Children have a curiosity about the past. At Purston we strive to provide children with high quality teaching to ensure they have an understanding of Britain’s past alongside history of the world around them. We teach children about the lives and lifestyles of familiar people in the recent past and people and events in the more distant past.
It is important to teach children about History as it provides us with models of good and responsible behaviour and allows us to understand how society can change and develop.
In order to provide a rich History curriculum we use a range of stories, visits, visitors, artefacts and sources of information. These experiences are provided in order to stimulate children’s curiosity and engage them in their learning about the past.
We aim to teach children about important events that happen locally, alongside those that happen around the world that have had a significant impact on our way of life today. Children are encouraged to reflect on these findings, participate in discussions and express their ideas and opinions about events that happened in the past.
At Purston Infant School we aim to stimulate the children’s interest and understanding about the past. We teach children a sense of chronology, and through this they develop a sense of identity and a cultural understanding based on their historical heritage. The process of history is how we find out about the past, gathering information from a variety of sources, analysing it and communicating the findings to others.
The aims of history in our school are:
- to foster in children an interest in the past and to develop an understanding that enables them to enjoy all that history has to offer;
- to understand changes within living memory;
- to know about significant events, nationally or globally, beyond living memory such as the Great Fire of London
- to know about significant individuals in the past who have contributed to national and international achievements, some of which will be used to compare aspects of life in different periods;
- to develop a sense of chronology.
- to have some knowledge and understanding of historical events, people and places in their own locality;
- to help children understand society and their place within it, so that they develop a sense of their cultural heritage;
- to develop in children the skills of enquiry, investigation, analysis, evaluation and presentation.
History content can be accessed from; www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/239035/PRIMARY_national_curriculum_-_History.pdf
In order for parents to support children’s learning at home knowledge organisers are sent out on a half termly basis, providing parents with information on the topic and links to support learning at home with homework ideas.
Here are some photographs of Year 2’s visit from Sir William Petty, teaching the children about his experience of The Great Fire of London.
Remembering our fallen heroes
