Mary Seacole Reading Comprehension

Year 1 HistoryFlorence Nightingale and Mary Seacole4 pages

About this worksheet

A reading comprehension for Year 1 history about Mary Seacole. The story follows her from a childhood in Jamaica, watching her mother heal with plants, roots and herbs, to her own trip to Crimea after the government in London said no. Pupils then answer nine questions in three sections: Finding Facts, Thinking Deeper and Your Thoughts. The questions move from tick-box retrieval to the meaning of weary and why the soldiers called her Mother Seacole. The answer key gives model answers for all nine. It follows the England National Curriculum history objective on significant individuals.

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Mary Seacole Reading Comprehension: Florence Nightingale and Mary Seacole - page 1
Mary Seacole Reading Comprehension: Florence Nightingale and Mary Seacole - page 2
Mary Seacole Reading Comprehension: Florence Nightingale and Mary Seacole - page 3
Mary Seacole Reading Comprehension: Florence Nightingale and Mary Seacole - page 4

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Curriculum objectives covered

Events beyond living memory

“Events beyond living memory that are significant nationally or globally [for example, the Great Fire of London, the first aeroplane flight or events commemorated through festivals or anniversaries]”

Partly met. The Crimean War is the event in the story, but the questions are about Mary herself rather than the war.

Significant individuals

“The lives of significant individuals in the past who have contributed to national and international achievements. Some should be used to compare aspects of life in different periods [for example, Elizabeth I and Queen Victoria, Christopher Columbus and Neil Armstrong, William Caxton and Tim Berners-Lee, Pieter Bruegel the Elder and LS Lowry, Rosa Parks and Emily Davison, Mary Seacole and/or Florence Nightingale and Edith Cavell]”

The whole sheet is about Mary Seacole. Questions 8 and 9 ask pupils to judge her bravery and say why she is remembered.

What's inside this worksheet

Mary Seacole: The Brave Nurse

A portrait of Mary Seacole in a bonnet and a yellow shawl opens the sheet.

The Story of Mary Seacole

Seven short paragraphs tell how Mary paid for her own ship ticket, built the British Hotel from wood and metal, and rode onto the battlefield with bandages and herbal medicines.

Section 1: Finding Facts (Retrieval)

Pupils tick where Mary was born, name what her mother healed people with and the place Mary built, then mark three sentences true or false.

Section 2: Thinking Deeper (Inference)

Pupils copy a word from the fourth paragraph that shows Mary did not give up, explain the name Mother Seacole and choose the meaning of weary.

Section 3: Your Thoughts (Evaluation)

Beside a picture of Mary on horseback, pupils decide if she was brave with one piece of evidence and say why we still remember her.

How teachers use it

Before the reading

Find Jamaica and Crimea on a globe first. Pupils then see how far Mary sailed on her own money.

Talk partners

Let pairs argue question 8 aloud before they write. The key accepts the battlefield or the trip to Crimea as evidence.

Florence Nightingale next

Keep the answers to questions 3 and 6. They give pupils facts about Mary to set beside Florence later in the topic.

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