History Curriculum Statement
History Curriculum Statement
Intent
Our intention at St. Anne’s is to encourage children to think critically, ask questions, think and act as historians and evaluate evidence, allowing them to develop a broad understanding of the complexity of people’s lives and historic events. History has had an impact on the lives and experiences of everyone today. We live in the society that has been shaped by significant events and people of the past.
We aim for children to investigate and interpret the past, understand chronology, be able to communicate historically, whilst encompassing the British Values throughout. Local history is taught throughout our history curriculum and we want our children to develop an appreciation for the people and events that are part of our local, national and international history.
Our History curriculum aims to inspire curiosity and fascination about the past in Britain and the wider world, whilst developing coherent chronological knowledge and an enquiring mind. Our teaching of chronology helps to develop a sense of identity and a cultural understanding, based on their historical heritage. This enables our children to learn to value their own and other people’s cultures in modern multi-cultural Britain. We aim to provide the children with a rich and diverse history curriculum, equipping them with a coherent knowledge and understanding of the past.
Implementation
Our History Curriculum has been designed to be both knowledge – rich and coherently sequenced. It has been planned in such a way as to ensure full National Curriculum coverage, whilst ensuring that key concepts are addressed and developed throughout the school.
Key knowledge and skills for each unit are identified and consideration has been given to ensure progression across the topics throughout each year group across the school. This begins with EYFS as children learn about the past and present, for example, by talking about the lives of the people around them and their roles in society; knowing some similarities and differences between things in the past and now, drawing on their experiences and what has been read in class; understanding the past through settings, characters and events encountered in books and storytelling.
In Key Stage 1, pupils develop their knowledge and understanding of what History is. They encounter the term significance and develop their understanding of this term through the study of significant individuals and significant events, both locally and globally. They begin to identify similarities and differences between different time period and show an understanding of how events studies fit into the chronological framework.
In Key Stage 2, children build on prior knowledge and continue to develop a chronologically secure knowledge of British, local and world history. Children learn to ask historically valid questions, identify contrasts and trends over time, and make connections. Children also learn how our knowledge of the past is constructed through a range of sources.
A series of stimulating lessons are planned, with clear knowledge and skills-based learning objectives and subject-specific vocabulary. Teachers assess learning in history against knowledge and skills-based learning objectives within unit overviews. Enrichment opportunities, such as inspirational visits, educational visits and events, provide our children with rich experiences and enhance teaching, learning and knowledge.
History is timetabled for 1 hour per week at KS1 and KS2.
All learning will start by revisiting prior knowledge. This will be scaffolded to support children to recall previous learning and make connections. Staff will model explicitly the subject-specific vocabulary, knowledge and skills relevant to the learning to allow them to integrate new knowledge into larger concepts.
Scaffolding supports children to retain new facts and vocabulary in their long-term memory.
Our historians will be given a variety of enrichment and experiences both in and out of the classroom where appropriate to create memorable learning opportunities and to further support and develop their understanding.
Our History curriculum promotes children’s Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural development, ensuring that they are reflective and responsible citizens. Fundamental British Values are actively promoted in History lessons in order to prepare the children for life in Modern Britain.
All teachers follow a carefully sequenced long-term plan and are using the schemes of work that we subscribe to: KeyStage History and the Historical Association. This ensures that children learn history in a carefully sequenced way and that progress is made from year to year.
The curriculum has been planned using extensive research into the rationale behind teaching specific units in certain year groups, taking advice from History experts, Keystage History and the Historical Association.
Impact
Children at St Anne’s will be able to know more and remember more about history. They will be able to understand historical concepts and vocabulary and have an understanding of the events and people that have shaped the world that we live in today. They will develop skills such as problem solving, asking and answering questions, testing and evaluating hypotheses as well as developing a sense of intrigue. The children will be well equipped to use these skills across other areas of learning that will allow them to progress in their learning as they move away from primary education.
Through the breadth and depth that our curriculum offers, our children become passionate historians, who are inspired by the subject, are curious to find out more about the past and have a love of history that will remain with them for the rest of their lives