History

​“A people without the knowledge of their past, origin and culture is like a tree without roots.” Marcus Garvey

The National Curriculum states that “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.”

See History in Action

Our intent at Barrs Court Primary School is to teach history in a stimulating and interesting way, allowing pupils to develop a love of the subject and curiosity of how past events affect present day living. Through engaging cross-curricular topics, children have the opportunity to investigate and understand the life of significant people who lived in the past and the impact that major historical events have had in shaping today’s society and our own personal lives.

In Foundation Stage 2, children have the opportunity to talk about past and present events in their own lives and the lives of their family members. Children are encouraged to talk about and discuss differences between themselves and others in the community. They celebrate their cultural differences and enjoy finding out about other people’s traditions. 

At Key Stage 1, children are encouraged to think more deeply about historical aspects, such as how transport and fashion has changed through time. Children also have the opportunity to explore impact of significant people from the past, for example Isambard Kingdom Brunel, Florence Nightingale and Mary Seacole.

At Key Stage 2, children begin to understand how history impacts today’s society from a more political, religious and technical point of view. Children investigate significant time periods throughout history, for example, the Stone Age, Ancient Egypt and the World Wars.  

Children access the history curriculum through the implementation of four main aspects. This involves:

Building an overview of world history, whereby children are invited to think about the differences between past and present and learn about significant events from the past.

Investigating and interpreting the past, allowing children to explore the past more deeply and gain an understanding of how past events have influences today’s society. Children also use a wide range of evidence sources, both primary and secondary.

Developing an understanding of chronology, allowing them to visualise the passing of time and showing them how some aspects of history were happening at similar times in different places around the world.

Communicating using historical vocabulary, encouraging children to talk about the past in a confident and enthusiastic way.