Intent

Through our History curriculum we seek to lay the foundations for all pupils to flourish now and in the future ‘Sowing the seeds so all can flourish”.  

At Stallingborough CofE Primary School, we aim to inspire pupils to be curious and creative thinkers who develop a complex knowledge of local and national history and the history of the wider world. We want pupils to develop the confidence to think critically, ask questions, and be able to explain and analyse historical evidence.

Our teaching throughout the year groups is progressive and through our scheme of work, we aim to build an awareness of significant events and individuals in global, British and local history and recognise how things have changed over time. History will support children to appreciate the complexity of people’s lives, the diversity of societies and the relationships between different groups. Studying History allows children to appreciate the many reasons why people may behave in the way they do, supporting children to develop empathy for others while providing an opportunity to learn from mankind’s past mistakes. Our history scheme aims to support pupils in building their understanding of chronology in each year group, making connections over periods of time and developing a chronologically-secure knowledge of History.

We hope to develop pupils’ understanding of how historians study the past and construct accounts and the skills to carry out their own historical enquiries.

In order to prepare pupils for their future learning in History, our scheme aims to introduce them to key substantive concepts including power, invasion, settlement and migration, empire, civilisation, religion, trade, achievements of humankind, society and culture.

Implementation

At Stallingborough CofE Primary School learning is delivered through three overarching strands

• Chronological Awareness - This strand involves an understanding of how to chart the passing of time and how some aspects of history studied were happening at similar times in different places.

• Topic Knowledge - This strand involves an appreciation of the characteristic features of the past and an understanding that life is different for different sections of society through local and world history.
• Substantive Concepts – This strand refers to the concepts that pupils will learn.

These strands are interwoven through all our History units to create engaging and enriching learning experiences which allow the children to investigate history as historians do.

We use the Kapow Currciulum to support teaching and learning. This is based on the National Curriculum requirements and provides good support to non-specialist teachers. We have adapted the Kapow curriculum to our school context and vision and have set out a clear progression of knowledge and skills in each strand of learning.

Each six-lesson unit has a focus on chronology to allow children to explore the place in time of the period they are studying and make comparisons in other parts of the world. In EYFS, children explore the concept of history by reflecting on key experiences from their own past, helping them understand that they each have their own histories. Then, they engage in activities to compare and contrast characters from stories, including historical figures, deepening their understanding of how individual lives fit into broader historical narratives. Children will further develop their awareness of the past in Key stage 1 and will know where people and events fit chronologically. This will support children in building a ‘mental timeline’ they can refer to throughout their learning in Key stage 2 and identifying connections, contrasts and trends over time.

There are two EYFS units focused on each of the history-related Development matters statements. These units consist of a mixture of adult-led and child-initiated activities which fit in with Reception class themes or topics. In Key stage 1 and 2, units are organised around an enquiry-based question and children are encouraged to follow the enquiry cycle (Question, Investigate, Interpret, Evaluate and conclude, Communicate) when answering historical questions.

Over the course of the scheme, children develop their understanding of the following key disciplinary concepts:

• Change and continuity.

• Cause and consequence.

• Similarities and differences.

• Historical significance.

• Historical interpretations.

• Sources of evidence.

These concepts will be encountered in different contexts during the study of local, British and world history. Accordingly, children will have varied opportunities to learn how historians use these skills to analyse the past and make judgements. They will confidently develop and use their own historical skill set. As children progress through the Kapow scheme, they will create their own historical enquiries to study using sources and the skills they have developed.

Substantive concepts such as power, trade, invasion and settlement, are introduced in Key stage 1, clearly identified in Lower key stage 2 and revisited in Upper key stage 2 (see Progression of skills and knowledge) allowing knowledge of these key concepts to grow. These concepts are returned to in different contexts, meaning that pupils begin to develop an understanding of these abstract themes which are crucial to their future learning in History.

The Kapow scheme follows the spiral curriculum model where previous skills and knowledge are returned to and built upon. For example, children progress by developing their knowledge and understanding of substantive and disciplinary concepts by experiencing them in a range of historical contexts and periods.

History in Action videos explain the careers and work of those in history and heritage-related fields. Historians, archivists, archaeologists, museum curators, teachers and heritage experts discuss their love of history, how they became interested in the subject, how they got into their jobs and what their jobs involve.

Lessons are designed to be varied, engaging and hands-on, allowing children to experience the different aspects of an historical enquiry. In each lesson, children will participate in activities involving disciplinary and substantive concepts, developing their knowledge and understanding of Britain’s role in the past and that of the wider world. Children will develop their knowledge of concepts and chronology as well as their in-depth knowledge of the context being studied.

Impact

 

The impact and measure of our History curriculum is to ensure that children at Stallingborough CofE Primary School are equipped, through an ambitious knowledge rich curriculum, to be passionate about History. To prepare them as well-informed, lifelong learners in the wider world who are reflective and ready for the curriculum at Key stage 3 and support them throughout the rest of their life.  We want our children to thoroughly adore learning about History, discover the importance of events from the past and bringing them to our children’s present. This will shape their futures. Children will reflect on their learning regularly and be given frequent opportunities to recall knowledge previously learnt. We will also regularly assess the children's ability to use the history skills within each lesson. 

Each strand and concept has been mapped and paced out with ambitious knowledge, vocabulary and skills. This enables all teachers to see the progression of the strands and concepts throughout the year as well as prior and future learning for the children.

 

The impact of Kapow Primary’s scheme can be constantly monitored through both formative and summative assessment opportunities. Each unit has a skill catcher and

knowledge assessment quiz which can be used at the end of the unit to provide a summative assessment.