Intent:

History at Ashbourne Primary School develops curiosity, critical thinking and an appreciation of the complexities of people’s lives in the past.

Our work is underpinned by our vision and aims: ‘Nurturing aspiration through happy, creative learning’. Our PRAISE aims are at the heart of every lesson and our focus on the removal of barriers to learning is firmly embedded into all areas of the History curriculum.

Children will be taught the importance of evidence and how it shapes our understanding of historical events. They will ask and answer questions about the causes of change. Over time they will develop a sense of chronology and of the diversity of past societies. History will be brought to life by visiting actors, experience days and trips. 

The curriculum is planned and sequenced over a two-year period: KS1 (Y1 and Y2), LWK2 (Y3 and Y4) and UPKS2 (Y5 and Y6). To begin with, children develop their basic knowledge of geography concepts. In the second phase, children deepen their understanding and apply what they have learned. This is based on the principal that learning has only happened when processes and facts (knowledge) are in pupils’ long-term memory. This takes time and repetition. Planning the curriculum in this way, allows pupils to establish fundamental foundations into their memories before advancing and applying concepts across a range of tasks and topics.