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.  Working collaboratively with peers and outside provisions.  Teaching will motivate 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 in the wider community, local community as well as developing and fostering connections  History taught at Grendon will also ensure that 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.  

 

Implementation

History is taught in line with the National Curriculum and uses Cornerstones for the delivery of a creative curriculum.  Projects are selected based on children’s interests and therefore creating a stimulating learning environment both in and out of the classroom. Through memorable experiences children look at the local history from Grendon and surrounding villages and the impact that might have occurred.  We want the children to become keen historians by giving them opportunities to investigate and interpret the past, understand chronology, build an overview of Britain’ past as well as that of the wider world and be able to communicate historically.

Lessons take place in each year group’s classroom however, we encourage teachers to be creative with the location of where lessons take place and when lessons lend themselves to outdoor or active learning. We are fortunate to be located in a spatial environment, located in a history rich village.  The rationale for the Cornerstones Curriculum takes the form of 10 big ideas that provide a purpose for the aspects, skills, knowledge and contexts chosen to form the substance of the curriculum. These big ideas form a series of multi-dimensional interconnected threads across the curriculum, allowing children to encounter and revisit their learning through a variety of subject lessons. Over time, these encounters help children to build conceptual frameworks that will enable a better understanding of increasingly sophisticated information and ideas.

History is taught with the following aspects to develop children with essential characteristics to help become historians:

Comparison:

  • Compare and contrast

(Understanding how and why things are the same or different.)

Humankind:

  • Everyday life
  • Hierarchy and power
  • Civilisation

(Understanding what it means to be human and the cause and effect of human behaviour.)

Change:

  • Changes over time
  • British history
  • Chronology

(Understanding why significant people, places, events and inventions matter.)

Significance:

  • Significant events
  • Significant people

(Understanding why significant people, places, events and inventions matter.)

Creativity:

  • Report and conclude
  • Communication

(Understanding how everyday and exceptional creativity can inspire and change perceptions.) 

Place:

  • Local History

(Understanding the visual, cultural, social and environmental aspects of different places around the world). 

Materials:

  • Artefacts

(Understanding the unique and physical properties of all matter and how we interact with them.) 

 

Cornerstones clearly gives an intended curriculum progression, showing what is covered in different year groups. If an objective is not included teachers are directed to complete a stand alone lesson or link objective into a project. The progression is monitored termly by the subject lead.

Impact

Our History Curriculum is good quality, well thought out and is planned to demonstrate progression.  Children are assessed at the end of each lesson as to whether they have achieved that particular history learning intention and knowledge which is then recorded on Cornerstones, allowing the class teacher and the subject-leader to address any issues