Our History Curriculum rationale aims to inspire pupils’ fascination and enquiry about the history of the world in which we live, the notable events and people that have had significant impact on the present day and the lessons that can be learnt in developing their own sense of character and values. Pupils develop a wide-ranging and deep knowledge of the past as well as places, people and significant events through time. While learning about global and British history, pupils develop their ability to ask perceptive questions, think critically, weigh evidence from a variety of sources while evaluating their reliability, and cultivate perspective and judgement.

The curriculum has been developed to focus and build on three core strands; chronology, British history and ancient global civilizations, with a careful and consistent progression of skills and knowledge that allows the pupil to make the necessary connections to piece their learning together throughout their learning journey. As children progress through the History Curriculum, explicit links and connections are made to support pupils to continually build upon the knowledge and skills they have accumulated in previous year groups and use their previous learning to inform their exploration of the current topic.

In Reception, children concentrate on the world around them including recent history. This gives them a firm foundation on which to understand the concept of time and how this has influenced the present day. Children explore the concept of Space and the universe outside of Earth and learn about key historical events that have taken place that have led to our current understanding of space. Children also have the opportunity to discuss events in recent memory where they will use recent history to facilitate discussion about the world around them and their own identity. This understanding of the world around them will support their learning in Year One where they will explore the past and its influence, building on what they already know.

The sequence of learning begins by developing pupils’ understanding of chronology in Key Stage One, learning about things within living memory through topics such as Toys in Time and Seaside, Now and Then. Towards the end of Year One and through Year Two, learning progresses to explore significant events and people beyond living memory in topics such as Transport and Travel and The Great Fire of London. Towards the end of Key Stage One,

pupils further develop their chronological awareness by learning about significant individuals and defining events in Kings and Queens, and The Great Fire of London.

As they enter Key Stage Two, pupils continue to expand their historical knowledge and skills through two main strands, investigating Britain’s past and a series of studies from civilizations around the world. They build upon their understanding of chronology to provide context to their learning and place significant periods and developments in time. British history is taught chronologically beginning with Settlers of the Stone Age, the Bronze and Iron Ages then exploring the significance and impact of invaders such as The Romans and how they shaped Britain at the time and throughout history. In Year 5, pupils learn about Anglo Saxons and The Vikings. Chronological knowledge continues to be developed by investigating history beyond 1066 in Year 5 where they learn about The Industrial Revolution and Baghdad and the Middle East. Pupils begin their final year of historical study by learning about the Ancient Egyptians, where they will be able to compare the civilizations they have learnt about throughout their primary journey while learning about such an unique and impactful civilization that has many differences to those previously studied. Later in Year 6, pupils move onto debating whether brains or brawn were ultimately responsible for the allies’ victory in both World Wars as they investigate ‘Conflict and Resolution’. Their final area of study is Making Our Mark, a topic that allows pupils to reference all areas of study where they can make appropriate links when discussing social justice and how that functions as a modern society compared to periods of time and varying societies through history. Mature concepts such as discrimination, wealth and privilege are given the necessary time for discussion and focus, preparing pupils for the important and sometimes difficult discussions they will encounter as they get older. As they reach the end of their primary studies, pupils are provided opportunities to draw together their knowledge and skills from across their primary sequence of learning, making direct reference to prior learning and applying their knowledge to form opinions.