modern lifeboats
Titanic – KQ6 – What are the best ways of stopping disasters such as the sinking of the Titanic ever happening again?

Pupils are employed as safety advisers to the UK and US governments in the aftermath of the sinking of the…

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apollo 11
Moon Landing – KQ6 – Commemorating the Moon Landing

How do you think we should remember the first man on the moon on July 21st 1969? What symbol could…

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Scott of the Antarctic – KQ4 – How do we know what happened on Scott’s last journey? A KS1 smart task

Pupils have already studied Scott’s last journey and have turned a series of events into first a living graph and…

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Brand new resource from the Grace Darling Museum
Grace Darling – KQ6 – How should we remember Grace Darling?

This last key question of 6 on the medium-term planning, focuses on her legacy and why we should commemorate her….

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scott of the antartic
Scott of the Antarctic – KQ5 – Why did he not get to the South Pole first?

In this lesson in the teaching sequence on Scott as a famous person, or as part of a more integrated…

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Toys – KQ3 – How can we tell these toys are old?

This smart task complements the existing lesson on the site using ICT . Rather than re-write the whole lesson this…

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top 10 history teaching
The top 10 things you need to know about chronology at KS2, but were afraid to ask.

The top 10 things you need to know about chronology at KS2, but were afraid to ask. 1. There is…

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Toys – KQ4 – What sorts of toys did our grandparents play with and how do we know?

Optional question: What toys did our grandparents get as Christmas presents when they were your age? Start with a discussion…

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toys
Toys – KQ5 – Who played with these toys in the past? and how can we know?

This is particularly suitable as an extension question for the older/ higher attaining pupils in KS1 if you are teaching…

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toy museum
Toys – KQ6 – How can we set up our own toy museum?

This final KS1 lesson on the Toys topic cements children’s understanding of old and new in an interesting way. Activity…

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OFSTED and assessment of primary history in the EIF for 2019
OFSTED and assessment of primary history in the EIF for 2019

OFSTED and assessment in primary history One of the features of deep dive subject inspections is that the two hardest…

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planner
Planner for teaching early Islamic civilization at KS2

For many schools this is new topic and one to be taught with particular sensitivity in the 21st century. Try…

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ofsted logo
What does OFSTED really think about 2 year KS3 history courses?

More than half of schools now run lengthened Key Stage 4 history courses, effectively shortening Key Stage 3 to cater…

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Sample page from outstanding website produced by Warwickshire's Leamington Spa Art Gallery and Museum
Toys old and new: Sorting and setting

This lesson draws on some excellent resources you may not have come across, produced by museums in Bedfordshire and Warwickshire. …

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ofsted logo
OFSTED’s report on teaching of Toys-outstanding lesson

When the inspector entered, the pupils were sitting on the carpet around the teacher. She was gently exploring whether they…

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ofsted logo
What does INTENT actually mean for history in the new OFSTED Framework for 2019? Building blocks and the Big Picture

Nothing could be simpler: intent is everything up to the point at which teaching happens in the classroom. It is…

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iron age
Teaching the Iron Age at KS2: are you teaching the right things?

In a recent article in Primary History by Karen Doull  of the Historical Association  adumbrated a list of the ‘Ten…

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keystage history
5 things primary history subject leaders should be doing next term

It obviously makes no sense to ordain a calendar of must-do tasks that all primary history leaders should be following….

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boudica
Roman Britain – KQ2 part 2 – Boudicca’s rebellion: from sequencing to living graph

This KS2 lesson on Roman Britain uses the idea of a living graph to see the ups and downs of…

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Time to drop insanity of a 3 year GCSE history course

Of all the phases of history education pupils now go through, KS4 is by far the least appealing. So why…

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Making a human living graph in the playground to show the highs and lows of Boudicca's revolt
Roman Britain – KQ2 part 2 additional information – Boudica’s rebellion: from sequencing to living graph

The focus on the dramatic story of Boudica is a good opportunity to help pupils to understand why things happen…

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boudica
Roman Britain – KQ2 part 2 additional information – Making sure you are teaching Boudica in the right way.

Let’s start with the name. Boudica is the correct spelling, not Boudicea. Boudica means ‘victory’. Her chariots were light, springy,…

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boudica
Roman Britain – KQ2 part 3 – What image do we have of Boudica today?

Key Stage 2 pupils find Boudica fascinating so this is a good context for exploring the tricky ideas of historical…

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Roman Britain – KQ3 – How were the Romans able to keep control over such a vast empire?

This lesson offers considerable variety in terms of learning approaches. Pupils work in tug-of-war teams to represent the differently weighted…

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ofsted logo
What do the new 2019 OFSTED Framework reports say about history in primary schools?

Even though we are only a month into term, OFSTED has been busy publishing its reports from the second week…

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Teaching Gunpowder Plot
How did Guy Fawkes feel before, during and after the night of the 5th November: pupils do the thinking.

Getting children to think about how Guy Fawkes felt, before, during and after the Gunpowder plot. This simple task, resourced…

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80th anniversary of the outbreak of World War Two

On 3 September 1939, Britain and France declared war on Germany after Adolf Hitler’s invasion of Poland. It was the…

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ofsted logo
What new OFSTED framework on work scrutiny means for history subject leaders.

What work scrutiny means for history subject leaders. We all worry about work scrutiny. Will the inspectors take into account…

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Anniversary of the start of the Great Fire.

On this anniversary of the outbreak of the Great Fire, take a look at the outstanding lesson which explores why…

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roman settlement
Roman Britain – KQ4 part 1 – Picture this. Creating a group drawing of a Roman town with all key buildings included in the right place

After re-capping the main features of Iron Age settlements, pupils work collaboratively in role as spies trying to find which…

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lyminge
KS2 update on Saxon conversion to Christianity-the first stone churches

Excavations in Kent have just revealed that there were STONE Saxon churches being built in England as early as AD…

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time team
Roman Britain – KQ4 part 2 – Is this another Roman villa?

NB Feb 28 2020. It has been brought to our attention this morning that the link to the video doesn’t work…

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Roman Britain – KQ5 – How can we solve the mystery of why this great 400 year empire suddenly came to an end? Can you make the links?

As this is a brief overview question, without time for much independent research, pupils are introduced to a series of…

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baths at bath
Roman Britain – KQ6 – What have the Romans ever done for us? Under the cloth

This activity is a good fun way of concluding a study of the Romans.  It is called ‘under the cloth’. …

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top 10 history teaching
10 things history leaders need to know about the new OFSTED 2019 Framework

10 things you need to know about leading history 1. Show you are teaching history You will have to show…

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saxon invasion
Making the Saxons relevant for BAME pupils

In the corridors of academia there has been much debate about the relevance of the british university and school history…

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robert the bruce
How significant was Bannockburn? What do Y7 pupils think?

When your pupils watch any sporting even that features the Scottish national anthem, remind them of its links to Bannockburn…

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keystage history
Making links in history at KS3: 5 simple questions to ask your pupils

5 quick and simple questions to help pupils make links in history at KS3 When else have we come across…

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ksh holding
Is chocolate bad for your history lessons at KS2? Warnings about OFSTED and SOME cross-curricular approaches

With OFSTED putting the curriculum under even greater scrutiny, it is perhaps timely to re-consider assumption about delivery of history…

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great fire
Swapping a Great Fire for a volcanic eruption? Looking for a new famous Event at KS1?

  In a recent article in the Historical association’s Primary History Sue Townsend makes a very strong case for introducing…

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50
How many of these 50 KS2 history concepts do your pupils understand?

How many of these KS2 history concepts do your pupils understand? Afterlife Army Blitz Border Christianity City Civil war Civilization…

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What have the Romans ever done for us? More than we think

It appears that we need to add anti-earthquake engineering to all the other benefits the Romans gave us: sanitation, medicine,…

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ksh holding
What does greater depth look like in history at KS2 and 3?

What does greater depth mean in history? So, we all know it doesn’t just mean knowing more stuff. We also…

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keystage history
Writing frames in KS2 and 3 history: Uncomfortable Procrustean bed or essential tool for explanatory writing.

For years history teachers have been using writing frames. Some are better than others. Some are downright unhelpful . It…

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EAST model
How to implement successful curriculum change in history: using the EAST model

Most schools will have come up with a new curriculum for history at a time when the statutory changes took…

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How should Germany be treated at the Paris peace conference? KS3 or KS4 task

This short but engaging task precedes any detailed analysis of the terms of the treaty itself. It has four distinct…

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storytelling
Using small stories to reveal big pictures in our history teaching: a practical example

Small stories and big pictures As history teachers, we love telling stories. We do this to motivate pupils as we…

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question mark
Improving your questioning in history to improve learning

We all know that less than 10% of questions we traditionally ask in British classrooms actually caused new learning. Most…

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historical association
GCSE history wagging KS3 dog says HA survey

Last month the Historical Association published its annual survey of the state of history in its secondary schools. About 300…

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Free at Last? How far had the Civil Rights Movement come by 1963?

How far have Afro-Americans come in their struggle for equality over the last 160 years? With many schools operating a…

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