We provide a history curriculum that is designed to ensure that children are taught key substantive and disciplinary knowledge through an enquiry-based approach. This approach is underpinned by four ‘Golden Threads’: Religion, Society, Empire and Economic Activity. These threads allow our children to recognise their place in history and contextualise Broomwood’s core values and Fundamental British Values. Additionally, the key threads create links (schema) across the Key Stages in our school so that children can organise information about the world in their long-term memory.

History at Broomwood is taught over a two-year rolling programme and key stages work on the same topic areas. An advantage of a two-year cycle is that children learn some age-related expectations in one year and then secure their learning in the following year – an opportunity to reinforce, to provide for even greater ‘mastery’ of the learning; and an opportunity to go deeper with the learning, to use and apply their learning in more situations. This also ensures that Broomwood is able to maintain a sustainable curriculum due to pupil numbers within the school fluctuating at various points. Additionally, it supports teachers in working collaboratively together as a team to discuss the best ways to approach the teaching of learning particular concepts.

History teaching focuses on enabling all children to think as historians by answering an enquiry question. The implementation of this is guided by the curriculum planning and the progression of disciplinary and substantive knowledge.

• To ensure high standards of teaching and learning in history, we implement a curriculum that is progressive throughout the whole school.
• All learning will start by revising prior knowledge to support children’s recall of previous learning and make connections (using the golden threads where relevant.)]
• Staff will model explicitly the subject-specific vocabulary, knowledge and skills relevant to the learning to allow them to manipulate new knowledge into larger concepts.
• Knowledge Organisers are introduced at the beginning of each topic and referred to throughout learning.
• History teaching is mapped across a two-year rolling cycle where planning progressively develops pupil skills in history through well-planned units.
• History is taught within every term, focussing on the knowledge and skills stated in the national curriculum.
• This will ensure pupils learn effectively, continuously building their skills, knowledge of and enthusiasm for the historic content they are learning.
• At the end of each history-based topic, children will complete an assessment task where disciplinary and substantive knowledge will be assessed in order to monitor progress and this will help to inform a teacher assessment at the end of the academic year.

We teach history in EYFS as an integral part of the topic covered during the year. History knowledge, understanding and skill development in EYFS is taught under the ‘Understanding the World’ Section of Development Matters. History is taught using stories as well as exploring and playing in purposeful, considered areas of provision, through active learning and through creating and thinking critically. There is an appropriate progression of learning for history through pre-school, nursery to reception. Children within reception are exposed to the history threads in preparation for the transition to Key Stage One.  Across the whole EYFS, history is taught every half-term and is led via an enquiry-based question.

In EYFS the children:

• Make connections between their family and others families
• Begin to make sense of their own life story and families history
• Describe and name people who are familiar to them
• Comment on images from familiar situations from the past
• Compare and contrast characters from stories, including figures from the past

The lessons provide children with a solid base to allow them to access the National Curriculum in Year 1.

At Broomwood, our aim is to ensure that all children are equipped with the historical skills and knowledge that will enable them to be ready for the next stage of their learning and for life as an adult in our community and the wider world. We want children to thoroughly enjoy learning about history and be able to recall their learning and experiences over time. We aim for them to be confident and be able to talk about their learning in history using subject-specific vocabulary and that the quality of work is good, demonstrating pupils are acquiring knowledge, skills and vocabulary in an appropriate sequence.

• Children will have a secure understanding of key historical concepts such as enquiry and significance.
• Children will be inspired through the wide range of teaching and learning.
• Children will enjoy history due to the creative teaching aspects, outdoor learning and visitors/trips linked to the subject.
• Children will develop an appreciation and understanding of different cultures and civilisations.