Intent
At the Grange we deliver the History National Curriculum by encouraging pupils to develop an appreciation and understanding of the past, evaluating a range of primary and secondary sources. Our young historians will also be able to explain clearly how these sources give us an insight about how people around the world used to live and how these interpretations may differ. Pupils will be taught to make links between these areas of learning, with the aim of developing engaged, motivated, and curious learners that can reflect on the past and make meaningful links to the present day.
Our History curriculum has been designed to cover all the key skills, knowledge and understanding as set out in the National Curriculum. The National Curriculum states that ‘a high-quality history education will help pupils gain a coherent knowledge and understanding of Britain’s past and that of the wider world. It should inspire pupils’ curiosity to know more about the past.’
To ensure that pupils develop a secure knowledge that they can build on, our History curriculum is organised into a progression model that outlines the key skills, knowledge, and vocabulary to be taught in a sequentially coherent way:
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Chronological Understanding
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Knowledge & Understanding of Events, People and Changes in the Past
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Historical Interpretations
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Historical Enquiry
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Organisation and Communication
The key skills are mapped out to ensure that pupils build on secure prior knowledge from the previous year.
When covering each of these strands, the content is carefully organised by each year group
through a long-term plan.Content knowledge, vocabulary and skills will then be planned for at a greater level of detail in the medium-term plan. History is delivered through subject specific teaching organised into blocks under a termly theme. Meaningful links with other subjects are made to strengthen connections and understanding for pupils for example, key science inventions, artistic developments in art history, the history of the Olympics in PE or our local history and development in our Citizenship topic. The History units taught have been developed to help children appreciate their own identity and the challenges in their time. It will help them understand the process of change over time and significant developments.
Implementation
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. Consistent learning walls and timelines in every classroom provide constant scaffolding for children. Subject specific vocabulary is displayed on the learning wall along with key facts and questions, and model exemplars of the work being taught. In the Spring term, we have a shared focus on Dynasties as a school, which further allows a common link across the key stages to share, collaborate and compare our historical findings.
At The Grange, History teaching focuses on enabling pupils to think as historians. An emphasis is placed on examining primary and secondary sources including historical artefacts, pictures and texts. Where appropriate, pupils are given the opportunity to visit sites of historical significance or interest. We recognise and value the importance of stories in history teaching and as an important way of stimulating curiosity about the past. We focus on helping pupils understand that historical events can be interpreted in different ways and that they are encouraged to ask critical questions when looking at the origins of sources. At The Grange, children in EYFS use their own experiences, and the experience of our community, to learn early historical skills. We talk about the past and present in group sessions and learn that things have not always been as they are today. A key way we explore this idea is looking at our own lives. We bring in baby photos and discuss the changes in our bodies, before thinking about changes in the world around us.
History assessment is ongoing throughout the relevant cross-curricular themes to inform teachers with their planning lesson activities and differentiation.
Our weekly Assemblies are based around key dates recognised and celebrated in the UK and around the wider world. The thought provoking and interactive assemblies which are relevant to the lives of our children, readily support the teaching and learning of History at The Grange. Children are encouraged to think about the past developing characteristics such as curiosity, thoughtfulness, empathy, reflectiveness, and resourcefulness.
Impact
At The Grange, children can record their learning in a variety of ways, which is recorded within their History books. Evidence of the learning is dependent on the lesson outcome; year group and the skills and knowledge being developed. This can be in the form of: extended writing, photographs of practical activities and historical timelines. Core knowledge of each unit is supported by our whole school history timeline, which details the key learning points, vocabulary and key questions. Our teachers rely on a range of assessment tools to provide data on the knowledge and skills pupils have, their progress and their development points. This includes: assessment for learning, enquiry tasks, standards of learning in books, green pen questions and discussion with children. Marking is used to monitor progress and impact. Throughout the course of the lesson the class teacher will move around the class, offering support/challenge.
Pupil voice shows that pupils are confident and able to talk about what they have learnt in history using subject specific vocabulary. Pupil voice also demonstrates that pupils enjoy history and can recall their learning over time. Pupil’s work demonstrates that history is taught at an age-appropriate standard across each year group with opportunities planned in for pupils working at greater depth. Work is of good quality and demonstrates pupils are acquiring knowledge, skills and vocabulary in an appropriate sequence.
Links
Horrible Histories - CBBC - BBC
