KS2 Settlements | How Early Towns and Villages Developed

Geography Quiz - Settlements 1 (Questions)

Why did people choose certain places to build towns and villages? Explore how early settlements grew near good land, water, and routes for travel and trade.

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Fascinating Fact:

Settlements often grew near good farming land, where soil was deep and fertile so crops like wheat and barley could grow well.

In KS2 Geography, pupils learn how early settlements began and grew. Children explore why people chose certain sites, thinking about farming land, fresh water, shelter, safety, and ways to travel and trade.

Key Terms

Settlement: A place where people live and work, such as a village, town, or city.
Site: The exact place where a settlement is built, including its land, water, and shelter.
Land use: The way people use land in and around a settlement, for homes, farming, shops, roads, and other buildings.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

What is a settlement in KS2 geography?

A settlement is a place where people live, work, and enjoy leisure, for example a hamlet, village, town, or city, with houses, roads, and other buildings.

Why were early settlements often built near rivers?

Early settlements were often built near rivers because people needed fresh water for drinking, washing, farming, and travel, and rivers made it easier to trade with other places.

What factors affect where a settlement is located?

Settlements are affected by things like water supply, good soil, flat land, shelter, safety from floods or attacks, and nearby routes such as roads, rivers, or coasts.

Try These Related Quizzes

What is a settlement?

[ ]	A hut near a river
[ ]	A castle on a hill
[ ]	A place where people live
[ ]	A house in a forest

Which was NOT a need of early settlers?

[ ]	Water
[ ]	Farming land
[ ]	Wood or other building material
[ ]	Supermarket

Which is NOT a suitable place to find drinking water?

[ ]	Near a river
[ ]	Near a lake
[ ]	Near the sea
[ ]	Near a stream

Which would make good farming land?

[ ]	Hilly
[ ]	Flat
[ ]	Lots of trees
[ ]	Boggy

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

[ ]	Brick
[ ]	Wood
[ ]	Stone
[ ]	Straw and mud

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

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

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

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

[ ]	-ley
[ ]	-ford
[ ]	-ton
[ ]	-ham

10.

Why did settlements need to link together?

[ ]	To trade
[ ]	Could fight each other
[ ]	To visit each other
[ ]	Go to each other’s parties

Geography Quiz - Settlements 1 (Answers)

What is a settlement?

[ ]	A hut near a river
[ ]	A castle on a hill
[x]	A place where people live
[ ]	A house in a forest

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

Which was NOT a need of early settlers?

[ ]	Water
[ ]	Farming land
[ ]	Wood or other building material
[x]	Supermarket

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

Which is NOT a suitable place to find drinking water?

[ ]	Near a river
[ ]	Near a lake
[x]	Near the sea
[ ]	Near a stream

Sea water contains too much salt to drink

Which would make good farming land?

[ ]	Hilly
[x]	Flat
[ ]	Lots of trees
[ ]	Boggy

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

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

[x]	Brick
[ ]	Wood
[ ]	Stone
[ ]	Straw and mud

Bricks were a later invention

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

[x]	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

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
[x]	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

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

[ ]	By its position
[x]	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