See the Holocaust unit →Units for KS3
Five units for Years 7–9
One history unit, two science units and two units that fit PSHE or form-time programmes. Each card shows the grade label used in the shop.
Holocaust Education Grade 8 | 8 Lessons, 10 Document Studies & 2 Biographical Studies | Grade 8
Eight lessons and ten document studies for a Year 9 history unit.
Genetics and Heredity | 8 Lessons, 8 Inheritance Models & a Project | Grades 7–8
Alleles, Punnett squares and probability in eight lessons with a project.
Earth and Space: Solar System, Seasons & Moon Phases | 8 Lessons, 6 Model Labs | Grades 6–8
Scale, orbits, seasons, moon phases and six model labs.
Conflict Resolution and Restorative Circles | 8 Lessons, 4 Facilitator Cases & Project | Grades 6–8
De-escalation, listening and restorative circles, with four facilitator cases.
Spotting Misinformation and Deepfakes | 8 Lessons, 6 Verification Files & a Project | Grades 6–8
Lateral reading, original context and synthetic media in eight lessons.
At a glance
What each unit contains
| Unit | Shop grade label | Pages and extras |
|---|---|---|
| Holocaust Education | Grade 8 (Year 9) | 46 pages, 26-page guide, 10 document studies |
| Genetics and Heredity | Grades 7–8 | 41 pages, 21-page guide, 8 inheritance models |
| Earth and Space | Grades 6–8 | 47 pages, 23-page guide, 6 model labs |
| Conflict Resolution and Restorative Circles | Grades 6–8 | 37 pages, 17-page guide, 4 facilitator cases |
| Spotting Misinformation and Deepfakes | Grades 6–8 | 39 pages, 19-page guide, 6 verification files |
Page counts are for the classroom PDF and the separate teacher guide. All five units include a 17-slide presentation and editable DOCX text editions. For the wider picture of how history modules fit across the key stage, see our KS3 history scheme of work page.
History
A Year 9 history unit with source work
The Holocaust Education unit follows the chronology in eight lessons: Jewish life before persecution, antisemitism, dictatorship and exclusion, laws and public violence, war and ghettos, mass murder, resistance and rescue, and liberation and memory. Lesson 1 starts before 1933 on purpose, so Jewish history is not taught only as a history of persecution. Ten document studies and an evidence workshop build around one idea: different sources answer different questions. The wording is factual and age-appropriate, with no graphic images, no victim simulations and no invented testimony. Two biographical studies, on Anne Frank and Elie Wiesel, give students single lives to set beside the wider account. The material is American in origin, so check the vocabulary and any references to US institutions before you hand pages out. Many teachers place a unit like this in Year 9, but that is your decision, not a claim of fit with any specification.
Science
Two science modules you can teach whole or in part
The Genetics and Heredity unit moves from DNA, genes and chromosomes through alleles and dominance to Punnett squares. Lesson 5 separates the expected ratio from what actually appears in a small sample, which is where many students lose the thread. Eight inheritance models add extra tasks, and the unit ends with a project. Because each lesson stands on its own, you can teach all eight or pick the ones that fill a gap in your own sequence. The Earth and Space unit covers solar-system scale, gravity and orbits, rotation and revolution, seasons, moon phases and eclipses, then closes with a lesson on how models are tested against evidence. Six model labs give students something to build and observe, and four moon-phase task pairs ask for a justification and then a revision. Both science units come with answers, teaching notes and keys in the teacher guide, which helps when the lesson is covered by someone outside your department.
PSHE and RSHE-adjacent work
Two units for form time and PSHE
The Conflict Resolution and Restorative Circles unit teaches how conflicts arise, how to lower tension, how to listen and how a restorative circle is prepared, agreed and followed up. Four facilitator cases (Materials dispute, Targeted threat, Unfinished repair and Rumor) each have a separate key. It is classroom teaching material. It is not mediation or counselling and does not replace your school's safeguarding, behaviour or anti-bullying procedures. The Misinformation and Deepfakes unit teaches checking strategies rather than the features of any one app: separating claims from evidence, lateral reading, tracing original context, spotting synthetic media and correcting false information without shaming anyone. Six verification files give students cases to work through. Both units sit closest to the kind of content found in PSHE, citizenship-style or digital-literacy programmes; we make no claim that they match any statutory guidance.
Adapting US units
Using American material in a UK classroom
Treat these units as a base text. The structure is the useful part: an explanation page, a practice page with worked examples and a case card that asks students to give reasons. You will want to change spellings, a few examples and any US-specific references. The DOCX editions make that quick. Where a unit names a US grade, read it as a guide to difficulty rather than a year group. Pull what you need. A single lesson works as a cover lesson, a revision session or an enrichment task, and the learning check can be set on its own. For the science side of your planning, our page on the KS3 science scheme of work shows where short modules like these tend to fit in a year.
Planning
How to bring a unit into your scheme of work
- Read the contents listCheck the eight lesson titles against what you already teach and note gaps and overlaps.
- Check US referencesMark any American terms, institutions or spellings that need changing for your class.
- Choose whole unit or single lessonsEach lesson has its own three pages, so you can take a few and leave the rest.
- Edit the DOCXAdjust wording and examples in the editable files, then print from your edited copy.
- Use the teacher guideKeep answers, keys and feedback notes beside you when marking or briefing cover staff.
Every resource is built around the curriculum you teach – and if something doesn't fit your standards, the TeachLessons Guarantee applies: we adapt it for you.
Questions teachers ask
Frequently asked questions
Are these units written for the English national curriculum?
No. They were written for US middle school classrooms. Grades 6–8 sit roughly alongside Years 7–9, but you should check each unit against your own scheme of work.
Can I teach just a few lessons?
Yes. Each lesson has its own explanation page, practice page and case card, so single lessons work for cover, revision or enrichment.
Can I change the wording and spelling?
Yes. Every unit includes editable DOCX text editions of the classroom material and the teacher guide, so you can adjust spellings, examples and references before printing.
Is the restorative circles unit a counselling resource?
No. It is classroom teaching material. It is not mediation or counselling and does not replace school counsellors or school procedures for violence, bullying or threats.
Is the Holocaust unit suitable for Year 9?
It is labelled Grade 8 and many teachers use that level with Year 9. The wording is factual and age-appropriate with no graphic images. Read it first and decide for your own class.
What do I get with each unit?
A classroom PDF, a separate teacher guide with answers, a 17-slide presentation and editable DOCX files, all as a digital download.
Start with one unit and adapt it
Five printable units with teacher guides, answers and editable files for Years 7–9.
See the Holocaust unit →