History
Curriculum Intent
At Trinity, we provide an exceptional, enquiry-led history education that inspires pupils’ curiosity to know more about the past and enables pupils to gain a coherent knowledge and understanding of London and Britain’s past and that of the wider world.
Sequencing and Progression
Units in the whole school curriculum map are organised so that they build on prior learning to allow children to build on their skills and knowledge and they progress through the school. Within a unit, lessons build up to answer the overarching enquiry question.
What does history look like at Trinity?
At Trinity we ensure that children's lesson teach the right mix of knowledge and skills. For every new topic we begin with a launch day where children complete a range of activities linked to the new period of history they are studying. This allows the children to immerse themselves in their new unit and develop a good understanding of the knowledge they will need from the very beginning.
Lessons then continue over a 6 week block. In each lesson the children focus on a particular historical skill, such as similarities and differences, evidence or continuity and change. There skills are repeated as children go through the year and as they move through the school. This allows for a clear progression of skills from year 1 to year 6.
At the end of each unit, children complete an assessment piece that allows them to demonstrate what they have learnt in the term. This allows the class teacher to analyse which skills need more development, or if there are any gaps in knowledge that need to be addressed in the coming term.
Early Years
In Early Years, children will learn to talk about members of their immediate family and community. They will explore examples from real life and stories. They will look at pictures and artefacts from the past and discuss any similarities or differences. The children will gain lots of opportunities to compare and contrast historical figures as well as develop basic chronological vocabulary.
Key Stage One
In Key Stage 1, pupils develop an awareness of the past, using common words and phrases relating to the passing of time. They learn where the people and events they study fit within a chronological framework and identify similarities and differences between ways of life in different periods. At the same time, they learn to use a wide vocabulary of everyday historical terms. During this stage, they will learn to become historians who ask and answer questions, and use historical sources to show that they know and understand key features of events.
Key Stage Two
In Key Stage Two, pupils continue to develop a chronologically secure knowledge and understanding of British, local and world history, establishing clear narratives within and across the periods they study. They will learn to note connections, contrasts and trends over time and develop the appropriate use of historical terms. They will routinely address and sometimes devise historically valid questions about change, cause, similarity and difference, and significance. At this point, they will create informed responses that involve thoughtful selection and organisation of relevant historical information. Ultimately, they will understand that our knowledge of the past is constructed from a range of sources.