History
How History is taught at Arnot St Mary
At Arnot St Mary, we aim to inspire pupils’ curiosity about the history of the world in which they live. All children will leave us with a wide ranging and deep knowledge of the past; of places and people and significant events through time. Our curriculum ensures that children are equipped to ask perceptive questions, think critically, analyse evidence and weigh arguments.
Children’s discovery of the world around them and their awareness of the passage of time begins in the Early Years Foundation Stage, where children are provided with opportunities to talk about past and present events in their own lives and in the lives of family members, to notice similarities and differences between things in the past and now, and to recall some important narratives and figures from the past through books read in class and storytelling.
Our KS1 and KS2 History Curriculum is carefully mapped so that all pupils are equipped with an understanding of historical periods, significant events and significant individuals from both Britain and the wider world. Pupils are provided with opportunities to acquire knowledge of key facts and concepts alongside developing skills such as asking perceptive questions, analysing artefacts and evidence, thinking critically and understanding different perspectives.
In Key Stage 1, pupils begin to develop their understanding of the past through a study of familiar objects and places before their learning travels further back in time to studies of significant people and significant events beyond living memory. History is brought to life through educational visits and visitors, the use of quality resources and school based immersive experiences.
In Key Stage 2, pupils explore concepts of migration, empire, civilization, continuity and change, cause and consequence, similarity and difference and significance. The story of Britain’s past is taught chronologically and interwoven with studies of ancient civilizations. The units based on world civilizations have been linked to the geographical focus for each year group and provide contrasts to both British History and each other.
History at Arnot St Mary is underpinned by three core pillars: historical enquiry exposes pupils to key disciplinary concepts and questions; historical enquiry relies on pupils acquiring sufficient historical knowledge; alongside this knowledge, pupils are given the opportunity to develop historical skills, namely chronological understanding, handling evidence and communicating findings, interpretations of history, continuity and change, similarity and difference, cause, and significance of events and people. These skills are revisited multiple times and progress across year groups.
Enrichment in History
History at Arnot St Mary is supported by a range of enrichment opportunities. Children will have opportunity to visit the wealth of local historical sites and museums within our local area, participate in engaging workshops, immersive experience days and use videos and quality resources to ensure that our pupils are knowing more and remembering more about the subject of history.
