History

By the time the children leave Telferscot, their History education will have provided them with an understanding of the wider world and how the past has affected our present. They will have a deep understanding of chronology, knowing when events took place and when things happen, as well as beginning to understand that many events happen simultaneously throughout the world, not every Empire comes smoothly after the next! It is essential for children to be able to use sources to find out about history, to be able to independently research periods of time using primary and secondary sources. Knowing about bias and reliability of sources is key to being a good historian and something the children of Telferscot will have ample opportunity to explore. The children will have the opportunity to explore similar themes throughout their history career and developing their understanding of how things like leadership, religion and democracy change or stay the same throughout history and across the world.

How History is taught at Telferscot

We have two History blocks, both of which are two weeks long. One block is during our first Spring term and the second block is during our first Summer term. Each block focuses on a specific topic that is mapped out prior to starting to ensure the topics taught are diverse and that they lend themselves to the skills necessary to being a historian. Specific topics have been picked for specific year groups to ensure children can access the content and understand at a level appropriate to their age group.

As well as fantastic teaching and curriculum knowledge from our teachers, children use sources as a vital way to learn about their topic. This enables children to find out key facts about their topic independently and also generate an understanding of the bias that can be present in many historical sources. These skills are developed from Nursery all the way to Year 6.

What our children learn about History

Year Group	Spring 1	Summer 1
Nursery	-	Grandparents and jobs During this topic we look at our family tree up to our grandparents. We invite grandparents of the current class to come in and chat to the children about what life was like when they were little and what the differences are with the life of 3 and 4 year olds today! The children then explore how uniforms in jobs have changed over time with a focus on firefighters, nurses, doctors and construction workers.
Reception	Transport over time Reception children start of by exploring how they themselves have changed over time. How are we different now from when we were a baby? Children then go on to explore transport. They look at pictures and videos of past modes of transport and see if they can guess what it is and explain how it is different to something similar today	-
Year 1	The Victorians and the London Underground The children find out about what school was like in Victorian times compared to now. They look at other significant Victorians and including Queen Victoria herself. The children find out about how the London Underground was built and go on a trip on the Tube to experience the Underground first hand.	Technology over time Pupils in Year 1 will explore the immeasurable change in technology over the last century allowing daily life to become much easier. Children will focus on entertainment and communication, heating and light and cleaning and food. Children will compare a day in the life of someone living in the past to a person living with current technology. What would be different? How is it less efficient?
Year 2	The Great Fire of London Children explore the events of the Great Fire of London and the impact it had on life in London. They will try to see and understand the differences between daily life in 1666 and compare to daily life in London today. Year 2 pupils will look at houses and see why it is they burnt so quickly. Would the same happen today?	Rosa Parks and Emily Davison Year 2 pupils will be provided with an understanding of the political climate in the USA prior to Rosa Parks’s birth and then the significance of Rosa Parks and the reason she wouldn’t give up her seat on the bus. They look at the suffragette movement and the right to vote and the timeline of key events including the significance of Emily Davison and her role in the suffragette movement including her being arrested and her protests. They discuss why women didn’t have the vote and why they wanted it and compare and contrast with the protests during Rosa Park’s lifetime.
Year 3	The Anglo-Saxons and the Vikings The children look closely at the timeline of the Anglo-Saxons and the Vikings to see when different invasions occur. They explore maps to see which routes different groups took and where they chose to land in the UK. They use the artefacts from Sutton Hoo to find out more about who the Vikings were and what they were like.	Egyptians Year 3 pupils explore the long timeline of events throughout the Ancient Egyptian period. They get to know what is was like to be an Egyptian by focusing on daily life, pharaohs, religion, science and the process of mummification.
Year 4	The Roman Empire and its impact on Britain Who were the Romans? Children explore what life was like, how vast the Empire was and what impact they had on the lands they invaded. Can we still see the effects of the Roman Empire today.	The Tudors Children will identify key dates and important people from the Tudor era using historical sources to aid them. They will explore the lives of Henry VIII’s wives and identify Henry VIII’s successes. They will understand how Henry influenced life today with a close look at religion.
Year 5	The Ancient Greeks Year 5 pupils look at the daily life of Greeks at this time and the importance religion had. They look at the beginnings of democracy and Greek warfare, using a range of sources to deduce this information. They look at key cities such as Athens and Sparta and important battles such as the Battle of Marathon.	Early Islamic Civilisation Children will explore maps and timelines of the Early Islamic Civilisations. They will explore the importance of Baghdad and how it was a hub for commerce, learning, science and maths. They will get to understand the different people that were important at the time as well as how impactful art was. Children will get to know the importance of trade and how it is linked to power.
Year 6	World War Two Year 6 children explore why, when and where the war started using a range of sources. They look at the Blitz and the Battle of Britain in depth with a focus on the RAF and its impact on the war.	Stone age to Iron age The timeline for this topic is vast so children will spend time exploring this, seeing the changes that were made along the way and what survived the test of time. Children will look at the tools used and how people cultivated the land.

How we enhance our children's experience of History at Telferscot

Nursery enjoy lovely visits from grandparents to get first-hand knowledge of how life has changed over the past 50 plus years. Reception take a journey on the tube and explore what they have learnt about public transport. Year 1 get to go to the Science Museum to explore technology and the advancements that have been made.

Year 2 visit the museum of London, not only to explore the Great Fire of London, but also to see the exhibitions on the Suffragette and Civil Rights movements. They also take part in their very own Great Fire of London at school with houses they have built!

Year 3 visit the British Museum to look at the artefacts found at Sutton Hoo and become historians themselves. On top of that they experience a Viking Day and get to dress up and be a Viking and go to battle! They head back to the British Museum to look at the Egyptian exhibition and take part in a workshop all about mummification!

Year 4 experience a day as a Tudor with a real life Tudor coming into school for a whole day workshop. Year 5 explore the range of Early Islamic art that the V&A museum have to offer and try to create some of their own.

Year 6 have a virtual workshop with the British Museum exploring artefacts and getting to be historians themselves. In addition, they visit RAF Hendon to bring the impact the RAF had in WW2 to life!