They will have opportunities to study important episodes and developments in the history of Britain, Ireland and the wider world from earliest times to the present day and to develop an understanding of the process of change and continuity in the world around them.

AIMS

• To arouse an interest in and curiosity about the past.
• To promote an understanding of the concept of time.
• To stimulate imagination and empathetic understanding and appreciation of their environment by studying how life today has evolved from the past.
• To allow children to experience the excitement of investigating and solving problems in an historical context by applying their powers of observation and reasoning.
• To widen the child's understanding of himself by studying people of other times.
• To allow the children to experience the excitement and understanding of the skills of the historian.

TEACHING METHODS

Teaching methods will depend largely on the task in hand and will include whole class, individual and group work.  Pupils will engage in fieldwork visiting places of historical interest both locally and further a field.  Pupils will be encouraged to ask questions and develop study skills through use of artefacts, photographs, library and reference materials.

DIFFERENTIATION

Differentiation consists of composite classes working on the same topic but at different levels.  Pupils within year groups will be given different worksheets and tasks according to their ability.  They will also be given varying degrees of teacher support.

SKILLS

• Working together
• Talking/listening
• Observing - making good use of senses
• Acquiring   
  - analysing and evaluating historical evidence and information.
  - can scan pictures
  - can use page references
  - become familiar with use of contents/index of a book.
  - begin to recognise the difference between story and fact books.
  - encourage children to ask ‘How do we know?'
• Chronology
  - to be able to use basic vocabulary, eg yesterday, past, future etc.
  - to understand the chronology of the year to record sequence of a story heard.
• Using memory and recall
  - orally, writing, drama, pictorial, representation.
• Empathetic Understanding
  - children are encouraged to express their feelings in response to an historical story and also to retell, dramatise or illustrate part of whole stories.
• Asking Historical Questions
  - to become aware of basic historical questions.
  What happened? 
  Why did it happen? 
  Where did it happen?

Attitudes

To develop an attitude of tolerance, co-operation, open-mindedness towards others.
To develop an appreciation and understanding of other peoples' cultures both past and present.

Resources

Artefacts - eg inkwell, old nib pens, quills, old registers, maps, diaries, oral history pack, lamps, wash-board, churn, horse and cart, blue-prints.

Concepts

• Chronology
• Change and continuity
• Similarity/difference
• Evidence
• Oldness
• Cause and effect.