A wood with a river running through it would be a good place for early settlers as it provides both building materials and water.

Settlements 1

In KS2 geography one topic looked at is settlements - cities, towns, villages and hamlets. This is quite an expansive subject so this is the first of two quizzes devoted to it. This first quiz looks in particular at the early development of settlements and the needs of the early settlers.

Settlements are the places people live such as villages and towns. A settlement can range in size from a small number of dwellings grouped together to the largest of cities with surrounding urbanised areas. But what about their development? How did they come to be? Why did the early settlers choose to live there? Why are towns and villages where they are and how did they get their names?

See how much you know about the early development of the places we live. Can you answer all ten questions correctly?

If you were an early settler, which site would you choose to access good building materials?

On top of a hill, next to a stream

In the middle of a wood with a river running through

In an open field next to a lake

On a beach with a stream running close by

Early homes were made of wood and the best source of wood is a forest

Which would make good farming land?

Hilly

Flat

Lots of trees

Boggy

Trees would get in the way of crops and hills are difficult to plough

Which is NOT a suitable place to find drinking water?

Near a river

Near a lake

Near the sea

Near a stream

Sea water contains too much salt to drink

Which of these building materials would not be available to early settlers?

Brick

Wood

Stone

Straw and mud

Bricks were a later invention

Which of these place name endings means ‘river crossing’?

-ley

-ford

-ton

-ham

Oxford, Stafford and Watford are three examples

What is one way to know when a settlement was first settled?

By its position

By its name

How large it is

How many churches it has

In England, places with Roman names are probably older than places with Anglo-Saxon names

If you were an early settler, which site would you choose that would give a good defence from enemies?

On top of a hill, next to a stream

In the middle of a wood with a river running through

In an open field next to a lake

On a beach with a stream running close by

From the top of a hill you can see anyone approaching from all sides

Why did settlements need to link together?

To trade

Could fight each other

To visit each other

Go to each other’s parties

Trade was essential. If one village had access to iron, for example, they might trade with another village which had access to sheep

What is a settlement?

A hut near a river

A castle on a hill

A place where people live

A house in a forest

Settlements are so called because they are places where people have settled

10.

Which was NOT a need of early settlers?

Water

Farming land

Wood or other building material

Supermarket

A supermarket is easier than growing your own food but there were no supermarkets around in the times of early settlers

Author: Amanda Swift

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