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1. Ask the children what they know
about the Vikings before reading the story.
2. Review definitions.
3. Have children read the story. You can have
then read this out loud or to themselves.
4. Ask children what they have learned after they have read story.
5. Take a minute to point out where the Arctic Circle is and the
climate that these people lived in. Help them to understand how
close they are to the North Pole and how they are in the same line
as Alaska. This will help them understand the climate conditions.
Help them to understand that the land had tall mountains and little
valleys at their base by the water.
6. Go over time line with the children this
will help them to see the extensive travel that was done by the
Vikings. Write down the names of the countries on the board for
map project. Have the children take the map provided and start at
Norway and draw lines from here to countries listed in the story.
You may want them to call these out and list them on the board -
include the names in the time line.
7. Pass out questions for children to answer.
8. When children get through with questions have them do the flag
art project.
We have also provided a Christian
perspective on the Vikings.
Arctic Circle
- is an imaginary line around the earth (at about 63 33 north latitude)
that
defines the boundary of the Arctic. It marks the start of the area
where for at least on day
of the year the sun does not completely set June21 or Rise Dec22
Eric "The Red" - Discovered and settled
Greenland. Although covered by ice he called
it Greenland to encourage people to settle here
Fjords - Long narrow inlets of the sea between
high cliffs.
Norseman - A native or inhabitant of Norway
Raven - 1.) Large black birds similar to a crow
but larger. 2.) To consume greedily and devour.
Scandinavia - refers to the countries of Sweden
Denmark and Norway a region with similar cultures but political
independence.
Terrain - The physical features and characteristics
of a land area.
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The first European flag to
arrive in North America was the Viking banner of Scandinavia.
It was a fearsome looking flag with a black raven with out spread
wings on a field of
white.
Scandinavia was located close to the Arctic Circle; the winters
were very cold. The land
was also very mountainous with deep rivers, and fjords making land
travel very difficult.
The hostile terrain made it necessary to travel by water. The Vikings
used the river, fjord
and the seas around the coast as route ways much like we use our
road system today.
Vikings became skilled at shipbuilding and sea rowing. Their ships
were so much a part
of their lives that their very name "Viking" comes from
the Scandinavian word "seafarer".
Because of their harsh land growing crops to feed their growing
population was very
difficult. The danger of starvation forced them to strike out on
dangerous sea to find the
supplies and land needed to sustain life.
For 300 years from 8th to 11th century they left their homes in
Norway, Sweden and
Denmark. They raided villages from Europe to Baghdad and even reaching
North
America. These fearless warriors searched for land, slaves, gold
and silver. Their attacks
were swift, daring and violent making people tremble with fear at
their very name.
A Norseman by the name of Leif "Lucky" Ericson son of
Eric " the Red" ship went off
course on one of these trips and landed in a new strange land that
he called Vineland
"wineland". This discovery would make him the first European
to set foot in North
America around 1000 AD, over 500 years before Columbus. He was later
followed by his
brother Thorvald together they explored land located from Labrador
to as far south as
Virginia. However this land was far from their home and the one
settlement that was
started was soon abandoned.
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A.D. 700-800
Vikings developed warships and began raiding other countries.
793-5 Vikings attached northeast England towns
of Lindisfarne and Jarrow and Iona in Scotland
795 Vikings raid Dublin
799 Vikings attack southwestern France
835-860s Vikings attack England
840 Dublin became Viking base
845 Vikings burn Hamburg in Germany
860s Hamburg in German burned by the Vikings
867 The city of York in northern England was captured
by the Vikings.
885 Vikings attack Paris
886 Eastern England called the Danelaw was ruled
by the Vikings
911 Vikings capture Normandy
960 Denmark is converted to Christianity
972 Novgorod in Russia captured
985 Erik "the Red" leads settlement of
Greenland
986 Lief "Lucky" Ericson sights North
America
992 Settlement set up in Newfoundland, in North
America
11th century Norway and Sweden become Christian
countries
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1. What countries made up the
region of Scandinavia?
2. What two colors made up the Viking flag?
3. What does the word Viking Mean?
4. What is a fjord?
5. What was the major means of travel for the Vikings?
6. For 300 years they explored the Atlantic Ocean what Centuries
was this?
7. What forced the Vikings to strike out on these voyages across
the Ocean?
8. Who was the first European to discover North America?
9. What did they call North America?
10. How many years before Columbus discovered America did the Vikings
Arrive?
11. Why do you think the black Raven was chose for the symbol on
the
Viking flag?
12. The Scandinavian climate was cold, hard to travel on and starvation
was
always a real threat. Why do you think they stayed instead of moving
to a
better area further south?
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Needed: Print
out this image for your flag template. 12" dowel rod or
straw. Use the flag size that is best for stick or straw.
Clear tape.
Cut out the flag.
Place the paper on the table face down with ravens face down and
place the dowel rod on
the left side of the paper. The end of the paper over the rod about
_" and tape down.
When you have taped the fold from top to bottom make sure the rod
is at the top of the
paper and then place a small amount of tape at the bottom of the
paper and attach it to the rod to keep flag on.
Color
Viking ship provided.
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For home school and Christian
teachers.
The Vikings a Christian Perspective
The Vikings swept across the Western Europe pillaging towns churches
taking riches,
slaves and land. It appeared that they could not be stopped. The
first recorded raid, on the
famous Christian monastery of Lindisfarne in 793 this shocked the
Christian world. The
Anglo Saxon Chronicle historical recorded this by reporting"
the ravages of heathen men
miserably destroy God’s church on Lindisfarne with plunder
and slaughter."
King Edmund was king of East Anglia in England in 869 was also one
of their victims.
The Vikings captured him and when they refused to give up his belief
in Christ they tied
him up shot him full of arrows. When he still refused to renounce
his faith they cut off his
head.
The Vikings captured the Archbishop Alpege of Canterbury in 1011
when they raided the
English countryside. The Vikings were angry because English King
Ethelred hadn’t paid
their ransom fast enough. When the Archbishop refused to be ransomed
the drunken
Vikings killed him with a battle-axe.
The Vikings sailed up the great rivers of Europe and even overran
Paris. They would
spend the winters in the lands they attached and setting up bases
to attach other targets.
They would demand large payments for leaving an area. These fearsome
warriors seemed unstoppable. The very mention or their name sent
fear into a city.
So what happened to this violent society? It appears the in the
10th and 11th century that
missionaries from the same countries that were being terrorized
went into these heathen
countries preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. In 960 Denmark’s
King declared
Christianity as the religion of his country. Norway and Sweden had
also become
Christian countries by the end of the 11th century.
In the end it was the peace loving missionaries with their message
of Christ's love for all men that Conquered the Vikings.
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