At St Michael’s Primary School we believe that history should inspire the children to learn about the past and how the events and people of the past have shaped the world we live in today. We aim to transform our children into historians who use a variety of sources, evidence and artefacts to investigate history for themselves. Children at St Michael’s know that there are different interpretations of the past and can discuss why these differ.

The children in St Michael’s begin their history journey in reception by learning about their own families and significant dates throughout the year. When the children reach year one they will then study two history units per year. In KS1 the children will learn about important historical figures and events relevant to them and the place they live in such as Isambard Kingdom Brunel and Queen Elizabeth II. When the children reach KS2 our history units are taught in chronological order from the Stone Age right up to the Second World War. This understanding of chronology builds a mental map of the changes in Britain and the wider world over time. The table below details our history units.

Many of our history units at St Michael’s have strong links to our local area and we take advantage of this by providing trips into the community to widen the children’s knowledge and experiences. Tying our history curriculum together are our key concepts. Our key concepts are continuity and change, cause and consequence, similarity and difference, significance, interpretation and handling evidence.

These concepts are embedded throughout each history unit so the children developing key historical skills as the progress through our school