History
The History curriculum at George Tomlinson draws from and makes full use of our immediate and wider local area, enabling children to develop a deep understanding of the rich history of their locality.
Topics are informed by the National Curriculum and are sensitive to children’s backgrounds, as well as the context of the local area.
The History curriculum at George Tomlinson is carefully planned and structured chronologically to ensure that current learning is linked to previous learning and that the school’s approaches are informed by current pedagogy.
In line with the National Curriculum 2014, the curriculum at George Tomlinson aims to ensure that all pupils:
- Gain a coherent knowledge and understanding of Britain’s past and that of the wider world which helps to stimulate pupils’ curiosity to know more about the past;
- Are encouraged to ask perceptive questions, weigh evidence, sift arguments, and develop perspective and judgement;
- Begin 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.
Every child learns history at George Tomlinson, from EYFS to Year 6.
In the EYFS, children learn about their own life story and their family's history; comment on familiar images from the past; as well as comparing and contrasting historical characters from stories.
In Year 1, children begin to learn about the history of our local area through the story of a significant person before comparing how life has changed within living memory. Then, in Year 2, the children learn about a significant event beyond living memory: in our case the Great Fire of London.
In Key Stage 2, our children learn, chronologically, about the changes in Britain in prehistoric times as well as since the Roman invasion. Significant ancient civilizations are also studied and connections are made between their achievements and those made in Britain at the same time.
Our children learn in lessons that are clearly sequenced to ensure that previous learning is built upon and prior knowledge is used to inform their new learning. Primary and secondary sources - from artefacts to documents to videos - are used to bring history lessons to life. We draw upon the fantastic opportunities we have on our doorstep by ensuring the cultural capital we have access to is fully embraced. Visits to museums and local sites of interest, as well as workshops and visiting speakers, are a key part of our curriculum.
As a result, we are developing a school of confident and enthusiastic historians who are interested in the events of the past and are able to make connections with their own families, their area, the city the live in and where they may have come from originally.