History

Our Vision for History

“A high-quality history education will help pupils gain a coherent knowledge and understanding of Britain’s past and that of the wider world. It should inspire pupils’ curiosity to know more about the past. Teaching should equip pupils to ask perceptive questions, think critically, weigh evidence, sift arguments, and develop perspectives and judgement. History helps pupils to understand the complexity of people’s lives, the process of change, the diversity of societies and relationships between different groups, as well as their own identity and the challenges of their time.” National Curriculum 2014

At our school we aim to ensure all pupils:

  • foster an interest in the past and develop an understanding that enables children to enjoy all that History has to offer and how they can make a change for the future.
  • know about significant events in British History and to appreciate how things have changed over time, making links to the wider world.
  • understand connections between the history of Stoke Newington our local area, regional, national and international History.
  • know and understand how the British system of democratic government has developed and, in so doing, to contribute to a child’s citizenship education
  • understand how Britain has influenced and been influenced by the wider world and how this has made the world an interesting place.
  • understand the complexity and diversity of societies and their place within it as citizens, so that they develop a sense of their own cultural heritage
  • develop skills of enquiry, investigation, analysis, evaluation and presentation

At St Mary’s we believe that History is a pivotal part of our curriculum. We want to encourage our children to develop their skills of enquiry, deduction, analysis, evaluation and inference whilst learning to question what’s happened in the world. We feel it’s important to increase their understanding of the past, to make links between civilisations and eras and how history has impacted on our current lives. To enable our pupils to have a sense of belonging, St Mary’s has embedded specific links to our local area, spirituality, British values and diversity into its curriculum.

The skills required for learning about the past not only lead to pupils becoming critical, independent thinkers but also contribute to the development of a range of skills necessary for life such as literacy, numeracy and social skills. These are developed through opportunities such as trips and visitors.

History Curriculum Overview