Our school vision ‘Curious Minds, Open Hearts & Joy of Learning’ is at the heart of all we do. At Homefield VC C of E Primary we strongly believe in providing children with inspiring, creative and meaningful learning experiences that builds on their natural curiosity and ignites their passion for learning. Children need a curriculum that is research based and supports the pedagogy of how children learn. Our History curriculum aims to develop children’s historical knowledge in a chronological and meaningful way. Not only will it develop their knowledge of their own, local, British and global history, we want them to develop the skills to work like a historian. We want children to have a diverse History curriculum that allows them to make meaningful links and ask questions.  

Curious Minds- We want our pupils to Learn about their own history before developing chronological knowledge of British history and world history. To explore historical sources with a curious mind and have chance to make their own links and develop their skills as a historian.

Open Hearts- To learn about history through a diverse lens and understand how things have changed over time. Understand how big events have had an impact on the lives of people in the past and today.  

Joy of learning- Children to be passionate and interested when learning in History lessons. Evaluate and discuss historical sources and want to build their historical knowledge throughout their time at Homefield.

Our History Curriculum

Children in Early Years will be given opportunities to make sense of their own History and past experiences through exploring, observing and finding out about people, places and their environment. Children in Nursery and Reception will also develop early historical skills through exploring changes, seasons, celebrations and growing things over time. 

CUSP History draws upon prior learning, wherever the content is taught. For example, in the EYFS, pupils may learn about the past and present through daily activities, exploring through change, and understanding more about the lives of others through books and visitors as well as their own experiences. These experiences are drawn upon and used to position new learning in KS1.

The structure is built around the principles of advancing cumulative knowledge, chronology, change through cause and consequence, as well as making connections within and throughout periods of time studied.

CUSP History is planned so that the retention of knowledge is much more than just ‘at the moment knowledge’. The cumulative nature of the curriculum is made memorable by the implementation of Bjork’s desirable difficulties, including retrieval and spaced retrieval practice, word building and deliberate practice tasks. This powerful interrelationship between structure and research-led practice is designed to increase substantive knowledge and accelerate learning within and between study modules. That means the foundational knowledge of the curriculum is positioned to ease the load on the working memory: new content is connected to prior learning. The effect of this cumulative model supports opportunities for children to associate and connect with significant periods of time, people, places and events. CUSP History strategically incorporates a range of modules that revisit, elaborate and sophisticate key concepts, events, people and places.

A guiding principle of CUSP History is that pupils become ‘more expert’ with each study and develop an ever broadening and coherent mental timeline. This guards against superficial, disconnected and fragmented understanding of the past. Specific and associated historical vocabulary is planned sequentially and cumulatively from Y1 to Y6. High frequency, multiple meaning words (Tier 2) are taught alongside and help make sense of subject-specific words (Tier 3). Each learning module in history has a vocabulary module with teacher guidance, tasks and resources.

As well as developing the children's historical knowledge and vocabulary, we aim to give children to opportunity to 'think like a Historian'. This covers understanding of chronology, cause and consequence, change and continuity, similarities and differences, evidence and significance.

History Substantive Concepts

Children use these key concepts to make links across and between modules of learning. 

Substantive Concepts
A group of people living in a place.	The difference knowledge makes to people.	The power to advance (improve things) or to take over another place.	Taking over another country or religion with armed force.	A large group of people who follow similar laws, religion and rules.	A form of government voted for by the people.

Disciplinary Knowledge 

Children's learning of historical knowledge fits into these key disciplinary concepts. 

Disciplinary Knowledge
The Science of time.	The reason and result of the things that happened in History.	How key people, places and events changed or stayed the same	Compare similarities at the same time. What stayed the same? What is different?	How we know about the past.	Why people, events and ideas are important to our studies.

Whole School Overview

Year Group	Autumn	Spring	Summer
Year 1	Changes within living memory- Shops	Significant individuals- Mary Anning David Attenborough	Significant individuals- Neil Armstrong Mae Jemison Bernard Harris Jr Time Peake
Year 2	Events beyond living memory- Great Fire of London	Local History Study- What impact has the herring industry had on Great Yarmouth?	Events beyond living memory- Revisit- Great Fire of London
Year 3	Changes in Britain from the Stone Age to the Iron Age	Changes in Britain from the Stone Age to the Iron Age Revisit	The Roman Empire and its impact on Britain
Year 4	Britain’s settlement of Anglo-Saxons and Scots	The Viking and Anglo-Saxon struggle for the Kingdom of England to the time of Edward the Confessor	The achievements of the earliest civilisations- Egypt study
Year 5	Ancient Greece- a study of Greek life and achievements and their influence on the western world	Study the Maya civilisation and compare to Anglo-Saxons c. AD 900	Study a non-European society that provides contrasts with British history – Benin (West Africa)
Year 6	Local History Study- How did conflict change our local area in World War 2?	Windrush generation	Study 5 monarchs through time