History

Intent

At Great Harwood Primary School, we believe History enhances pupils’ curiosity to ask questions and know more about Britain’s past and that of the wider world. Pupils should be encouraged to develop a chronological framework of British history that will enable them to make sense of the new knowledge they acquire. This will also allow them to understand the process of change, to see how we arrived ‘here’ and help them to make sense of the present. We want pupils to realise that the past is gone and history is constructed and contested. History’s unique concepts help pupils to construct arguments and support them to become analytical citizens who can question human motivation and society with skill and confidence.

Our whole curriculum is shaped by our school vision which aims to enable all children, regardless of background, ability, additional needs, to flourish to become the very best version of themselves they can possibly be. We teach the National Curriculum, supported by a clear skills and knowledge progression. This ensures that skills and knowledge are built on year by year and sequenced appropriately to maximise learning for all children. It is important that the children develop progressive skills of a historian throughout their time at Great Harwood Primary School and do not just learn a series of facts about the past. In History, pupils at Great Harwood Primary School, find evidence, weigh it up and reach their own conclusion. To do this successfully, as historians, they need to be able to research, interpret evidence, including primary and secondary sources, and have the necessary skills to argue for their point of view; skill that will help them in their adult life.

By the time the children at Great Harwood Primary leave our school they should have developed:

•  A secure knowledge and understanding of people, events and contexts from the historical periods covered.
•  The ability to think critically about History and communicate confidently in styles appropriate to a range of audiences.
•  The ability to consistently support, evaluate and challenge their own and others’ views using detailed, appropriate and accurate historical evidence derived from a range of sources.
•  The ability to think, reflect, debate, discuss and evaluate the past, forming and refining questions and lines of enquiry.
•  A passion for History and an enthusiastic engagement in learning, which develops their sense of curiosity about the past and their understanding of how and why people interpret the past in different ways.
•  A respect for historical evidence and the ability to make robust and critical use of it to support their explanations and judgements.
•  A desire to embrace challenging activities, including opportunities to undertake high-quality research across a range of History topics.