History
Intent
At Twineham, the teaching of history inspires curiosity about the past and how it has shaped the world in which we live in today. We deliver carefully chosen content, details and breadth to ensure pupils acquire a coherent knowledge and understanding of the past both in Britain and the wider ancient civilizations. As Historians our children will be given the chance to study the story of the past and learn about human achievement and experience. Our learning is centred around a key question that will encourage children to think and act like historians by learning how the past is studied. As with all subjects, each unit of study has specific ‘sticky knowledge’ (the things we want the children to know or skills to be able to apply long term). These are guided by the ‘Golden Threads’ of chronology (understanding key dates within British and ancient history), similarities and differences (noting trends, connections and contrast between periods) and historical figures (identifying those who shaped society today). We want children at Twineham to enjoy and love learning about history by gaining knowledge and skills, not just through experiences in the classroom, but from visits and visitors.
Implementation
We implement a curriculum that is progressive throughout the school starting with our youngest children. In the Early Years, children embark on the first steps to becoming a historian through a broad selection of stories, nonfiction texts, rhymes, and poems that foster their understanding of how our diverse world has changed over time. In Reception the children also begin to develop a sense of past and present in their immediate community by exploring the passing of time in their own lives and learning about significant events in the past, e.g. Remembrance. Our children leave the Early Years Foundation Stage ready for the next stage of their history journey - curious, questioning, and enthusiastic.
In Key Stage 1 and 2 our curriculum is carefully planned in termly ‘topics’ delivered over a two year cycle. Children explore a variety of different time periods and topics ranging from the Stone Age up to World War II as well as more recent history. Our children are provided with the opportunity to build on prior knowledge and develop an understanding of key historical concepts. Our history curriculum encourages children to take an inquisitive look at the world around them and consider what made the world the way it is today. To give our children every chance to think as historians, we will develop their skills of enquiry by teaching how to ask perceptive questions, interpret the past, ask and answer questions and critically review and analyse sources of evidence. In Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 learning will start by revisiting prior knowledge. This will be scaffolded to support pupils to recall previous learning and make connections between periods of time. Each unit of history commences with an overriding enquiry question to focus pupils and foster curiosity. Units are compiled into a series of lessons planned for progression and depth. Our locality is rich with history so when possible, children can explore significant figures and locations in the local area. This allows them to achieve a sense of relevance and belonging through local history.
Impact
The children at Twineham will enjoy History lessons and have an enhanced curiosity to want to find out more. Children will be able to make links to prior knowledge and know how events from the past have shaped the world we live in today.
We measure the impact of our curriculum through:
● Pupil voice to provide evidence that pupils can talk with confidence and enthusiasm about what they have learnt in history using subject specific vocabulary. Pupil voice also demonstrates that many pupils enjoy history and can recall their learning over time.
● Book scrutinies to demonstrate that history is taught in a way that meets the needs of all our children. Book scrutinies also show that history is taught at an age-appropriate level across each year group with opportunities for pupils working at greater depth. Work is of good quality and demonstrates pupils are acquiring knowledge, skills, and vocabulary in an appropriate sequence.
● End of unit quizzes and formative assessment within and between lessons ensure teachers have a clear understanding of their children’s progress and next steps.
As a result, children will leave Twineham equipt with the disciplinary and substantive knowledge needed to continue their journey as inquisitive, critical and knowledgeable historians.