'People without the knowledge of their past history origin and culture is like a tree without roots' - Marcus Garvey 

Intent

Pupils will work towards the national expectations at the end of each key stage (EYFS, KS1 and KS2). Having a good working understanding of chronology, they will be able to see how topics studied link to others and how they fit into the history of Britain and the wider world. As well as gaining the ability to both ask and answer questions, pupils will use a wide range of sources effectively to build on prior knowledge as they move through the school. 

Our high-quality curriculum offers a coherently planned sequence of lessons to help teachers ensure they have progressively covered the skills and concepts required in the National Curriculum whilst allowing us to link learning to a range of engaging topics, providing children with the opportunity to investigate the past in an exciting and purposeful manner. They are given the opportunity not just to study the past, but to develop their own interpretations, building up evidence and knowledge as they go, along with the ability to communicate in a historically appropriate manner.  

Our original long-term plans were developed with key skills and content broken down over year groups allowing for appropriate progression of skills and knowledge across the school. Our aims are to develop historical skills and concepts which are transferable to whatever period of history is being studied and will equip children for future learning. Subsequently, topics have been carefully designed to cover the National Curriculum statements for history whilst igniting a passion and curiosity through exciting and engaging lessons. With a thorough knowledge of the intent of other year groups, teachers can plan for progression making links to, and revisiting, elements already taught whilst moving learning on appropriately and being mindful of not spoiling the excitement planned for in future lessons. 

In KS1, there is a focus on local history to help children to better understand their community and gain a sense of identity. In LKS2, we have designed a curriculum that is covered chronologically to allow a full opportunity for children to grasp the difficult concept of the passing of time. UKS2 allows children to repeat and embed this sequence of chronology with a wider selection of ancient history such as ‘Early Islamic Civilisation’ through to more modern history such as ‘World War II’ and the ‘Civil Rights Movement’. The repeat in KS2 of chronological order from ancient to modern allows for children to truly develop and embed a sense of time and how civilisations were interconnected. 

History at Aston Clinton School also ensures that there are common and progressive themes running through the curriculum, these are: settlements, beliefs, culture/pastimes, location, travel/exploration, conflict, society/impact on Britain, artefacts, equality, food/farming and main events. Influential historical figures are also learnt about in both Key Stages. 

Through our lessons, our main aim at Aston Clinton School is to inspire pupils and teachers to develop a love of history and understand how it has shaped the world we live in. 

Implementation

All teachers are given the opportunity to research and develop topics within their own planning, and can request additional training if, and when needed. The learning sequences created and the resulting lesson plans ensure that staff have the relevant, accurate historical subject knowledge to allow teachers to feel confident in the historical skills and knowledge they are teaching. 

Knowledge organisers have been developed which outline the key concepts and vocabulary that all children should aim to master. These are displayed in classroom and glued in books as well as being shared with parents. Subsequently, a cycle of lessons is created which carefully plan for progression and depth of knowledge over the course of a particular topic. Key facts are explained to the pupils during high quality lesson inputs and are reinforced through a combination of revisiting through teaching and exploring, and demonstrating in independent work. 

At Aston Clinton School, vocabulary in history is crucial. We ensure that key vocabulary is revised and introduced in every history lesson. This is then included in display materials to ensure children have additional opportunities to revise this knowledge, thus helping them to know more and remember more. 

Impact

Pupils are not only taught the history knowledge required to meet the needs of the primary curriculum gaining a solid foundation ready to be built upon, but are also equipped with the research and investigative skills needed to be able to thrive at secondary school where more independence and autonomy is required. 

The impact of using the learning sequences, lesson plans and resources, including display materials, will be seen across the school with an increase in the interest and enthusiasm for history. At Aston Clinton School, we want to ensure that history is loved by both teachers and pupils, therefore encouraging them to want to continue building on this wealth of historical knowledge and understanding, now and in the future. By ensuring that historical vocabulary is both taught and revised, Aston Clinton School will be more consistent in ensuring that it is spoken and used by all learners, encouraged by the use of displays. 

Curriculum Overviews and Sample Knowledge Organisers

For more details about your child's learning, please use the following link to the year group learning pages.