Free Black Beauty educational resources

Explore the world of Black Beauty and the life of Anna Sewell in these free, downloadable resources for students, created in collaboration with the University of East Anglia.

Step back in time

Through her acute observations and pioneering empathy, Anna Sewell’s landmark novel Black Beauty shone a light on the life, challenges and feelings of working horses in the 19th century.

As one of the largest horse welfare charities in the UK and the guardian of Anna Sewell House, Redwings is determined to continue Anna’s legacy to foster a new generation that respects and cares for animals.

In collaboration with the University of East Anglia, we are delighted to offer a series of free, educational resources with activities exploring what life was like for horses like Black Beauty, the impact disability had on Anna and her work, and other literary pieces inspired by her incredible book.

If you’re a teacher or home educator wishing to talk about animal welfare, literature or history, browse and download the resources below to support your lesson planning or at-home activities.

Norfolk

Discover more about where Anna was born and spent most of her life

Download resource (pptx 3.62 MB)

Literature

Be inspired by Anna’s ground-breaking book to become a writer yourself!

Download activities (pptx 3.22 MB)

Horses

Learn amazing facts about horses and their relationship with humans

Download resource (pptx 4.06 MB)

Anna Sewell andBlack Beauty

Explore Anna Sewell’s life and key facts about horses like Black Beauty

Download resource (pptx 3.75 MB)

Writing for Social Justice

Discover the impact disability had on Anna’s life and her empathy towards animals

Download resource (pptx 7.87 MB)

Other Horse Books

Enjoyed Black Beauty? Here’s some further titles about the lives of horses

Download guide (pptx 4.76 MB)

Black Beauty PowerPoint template

Use this editable template to create your own presentation for your school, club or group

Download template (pptx 2.64 MB)

All Black Beauty resources

Can’t decide which resource to download? Follow this link to download all our resources in one handy file

Download all resources (.zip 28.97 MB)

"Anna Sewell’s extraordinary book captured the world’s imagination when it was released in 1877. Black Beauty still has profound lessons to teach us in the 21st century - about empathy, kindness, and the power of one person’s imagination to change the world."

Professor Thomas Ruys Smith

University of East Anglia

Listening to her legacy

Our special edition of the Sounds of the Sanctuary podcast focused on Anna’s legacy for animal welfare and features an interview with Professor Thomas Ruys Smith from the UEA, as well as members of Redwings' own staff explaining their own passion for this wonderful author.

Anna Sewell and Black Beauty video title screen

Animation voiced by the incomparable Dame Joanna Lumley, and produced by Meantime Media in conjunction with the UEA and the Arts and Humanities Council.

View image gallery

Introducing a special new edition

Now, for the first time, an edition of Black Beauty has been produced that will directly impact horse welfare in other ways too.

For every special Redwings edition of Black Beauty sold, half of the proceeds will go directly towards the care of our horses and ponies.

The book has been produced by the UEA Publishing Project, with a foreword by Dame Jacqueline Wilson and an afterword from Professor Thomas Ruys Smith.

A terrace of old buildings with a small three-storey home in the middle with Tudor-like beams which was the former home of Anna Sewell.

Where the story began...

Help bring Anna’s story to life with a visit to the house where she was born!

In 2022, Redwings became the custodian of Anna Sewell House in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk – an historic building that dates back to the 16th or 17th century and was the birthplace of the beloved writer.

We welcome students to take a tour and discover more about our work and how we’re continuing Anna’s legacy today.