Aims of the Curriculum Area

• We aim to develop students’ knowledge of how the world they live in has been impacted by past events. We will encourage them to think critically, weigh up different evidence and come to their own judgements on past events.
• Students will develop independence in the analysis of sources and interpretations, learning how to use historical terms and concepts in an increasingly complex way.
• We prepare our students for their future careers and embed oracy, literacy and numeracy throughout our curriculum.
• We deliver quality first teaching, bespoke intervention and build exam skills to drive academic success.

Teaching Methods and Student Organisation

• Students start their History journey in year 7 as mixed ability classes and remain in these groups throughout KS3. This approach enables the department to provide quality teaching to students of all abilities using a curriculum that is accessible to all.
• All lessons start with a Do Now Task (DNA); this is either a short challenging task based on independent spaced retrieval activity or a task based on qualified opinion and prior knowledge.
• All lessons promote challenge and provide a benchmark for measuring progress. A combination of teacher input (I do), demonstration/modelling (we do) and application (you do) coupled with skilfully used questioning helps assess student understanding and promotes inclusion for all.
• Our teachers use modelling to show students what excellent answers look like, unpacking each stage of their thinking and providing success criteria throughout to support students towards self-assessment and independence.

Curriculum and Resources

• Our students study history at a local, national and global level in line with the national curriculum.
• Students study significant events throughout history, making connections, drawing contrasts and analysing trends within periods and over long arcs of time.
• We have created a bespoke curriculum that gives students an opportunity to understand how the world they live in has been shaped by past events.
• Students will consider themes such as power and control, the role of religion within society, war and conflict, race and discrimination, developments in technology and rights and responsibilities.
• We are actively adapting ur curriculum to include a wide range of themes and concepts within history to ensure a broad and balanced curriculum for all to explore.

After KS3

• Students in Years 10 and 11 focus on preparation for Edexcel History GCSE. We study this specification as it compliments our broad and balanced curriculum at Key Stage 3.
• Our British History units are Medicine through time c1250-present and Early Elizabethan England 1558-88
• Our wider world studies are Weimar and Nazi Germany 1918-1939 and Superpower relations and the Cold War 1941-91

Other Activities

• Targeted intervention and support groups for students for key stage 4 take place throughout the year. Students are selected to access these groups based on a wide range of factors which include prior ability as well as wellbeing.