History

Subject Leader: Mr Kerrigan

We live in a place rich in the history of our nation.  From the Neolithic stone circles, through Roman occupation, the power of the Tudors and development of ancient and modern agricultural practices, our location offers a wealth of hands-on learning experiences. We have designed a curriculum which uses these rich resources fully.  We want children to have an understanding of how the past has shaped the place in which they now live, and how they continue to shape it as 21st century residents.

 Of course only certain aspects of history can be taught by relating to our locality, and we also expose children to events in the past both her in the UK and beyond to inspire in them the sense of the world as a single human population, and how events in the past have shaped out lives in the present. We want to give children a secure knowledge of the chronology of history from the first peoples to now, whilst also enabling them to have deeper learning experiences of some of the more significant turning points in national and global world history. To enable this in part, we have fostered links with culturally diverse schools in this country, and abroad, so that children can experience different perceptions on the world first hand.  We aim to equip our children with a clear understanding of what happened when, and how that journey through history can teach us about the modern world.

We are lucky to have Brough Castle on our doorstep so we make the most of this amazing historical feature.

Trips to local museums deepen and enrich our curriculum.

Teaching and Learning

History is taught through a carefully planned series of three half termly topics (paired with a complementary geography topic) to ensure complete national curriculum coverage. Our approach to the planning, assessment and teaching of the subject throughout the school is organised alongside our class groupings.  To complement the EYFS curriculum, learning is matched to children’s own understanding of their personal history and life before they were born, including a number of easily recognisable national and international events and individuals, linked to teaching in other subject areas. Children in Twiglets class are taught a clear chronology of British history from the Stone Age to the mid-20th century, covering many aspects of the national curriculum. Pupils in Oaks and Birch class will also be taught chronologically, however with more of a depth study approach looking at specific civilisations, cultures and major global events. 

As well as bespoke lessons, cross curricular opportunities arise regularly and we see evidence of this in books, displays and photographs.  Looking at and understanding timelines has clear links to Mathematics.  Learning about the rise and fall of empires and civilisations will require geographical knowledge. The links between religion and historical events will be explored in RE. Art and DT work is inspired by our historical studies.  We invite local expertise into school e.g. Imran the Imam, and draw upon local resource banks e.g. historical plays, to further cement the importance of the subject. We believe in the importance of children understanding how we know what the past was like through looking at a range of primary and secondary historical sources appropriate to their learning.

Sequenced Learning

By the end of each key stage, pupils are expected to know, apply and understand the matters, skills and processes specified in the relevant programme of study. 

Children in Acorns class will be taught about changes in living memory, beyond their own experiences, about significant national and global events and individuals, and about people of historical significance from their local area. We have chosen the following topics to achieve this:

We employ continuous provision in Acorns class to give children the opportunity to explore their historical learning through imaginative play, through creating inspiring learning environments in which they explore the past. Children’s own experiences are acknowledged as a crucial part of their EYFS learning, so we will allow ourselves to be child led and follow up any family visits in class, valuing first hand observations.  We use the whole school ‘Fact Of The Day’ system to allow children to share their experiences with each other. Their Forest School experiences allow children to explore pre-technological techniques for setting fires and cooking as used by our ancestors. We give children the opportunity to write freely about both their real and imagined experiences as a support for both their history learning and their acquisition of essential Writing skills.

Children in Twiglets class will be taught a clear chronological British historical sequence over a 2-year cycle (as dictated by our mixed year class structure) from prehistoric times to the mid-20th century. We have chosen the following topics to achieve this:

We believe that children need a clear understanding of the chronological progress of historical events, and we employ their time in Twiglets class to develop a secure understanding of what happened when.

Children in Oaks class will continue to be taught in a clear chronological sequence. However we have chosen to use these years as an opportunity for pupils to learn about specific turning points in history in greater detail and to give them a wider cultural perspective of events in history beyond the UK, Europe and the Western World. We have chosen the following topics to achieve this:

We believe that by looking at specific events and cultures in greater detail that children can apply their knowledge British history in a more accurate context, and that they can understand how events in the past occurred and recognise these echoes in current events of the 21st century.

Endpoints

Through the use of the intent, implementation and impact approach below, we have designed an action plan that aims to achieve specific endpoints.  

By the end of Acorns class our children will have an understanding of a world which existed before they were alive. They will know some of the events and people which have shaped our past. Children’s learning in Twiglets will enable them to incorporate this learning into a larger knowledge of the chronological basis of historical learning as they identify a number of key events in British history and know the order in which they occurred. By the end of Oaks class, children will have a deep knowledge of some of the civilisations which shaped early settled human development, and be able to add these to their expanding knowledge of chronology. In oaks class, children will also be introduced to the concept of historical evidence, and begin to understand how our understanding of the past is shaped by what information we find out can about it, and that some evidence of the past has been lost. All this will prepare children for further study of History at secondary school.

Subject Action Plan

Curriculum Map