Understanding the past to make sense of the present

History helps children understand how people, ideas, power and events have shaped the world they live in today.

At Elburton, our history curriculum is ambitious and begins in Nursery. Using the Early Years Framework, the National Curriculum and the United Curriculum for History, we have carefully sequenced learning so that children develop a rich understanding of people, events and civilisations from Britain and across the wider world.

We want children to think historically, not simply remember historical facts. Through studying the past, pupils learn to ask questions, examine evidence, compare interpretations and explain how and why change happens. They develop secure chronological knowledge and an understanding of how the past has influenced the present.

Why this subject matters

History helps children understand:

• Change and continuity over time
• Cause and consequence
• Similarity and difference between societies
• The complexity of human experience
• How historical accounts are constructed from evidence and interpretation

By studying a wide range of cultures, civilisations and significant individuals, children develop curiosity about the world and a greater understanding of their place within it.

What children learn

Children study significant periods, events, individuals and civilisations from British, local and world history. Alongside substantive knowledge, they develop disciplinary knowledge by learning how historians use evidence, chronology, interpretation and enquiry to understand the past.

The United Curriculum is organised around three recurring concepts that help pupils build increasingly sophisticated historical understanding:

Quest for Knowledge

How have people understood the world around them? What have they believed, discovered and invented?

Power, Empire and Democracy

Who held power in different societies and how did this affect people's lives, rights and opportunities?

Community and Family

What was everyday life like for people in different historical periods and cultures?

These concepts are revisited throughout the curriculum, helping children make meaningful connections across time and place.

How knowledge develops

Learning is carefully sequenced so that pupils build secure chronological understanding from the earliest years onwards.

Children revisit important ideas such as power, settlement, conflict, belief, migration and technological change in different contexts. This enables them to identify patterns, make comparisons and deepen their understanding over time.

The curriculum is designed so that meaningful links can be made between subjects, allowing pupils to connect learning across the wider curriculum.

What this looks like at Elburton

History is taught in half-term blocks throughout the year, alternating with Geography. This allows pupils to immerse themselves in a period of history while making meaningful links across the wider curriculum.

Pupils encounter a rich range of sources, including:

• Artefacts
• Historical stories
• Maps
• Images
• Written records
• Historical interpretations

They ask questions, compare accounts, evaluate evidence and communicate their understanding using increasingly precise historical vocabulary.

The United Curriculum has been adapted to reflect our local context. Pupils learn about the history of Plymouth and the wider local area, helping them understand how national and global events have shaped their own community.

We are committed to ensuring all pupils see themselves reflected in the curriculum while also learning about people, cultures and civilisations beyond their own experiences.

How we know children are learning

Teachers regularly check whether pupils:

• Remember and apply important historical knowledge
• Understand chronology and place events in context
• Use evidence appropriately
• Explain historical ideas using subject-specific vocabulary
• Apply key concepts such as cause and consequence, change and continuity, and historical significance

Discussion, retrieval practice and written explanations help teachers identify secure understanding and address misconceptions.

Supporting learning at home

Parents can support history learning by:

• Visiting museums, historic sites and local landmarks, such as Plymouth Hoe, the Mayflower Steps and local National Trust properties.
• Encouraging discussions about family history, photographs, objects and memories from the past.
• Watching age-appropriate history programmes and documentaries together.
• Reading historical fiction and non-fiction books linked to topics studied in school.
• Discussing historical events, anniversaries and local commemorations.

Useful websites

• BBC Bitesize History – https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/subjects/zcw76sg
• English Heritage Kids' Zone – https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/kids
• National Geographic Kids – https://www.natgeokids.com/uk
• Horrible Histories – https://www.bbc.co.uk/cbbc/shows/horrible-histories

Encourage children to ask and investigate questions such as:

• How do we know about the past?
• What changed over time?
• What stayed the same?
• Why did this happen?
• Why is this event or person still remembered today?
  

Through rich historical experiences, meaningful enquiry and a carefully sequenced curriculum, we aim to develop curious, knowledgeable and thoughtful young historians who can make sense of the world around them by understanding the past.

Please see our history curriculum maps below.