History

History – Intent

A high-quality history education will help pupils gain a coherent knowledge and understanding of Britain’s past and that of the wider world. It should inspire pupils’ curiosity to know more about the past. Teaching should equip pupils to ask perceptive questions, think critically, weigh evidence, sift arguments, and develop perspective and judgement. History helps pupils to understand the complexity of people’s lives, the process of change, the diversity of societies and relationships between different groups, as well as their own identity and the challenges of their time.

Aims of History knowledge-led curriculum:

To ensure that all pupils:

• Know and understand the history of these islands as a coherent, chronological narrative, from the earliest times to the present day: how people’s lives have shaped this nation and how Britain has influenced and been influenced by the wider world
• Know and understand significant aspects of the history of the wider world: the nature of ancient civilisations; the expansion and dissolution of empires; characteristic features of past non-European societies; achievements and follies of mankind
• Gain and deploy a historically grounded understanding of abstract terms such as ‘empire’, ‘civilisation’, ‘parliament’ and ‘peasantry’
• Understand historical concepts such as continuity and change, cause and consequence, similarity, difference and significance, and use them to make connections, draw contrasts, analyse trends, frame historically-valid questions and create their own structured accounts, including written narratives and analyses
• Understand the methods of historical enquiry, including how evidence is used rigorously to make historical claims, and discern how and why contrasting arguments and interpretations of the past have been constructed
• Gain historical perspective by placing their growing knowledge into different contexts, understanding the connections between local, regional, national and international history; between cultural, economic, military, political, religious and social history; and between short- and long-term timescales.

Implementation

Teachers work collaboratively to plan history using the learning journey planning format. History is planned using progression maps and knowledge mapping to ensure teaching is designed to help learners to remember, in the long term, the content they have been taught and to integrate new knowledge into larger concepts.

For the wider curriculum we block learning and re-visit practice over time through a spaced practice approach (Learning Scientists, 2016) as research suggests this will lead to better long-term retention of knowledge. Subject leaders are responsible for ensuring that the taught curriculum in each phase mirrors the intended progression of knowledge and skills mapped out for each Phase in the progression document. Therefore, ensuring previous content supports subsequent learning and pupils are equipped with the knowledge necessary for the next stage in their education and that the full content of National Curriculum is taught before children leave Parkland Primary School.

Impact

Assessing Progress

Formative Assessment:

Pupils’ progress will be assessed using regular formative assessment in lessons through strategies such as questioning, regular retrieval practice, quizzing, independent learning tasks and assessment of work in
books and feedback.
Each learning journey block will be assessed formatively through the use of a knowledge-based quiz and/or a high-quality independent skills application outcome e.g. musical composition or piece of artwork.
Teachers will use this assessment to provide further feedback or re-teach concepts where necessary to close gaps and ensure pupils have mastered the curriculum content at that point.