Intent: 

We want our children to be the historians of  the future: curators, archaeologists, lecturers, explorers, tour guides, writers.  We need to inspire a love of history which, in turn, fosters a  desire to understand, appreciate and explore the world around us. We believe that children must first feel connected to the world around them from the youngest age whilst also being exposed to different periods of time through the use of texts, role play and talk. 

As children progress into KS1 we need to allow children to develop a deeper understanding of history. We begin to teach children about important people, places and events in history whilst exposing children to historical skills to enable them to gain  foundations as a historian. Throughout the units, teachers will expose children to how these national events link to their local history so that children gain a solid grasp of their place over time. 

Children in KS2 continue to develop their historical skills alongside knowledge to allow them to become the competent historians of the future. They explore a range of historical time periods as specified by the national curriculum programme of study. By teaching chronologically and drawing links to previous units of study children have coherent and chronological narrative. Throughout this, children develop strong links to their local community through specific units of study, drawing links to our area and a range of enrichment opportunities which foster a passion for their locality.   

In preparation for the future, we want our children to be aware of the challenges facing the people of this planet; we want them to be able to draw and understand lessons of the past, explaining and analysing the lessons from history and seeing how time may have reframed ideas and concepts. Our children will ask challenging questions in history lessons to show a secure understanding of perspective, judgement and complexity in history.

History will be celebrated across our school becoming and environment rich in historical texts, vocabulary, display and children’s work. Children will be historically literate as they confidently use historical terminology throughout their written and oral work. 

Implementation: 

At Forest View, History is taught as part of a rolling programme to cater for our mixed age year groups. The subject is explicitly taught in years 1 to 6 and units are blocked to allow children to focus on developing their knowledge and skills, studying each topic in depth. Children have a history book which shows their learning journey. 

Each history unit is taught as an enquiry question followed by a series of smaller enquiry questions which build towards children being able to have a deep and full understanding of the main question. At the end of each lesson, children should be able to reflect on the enquiry question to demonstrate their understanding. 

Children all have a Knowledge Organiser which is used at the beginning of lessons as a method of low stake quizzing to improve the acquisition of the key knowledge indicated in our medium term plans. These are also used as reference points in the lessons. Parents have copies of these to support their children. Vocabulary will be a crucial element of these as children explore vocabulary which crosses historical periods of time and subject specific terminology. These words will be shared, discussed and displayed for and with the children in each lesson. 

Disciplinary skills are woven throughout the history topics.  Effective use of educational visits, visitors and hands-on experiences  are planned, to enrich and enhance the pupil’s learning experiences within the history curriculum.   

Cross curricular opportunities  are important to use at Forest View and teachers look to link learning in history to other subjects. English texts are often linked to history units. 

Each class will have a timeline displayed in the classroom. This helps children develop a coherent narrative of time and will be referred to and added to during lessons. 

Teachers have access to a wealth of history resources which support the children’s learning:non-fiction books, artefacts and the use of The Discovery Museum Boxes of Delight scheme related to the planned units of study.

Where appropriate, all units address and celebrate diversity. Children are encouraged to reflect on the values of the past and British Values today. This ensures that our children are exposed to a wide-ranging inclusive curriculum embedded into our practise. 

EYFS

The Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum supports children’s understanding of history, people and communities through the planning and teaching of ‘Understanding the World’. history is effectively taught through their wider curriculum lessons and through their enhanced learning provision and environment.  Children learn about features of their own history such as school, home, community and their city through first-hand experiences and learn about the passing of time  through the sharing of books, stories, poems, small world play, role play and visits. Children enjoy the valuable experiences gained from our regular trips to places within their local community. Children are given time to discuss, comment and ask questions about what they observe about the world around them and are encouraged to be active learners and explore their interests further.

Impact: 

The impact of this history curriculum design, will lead to outstanding progress over time across key stages relative to a child’s individual starting point and their progression of skills. Children will therefore be expected to leave Forest View  reaching at least age-related expectations for history. Our history curriculum will also lead pupils to be enthusiastic history learners, evidenced in a range of ways, including pupil voice and their work.  Upon leaving our school  to embark on their journey to Key Stage 3 learning, children will be equipped with the skills, knowledge and understanding to confidently continue their history learning journey. We hope that, beyond academic achievement, children feel that their history lessons have inspired them to become great citizens for our planet with secure thoughts on where we have come from and where we are going.