Based on diaries, letters and songs, can your class work out why a working class Yorkshire man ended up buried in Western Australia in 1891?

They will use all the enquiry skills needed to be a successful historian: hypothesizing, making inferences, refining their ideas in the light of new evidence before drawing a conclusion.

Obviously this Bill Sykes is the real deal and not a Dickensian fantasy.

The end of this fascinating short enquiry will see your class compare their interpretation to that offered by a 21st century folk song written by the band Ferocious Dog.

Download lesson