‘‘A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots.’’

                                                                                                                                                                                                       Marcus Garvey

History at Washingborough Academy

Intent

At Washingborough Academy it is our intent to instil a love of history that continues throughout life and inspires children to ask valid questions about the past. We aim to provide a history curriculum with the appropriate subject knowledge, skills and understanding that provides interest and curiosity beyond the classroom and meets the needs of all of our children. Lessons will endeavour to develop children’s historical skills in posing questions, thinking critically and weighing evidence. A firm understanding in chronology will from the basis of a secure historical knowledge and support children in forming their own connections as they continue to learn.

Implementation

At Washingborough Academy our History curriculum is based upon the National Curriculum.  All children are taught British history, history in the wider world and key historical individuals from the past. The curriculum focuses on four key areas: investigating and interpreting British history, building an overview of world history, understanding chronology and communicating historically. Objectives are set using the history progression document for each key stage, to ensure children are set high expectations and continue to develop key skills as historians.

• The curriculum is taught over a two-year cycle for each key stage phase
• Topics are carefully distributed to build on previous learning
• In each new topic children have the opportunity to make connections between different time periods in history in order to build a secure understanding of chronology
• Each lesson teaches key topic vocabulary in order to increase the historical literacy required to navigate the curriculum and communicate historically
• Consistency in approach is strengthened by using a history lesson structured format

Impact

The impact of our History curriculum is measured in a variety of ways:

• Discussions with children in lessons
• Targeted questions during lessons
• Marking of children’s work
• Pupil’s voice
• Learning walks
• Book looks
• Termly assessment

By the time children leave Washingborough Academy they will:

• Be equipped with the skills and knowledge to be enquiring historians.
• Be able to weigh evidence from a variety from sources
• Possess a wide variety of historical vocabulary
• Have acquired knowledge of the past about Britain, our wider world and their own local environment
• Be inspired to enquire further about the past and embed this into their current knowledge

‘‘We are not makers of history. We are made by history.’’

                                                                                                                                                                             Martin Luther King Jr