Middle Ages Lesson Plan Grade 7: Feudalism and the Magna Carta

ByTeaching Resources Desk Grade 7
Feudal pyramid of power and society

This free Middle Ages lesson plan introduces Grade 7 students to daily life, social structure, and political power during the medieval period. Students examine feudalism, compare social classes, and investigate how conflicts between rulers and nobles led to the Magna Carta and lasting ideas about rights and responsibility.

Grade Band: Middle School (6–8)
Subject Area: Social Studies

Overview

Students explore the Middle Ages by examining how people lived within a rigid social system and how power was controlled. Through guided sources, discussion, and a structured role-play council meeting, students connect everyday medieval experiences to larger political changes. The lesson builds toward understanding why limits on a king’s authority emerged and how those ideas influenced later democratic systems.

Subject Connections

Social studies is central as students analyze historical evidence, feudal relationships, and early legal rights. English Language Arts supports the lesson through reading sources, structured note taking, and speech writing. Art appears when students design visual aids for presentations, while technology may be used to organize notes or draft statements.

Learning Goals

  • Explain how feudalism organized medieval society
  • Describe daily life for different social classes
  • Identify causes and outcomes related to the Magna Carta
  • Compare authority and responsibility within a government system
  • Present a historical viewpoint using evidence

Materials

  • Short medieval readings or textbook excerpts
  • Chart paper or whiteboard
  • Student notebooks
  • Printed role cards (king, noble, knight, merchant, peasant, clergy)
  • Simple costume pieces or name tags (optional)
  • Paper for written statements
  • Colored pencils or markers

Preparation

  • Prepare short reading passages describing feudalism and medieval daily life
  • Create role cards describing social positions
  • Prepare a simple timeline template for students
  • Arrange desks into discussion groups

Teaching Procedure

Each session fits a standard class period of 45–50 minutes.

Session 1 – Understanding Power and Social Order

  1. Activity: Power brainstorm. The teacher writes the word “power” on the board and asks students to list examples of authority in everyday life. Using notebooks and pencils, students record examples and explain who makes rules and why. Students then categorize their examples into helpful and harmful uses of authority and share responses with the class.
  2. The teacher introduces feudalism using a simple diagram showing king, nobles, knights, and peasants. Students copy the diagram into notebooks and label responsibilities and protections for each level.
  3. The teacher distributes a short reading on medieval daily life. Students underline one responsibility and one hardship faced by each social class and write two summary sentences.

Session 2 – Daily Life in the Middle Ages

  1. The teacher reviews the feudal chart and models note-taking from a short description of medieval homes and health. Students add three bullet notes and one question to their notebooks.
  2. Activity: Social class comparison. The teacher assigns each group a medieval social class and provides paper and markers. Students create a one-page profile showing clothing, work, food, and living conditions. Groups present their profile and explain the class’s advantages and disadvantages.
  3. The teacher leads a discussion comparing medieval life to modern life. Students write a short paragraph describing which class they would choose to belong to and why.

Session 3 – Conflict and the Magna Carta

  1. The teacher presents a short narrative about disputes between King John and the nobles. Students complete a timeline by placing four major events in order.
  2. The teacher explains the Magna Carta and its purpose. Students identify two rights it protected and write them in their notebooks.
  3. Students discuss how limits on authority affect fairness in a society and record one modern example of a protected right.

Session 4 – Medieval Town Council Role-Play

  1. Activity: Town council preparation. The teacher assigns each student a role card and explains the problem: poor conditions in a medieval town. Using paper and pencil, students write a formal statement describing their character’s complaints and requests to the king. Each statement must include one problem and one proposed solution.
  2. Students rehearse their statements in pairs while the teacher circulates and gives feedback on clarity and evidence.
  3. The class holds a council meeting. Selected students present their speeches, and classmates record which issues appear most often.

Assessment

  • Notebook notes and timeline accuracy
  • Social class profile presentation
  • Written council statement
  • Participation in discussion and role-play

Differentiation

  • Provide sentence starters for students who need writing support
  • Allow oral responses instead of written paragraphs when necessary
  • Offer extension research topics for advanced students
  • Pair strong readers with developing readers during group work

Grade Adaptation

Grade 7 students analyze causes and consequences of feudal relationships and prepare an evidence-based speech. For Grade 6 students, shorten readings and provide partially completed diagrams and guided writing frames. For Grade 8 students, require use of two historical sources and a written paragraph explaining how Magna Carta ideas connect to later democratic governments.

Extension Ideas

  • Create a medieval marketplace simulation using classroom trade tokens
  • Research castles or knights and design an illustrated informational poster
  • Compare the Magna Carta to a modern constitution or bill of rights

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