• Target Keystage(s): Key Stage 3,
• Curriculum Subject(s): Citizenship, History,
• Who Do We Think We Are Theme(s): Britishness, national identity/values & 2012 Games, History/Settlement,

Above: Britannia standing in front of the Union Jack (1905). Image taken from A souvenir of Trafalgar, 1805-1905. Reproduced with the permission of the British Library. © British Library Board. All Rights Reserved. Shelfmark/Page: 9525.ff.12.

This Key Stage 3 unit of study about the history of the Union flag was written by Andrew Wrenn, Advisory History Teacher (Historical Association). The unit comprises seven lessons which provide opportunities for young people to investigate the historical origins of the present Union flag, analyse depictions of the flag since 1897 and also discuss whether the current flag should be re-designed for the 21st century.

The key learning objectives for young people are:

• To appreciate the wide variety of uses to which the Union flag is put today and to identify some different forms of use.
• To understand the historical origins of the present Union flag.
• To draw inferences about the nature of British national values in 1897, 1940 and 2002 from the analysis of contemporary depictions of the Union flag.
• To assess how what the Union flag has stood for has changed between 1897 and 2002.
• To consider whether the Union flag needs to be replaced with a new national flag and if so, what design?

Some of the key questions covered over the course of the seven lessons are as follows:

• How do British people use the Union flag today?
• Why was the Union Flag created?
• What did the Union flag stand for in 1897, 1940 and 2002?
• How did what the Union flag stood for change between 1897 and 2002?
• Do we need a new national flag?

To download the module overview and lesson plans please select the links to the attachments shown below:

• Key Stage 3 Module Overview - Unity and Union: What dos the Union flag represent?
• Lesson Plans - Unity and Union: What dos the Union flag represent?

Permission to feature 9 historic images of the Union flag alongside the suggested learning activities in this module has been granted by the copyright holders - the British Library, Press and Journal, Aberdeen and DC Thomson & Co. Ltd. A selection of these images can be viewed on this page and further items will be uploaded to the Who Do We Think We Are? website shortly.

To read the Historical Association's 'think piece' about Who Do We Think We Are? please select the link to the news item, The Importance of History and Citizenship.