MellisPrimary School

History Policy

Mellis Primary responds positively to the rapidly changing world in which we live. The aim of history teaching is to stimulate the children’s interest and understanding about the life of people who lived in the past.

The Aims of Teaching History

  • To develop an interest in the past and an appreciation of human achievements and aspirations
  • To understand the values of our society
  • To promote positive attitudes and enthusiasm for History
  • To learn about the major issues and events in the history of our own country and of the world and how these events may have influenced one another
  • To develop a knowledge of chronology within which children can organise their understanding of the past
  • To understand how the past was different from the present and that people of other times and places may have has different values and attitudes form ours
  • To understand the nature of evidence by emphasizing the process of enquiry and by developing the range of skills required to interpret primary and secondary source materials
  • To distinguish between historical facts and the interpretation of those facts
  • To understand that events have a multiplicity of causes and that historical explanation is provisional, debatable and sometimes controversial.

Teaching Approach

History teaching focuses on enabling children to think as historians. We place an emphasis on examining historical artefacts and primary sources. Where appropriate, children are given the opportunity to visitsites of historical significance. We encourage visitors to come into the school and talk about theirexperiences of events in the past. We recognise and value the importance of stories in history teaching andwe regard this as an important way of stimulating interest in the past. We focus on helping children understand that historical events can be interpreted in different ways and that they are encouraged to ask searching questions.We recognise the fact that there are children of different abilities and we provide suitable learningopportunities for all children by:

• Setting common tasks which are open-ended and can have a variety of responses.

• Setting tasks of varying difficulty, enabling all children to work to their full potential.

• Providing a range of challenges using different resources.

• Using teaching assistants to support the work of individual children or groups of children.

Teaching of History

At Mellis, we strive to meet the National Curriculum expectations and guidelines:

EYFS

During their Reception Year, pupils learn about the changes that have occurred in people and places in their living memory, and that of the adults around them. They will learn to place simple artefacts from the recent past to present day in chronological order and develop a sense of time. They will have the opportunity to listen to stories and use all their senses to explore sources of information in order to recognize the similarities and differences between people, places and artefacts from the past and those of the present day within their own experience. They will begin to ask questions about why things happen and use vocabulary related to the passing of time.

Key Stage 1

Pupils should be taught about:

  • Changes within living memory. Where appropriate, these should be used to reveal aspects of change in national life
  • Events beyond living memory that are significant nationally or globally [for example, the Great Fire of London, the first aeroplane flight or events commemorated through festivals or anniversaries]
  • The lives of significant individuals in the past who have contributed to national and international achievements. Some should be used to compare aspects of life in different periods [for example, Elizabeth I and Queen Victoria, Christopher Columbus and Neil Armstrong, William Caxton and Tim Berners-Lee, Mary Seacole and/or Florence Nightingale.
  • Significant historical events, people and places in their own locality.

Key Stage 2

Pupils should continue to develop a chronologically secure knowledge and understanding of British, local and world history, establishing clear narratives within and across the periods they study. They should note connections, contrasts and trends over time and develop the appropriate use of historical terms. They should regularly address and sometimes devise historically valid questions about change, cause, similarity and difference, and significance. They should construct informed responses that involve thoughtful selection and organisation of relevant historical information. They should understand how our knowledge of the past is constructed from a range of sources.

Pupils should be taught about:

  • Changes in Britain from the Stone Age to the Iron Age
  • The Roman Empire and its impact on Britain
  • Britain’s settlement by Anglo-Saxons and Scots
  • the Viking and Anglo-Saxon struggle for the Kingdom of England to the time of Edward the Confessor
  • A local history study
  • A study of an aspect or theme in British history that extends pupils’ chronological knowledge beyond 1066
  • the achievements of the earliest civilizations – an overview of where and when the first civilizations appeared and a depth study of one of the following: Ancient Sumer; The Indus Valley; Ancient Egypt; The Shang Dynasty of Ancient China
  • Ancient Greece – a study of Greek life and achievements and their influence on the western world
  • A non-European society that provides contrasts with British history – one study chosen from: early Islamic civilization, including a study of Baghdad c. AD 900; Mayan civilization c. AD 900; Benin (West Africa) c. AD 900-1300.

Assessment

There is no statutory History end of key stage Assessment, but there is a statutory duty to report to parents at least once a year about their child’s progress. Staff use their professional judgement in gathering of evidence of the child’s work, through written and practical work carried out through the year. This, together with the aims from the National Curriculum help teachers to form final reports at the end of the academic year.

Roles and Responsibilities

The History Co-ordinator will be responsible for:

  • Reviewing and updating the History policy and scheme of work
  • Monitoring the teaching and learning of history on a regular basis
  • Purchasing History resources (overseen by the head teacher)
  • Auditing and organizing History resources
  • Offering support and advice on possible teaching activities to all staff