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History

At Hemington Primary School we aim to deliver a history curriculum that is accessible to all and that will maximise the outcomes for every child so that they know more, remember more, and understand more. Our teaching of history will help pupils gain a secure knowledge and understanding of Britain’s past and that of the wider world.

We aim to enable children to ask perceptive questions, think critically, weigh evidence, sift arguments, and develop perspective and judgement. It is important for children to develop a sense of identity through learning about the past and we want them to know how history has shaped their own lives.

At Hemington Primary, our aim is that our pupils:

• Become Historians, are able to interrogate a variety of information sources and artefacts. They actively discover how History informs the past, present, and future.
• Understand the history of Britain in a coherent and chronological manner, from the earliest history to the present day. They should understand how Britain has been shaped by significant individuals and technologies and that Britain’s development has shaped and been shaped by the wider world.
• Know and understand key historical aspects of the wider world.
• Understand and use subject specific, historical vocabulary and terminology.
• Are able to work in an historical manner by interrogating sources and evaluating past events with a questioning and critical approach.

Implementation

Teachers use a variety of teaching and learning styles in their history lessons to develop pupils’ knowledge, skills and understanding in history.

Planning is organised using topic-based learning, which is linked in with our curriculum Framework, giving pupils the chance to immerse themselves in the subject. It also allows teachers to encourage joined up thinking as pupils see links in the wider curriculum. Planning cycles ensure good coverage of historical areas year on year, allowing pupils to build on what they have already learned throughout their time at school.

Chronological knowledge is maintained and reinforced through the use of timelines, children understand that human development occurred within time periods as well as across them. Children are encouraged to ask their own questions and use a wide range of evidence to come to conclusions about the past. History subject specific vocabulary is taught, and children are expected to use this when talking and writing about history. Children are taught about primary and secondary sources and taught to think critically about these sources of historical knowledge.  The children are taught British values alongside some elements of history to enable children to place these values in the context from which they have evolved.

EYFS

The Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum supports children’s understanding of history through the planning and teaching of ‘Understanding the World’. This aspect is about how children find out about past and present events in their own lives, their families and other people they know. Children are encouraged to develop a sense of change over time and are given opportunities to differentiate between past and present by observing routines throughout the day, growing plants, observing the passing of seasons and time and looking at photographs of their life and of others. Practitioners encourage investigative behaviour and raise questions such as, ‘What do you think?’, ‘Tell me more about?’, ‘What will happen if..?’, ‘What else could we try?’, ‘What could it be used for?’ and ‘How might it work?’ Use of language relating to time is used in daily routines and conversations with children for example, ‘yesterday’, ‘old’, ‘past’, ‘now’ and ‘then’

Impact

Our aim is:

• Our pupils are enthusiastic, active learners, who enjoy learning about history. They confidently ask questions and are driven to find answers. They realise that they can build on previous learning to deepen their understanding of the subject.
• Our pupils understand that History does not only dwell in the past but teaches us important lessons for the future.
• Our pupils develop the skill set vital to the role of Historian. They analyse different primary and secondary sources of information, sequence events chronologically and make connections between the past and present.