History
History
Intent
At Bryn Offa CE Primary School, our History curriculum inspires inquisitive, curious and discerning historians who think critically, ask insightful questions, and use evidence to explain and analyse the past. We build cumulative knowledge and skills so pupils can apply learning in real contexts, developing a confident grasp of chronology, cause and consequence, and the ways in which civilisations, peoples and ideas have shaped the world.
We introduce pupils to key historical concepts across EYFS–KS2:
- Power and governance, invasion, settlement and migration, empire, civilisation, belief and religion, trade and economy, innovation and achievement, society and culture.
- Second-order concepts (change, continuity, causation, consequence, similarity/difference, significance) are revisited systematically to deepen thinking.
Rooted in ethos, history learning promotes moral reflection, respect, compassion and justice. Pupils explore how significant events and individuals have influenced communities and values and consider ethical dimensions of evidence and interpretation. We intentionally build cultural capital through exposure to local, national and global histories (including the rich Shropshire heritage such as Offa’s Dyke and the Industrial Revolution in the Ironbridge Gorge), so pupils can connect the past to their lives today.
Our curriculum:
- Promotes independence, collaboration and creativity, with pupils as active partners in enquiry.
- Ensures equal access and high expectations for all, with appropriate challenge and support (including scaffolds for SEND and stretch for the most able).
- Develops the whole child: intellectually, socially, emotionally, physically, spiritually and morally preparing them for next steps from EYFS to KS1 and KS2 to secondary.
Implementation
We deliver History in line with the National Curriculum, through coherently sequenced long-term plans that secure progression in knowledge, skills and understanding. Lessons are enquiry-based and cumulative, connecting new learning to what pupils already know and strengthening retention through regular retrieval practice and explicit vocabulary instruction.
How our cycles work
EYFS & KS1: Two-year rolling programme (shared cycle)
- EYFS mirrors the KS1 sequence with developmentally-appropriate provision: story-rich timelines, artefacts, role play, and oral histories underpin early historical thinking (now/past, family, community).
- KS1 units are deliberately brief and vivid, embedding big questions, high-frequency disciplinary routines (observe, describe, compare, sequence, explain), and core vocabulary (past, present, then/now, before/after, earlier/later, evidence, artefact, source).
- Cycle A and Cycle B ensure balanced coverage (local history; significant individuals; events beyond living memory; changes within living memory), each revisiting second-order concepts and strengthening chronological awareness.
KS2: Four-year cycle
- The four-year rotation ensures breadth and depth across British, European and world history (prehistoric to modern), regularly revisiting power, migration, empire, innovation and culture through connected narratives.
- Progression is intentional: from using sources (Y3/4) to evaluating reliability, bias and interpretations (Y5/6); from sequencing and explaining change to arguing significance with well-chosen evidence.
- Each year revisits and builds chronology, placing new studies within an expanding mental timeline.
Pedagogical approach (aligned to whole-school)
- A purposeful blend of explicit instruction, inquiry, guided practice, oracy and collaboration.
- Knowledge organisers, tiered vocabulary, timelines and concept maps support independence.
- Low-stakes quizzes, thinking routines (e.g., See–Think–Wonder, Claim–Evidence–Reasoning), and cumulative tasks (annotated timelines, comparative case studies) reinforce retrieval and schema-building.
- Authentic contexts: local visits (e.g., Shropshire museums/heritage sites), workshops, virtual tours and guest speakers bring history to life.
- Collective worship links and whole-school Heritage Days celebrate diverse cultures and personal histories, fostering community and belonging.
Inclusion & equity
- Adaptive scaffolds (dual coding, sentence stems, chunked texts, pre-teaching vocabulary), multimodal resources and deliberate practice support all learners, including pupils with SEND.
- Challenge is embedded through open questions, comparative analysis and extended reasoning tasks.
Partnerships
- Parental engagement through History-specific home learning (family timelines, oral history interviews, heritage projects).
- Community links broaden horizons and enrich learning.
Impact
We evaluate impact through clear evidence of:
- Pupil progress in historical knowledge, disciplinary skills and understanding of second-order concepts, demonstrated in books, timelines, displays and pupil voice.
- Accurate and confident use of technical vocabulary (spoken and written), visible on working walls and in outcomes.
- Engagement and attitudes—curiosity, resilience, independence and collaboration—seen in enquiry behaviours and the quality of questions pupils ask.
- Readiness for next steps: secure transition from EYFS to KS1 (foundational chronology and talk) and KS2 to secondary (independent research, structured argument, evaluation of sources).
- Inclusion and equity outcomes: all pupils, including those with SEND, make strong personal progress and can articulate what they know and how they know it.
Assessment
- Ongoing assessment for learning (questioning, live feedback, mini-retrieval checks, exit tickets).
- Child-led assessment tools (success-criteria grids, mind maps, concept maps) to identify next steps.
- Summative tasks aligned to the enquiry big questions, calibrated against National Curriculum objectives.
- Subject monitoring (book looks, lesson visits, pupil voice, data reviews) informs responsive teaching and curriculum refinements.
By the time pupils leave Bryn Offa, they will:
- Have covered the National Curriculum objectives through a coherent, cumulative sequence.
- Have experienced enquiry-rich learning, visits/workshops and authentic encounters with evidence.
- Understand major events, developments and links across countries and cultures, with a secure sense of chronology.
- Be confident to question and challenge the validity, reliability and morality of sources and interpretations.
- Evaluate significance and the positive/negative impacts of people and events.
- Possess the cultural capital and historical literacy to thrive at secondary school and as reflective, responsible citizens.
Useful Websites
Home | Natural History Museum
World Museum | National Museums Liverpool
Progression in History