Five Elms Primary School

Intent

At Five Elms, the National Curriculum guides us for History (2014). We aim to ensure that all pupils gain an understanding of British History and that of the wider world. The curriculum provides children with the skills, knowledge and understanding of how to become young historians. In Key Stage 1, children learn about changes in living memory and beyond living memory. They also learn about significant people and events in history. In Key Stage 2, children learn about Britain’s past from the Stone Age in Year 3, up to the Vikings and Anglo-Saxons in Year 6. Each year progresses in time periods, laying the foundation for the next year. This offers children the opportunity to reflect on their previous learning, as they move through the year groups, building a rich picture, and deep understanding, of British history. In the Years 3 to 6, children also learn about the history of the wider world, studying the Egyptian, Greek, Sumerian and Maya empires.

Implementation

We teach children what history is and the importance of asking historically valid questions. Each year they learn new vocabulary that is relevant to history, as set out in our medium term plans. Pupils are encouraged to have an open mind and to be respectful of evidence. Children are taught to explain, rather than just describe or learn facts. They learn about historical concepts such as change, cause and consequence, similarity and difference, and significance. Also, pupils learn to create their own structured accounts, including narratives and analyses. Children get the opportunity to see how evidence is used to make historical claims, and to discern how and why contrasting arguments and interpretations of the past, have been constructed.

Impact

As pupil’s historical understanding and skills deepen, they are encouraged to place their growing knowledge into different context, understanding connections between local, regional, national and international history; between cultural, economic, military, political, religious and social history; and between short and long term timescales. There are also strong cross-curricular links in history with Five Elms Primary School literacy, mathematics and citizenship. Pupils have the opportunity to go on school trips that have a historical emphasis, for example, The London Roman Amphitheatre and the British Museum. First hand experience of historical sites and artifacts are used to stimulate historical enquiry, to encourage questioning and to become fully aware of the importance of historical evidence.