ThealeChurch of England Primary School
History Policy
“We need history, not to tell us what happened or to explain the past, but to make the past alive so that it can explain us and make a future possible.”
Alan Bloom
The Importance of History
History fires pupils’ curiosity about the past in Britain and the wider world. Pupils consider how the past influences the present, what past societies were like and how these societies organised their politics, and what beliefs and cultures influenced people’s actions. As they do this, pupils develop a chronological framework for their knowledge of significant events and people. They see the diversity of the human experience, and understand more about themselves as individuals and members of society. What they learn can influence their decisions about personal choices, attitudes and values. In history, pupils should be taught to ask perceptive questions, find evidence, weigh it up and reach their own conclusions. To do this they need to be able to research, sift through evidence, and argue for their point of view – skills that are prized in adult life.
The National Curriculum for History
Through the study of history children are expected develop knowledge, skills and understanding in the following areas;
Chronological understanding
Knowledge and understanding of events, people and changes in the past
Historical interpretation
Historical enquiry
Organisational communication
Aims
The chief aims in teaching history are that children will:
Know and understand the history of these islands as a coherent, chronological narrative from the earliest times to the present day.
Enjoy and have positive attitudes towards the subject
Know and understand significant aspects of history of the wider world.
Have an interest in interpreting evidence and information
Gain and deploy a historically grounded understanding of abstract terms such as 'empire', 'civilisation', 'parliament' and 'peasantry'.
Make links with other areas of the curriculum where appropriate including ICT
Have an appreciation of and respect for cultures, societies, religions and countries, as well as their ownBreadth of Study
Gain historical perspective by placing their growing knowledge into different contexts.
Foundation Stage : History will be taught through 'the World'.
At Key Stage One
Children will learn to place events and objects in chronological order and to use vocabulary relating to the passing of time. Children will learn why people did things, why events happened and the results and be able to identify similarities and differences between ways of life at different times. They should use a wider range of vocabulary of everyday historical terms. Children will be taught to identify different ways in which the past is represented and how to find out about the past. They should ask and answer questions, choosing and using parts of stories and other sources to show that they know and understand key features of events. Children will learn to select from their historical knowledge and communicate about their historical knowledge in a variety of ways.
Children should be taught about:
Changes within living memory; their own lives, their family life and the lives of those around them.
Past events beyond living memory that are significant nationally or globally. (Eg The Gunpowder Plot, The Olympic Games, Remembrance Day, The Great Fire of London).
The way of life of those in the distant past who lived in their own locality
The lives of significant men and women in the past who have contributed to national and international achievements. (For example: Elizabeth 1, Queen Victoria, Christopher Columbus, Neil Armstrong, William Caxton, Tim Berners-Lee, Pieter Bruegel the Elder, LS Lowry, Rosa Parks, Emily Davison, Mary Seacole, Florence Nightingale and Edith Cavell).
At Key Stage Two
Children 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. Children should learn about; features of periods and societies studied, about social, cultural, religious and ethnic diversity of the societies studied. Children should understand and be able to talk about the fact that the past is represented and interpreted in different ways
Children 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 of British history that extends pupils' chronological knowledge beyond 1066.
Ancient Greece - a study of Greek life and achievements and their influence on the western world.
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 Egypt, Ancient Sumer, The Indus Valley, the Shang Dynasty of Ancient China.
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.
Structure of Provision
History is taught every week for 1-1.5 hours every other term.
Evaluation and Assessment
Assessment of history is an integral part of teaching. For each term of planned work, assessments are clearly identified. The assessments are for two purposes. Firstly they are to provide feedback for the teachers on the extent to which a child has understood a concept, learned a skill or acquired some new knowledge. The results will enable the teacher to reflect on how well they have taught the curriculum and will inform future planning. Teachers keep records of the results of the assessments.
Resources
Resources are monitored and organised by the curriculum co-ordinator who will order when necessary through the normal school processes. We explore all opportunities to ensure we have a good range of resources and opportunities available.
Extended Curriculum
We believe that building upon the experiences out of the classroom is crucial to the development of the history curriculum. Trips to museums and historical buildings are therefore invaluable.
The role of the Co-ordinator
A member of staff is designated as a history co-ordinator. Co-ordinator to support class teachers and to help improve the overall quality and continuity of history teaching in the school. The co-ordinator is responsible for:
Monitoring progress
Providing advice on history and teaching schemes
Advising on teacher assessment and reporting systems
Keeping up to date, through reading and attending relevant courses and by developing links with other sources
Information and Communication Technology
The use of ICT and the teaching of ICT should enhance, develop and support pupils’ learning of history.
Cross-curricular links
Cross-curricular links are embedded in the planning, teaching and learning of all subjects including history. Subject plans are adapted and linked to topics where appropriate.
Equal Opportunities and Special Needs
Every pupil will be given equal opportunity to follow the National Curriculum or Foundation Stage Curriculum irrespective of their ethnic or linguistic background, gender, disability or religious beliefs. Children with Special Educational Needs will have full access to the history curriculum which will be modified to best meet their needs. Those identified as Able, Gifted and Talented in Literacy will be given opportunities to develop their skills.
Monitoring
The monitoring of history will take the form of classroom observations, monitoring of planning, work scrutiny, interviews with children, learning walks and monitoring of displays. The subject leader, working with the head teacher is responsible for the monitoring of history. The headteacher will report to governors through a termly report.