Keystage history

What makes an outstanding history lesson at KS2?

With very little national guidance now coming from OFSTED by way of revisions to the subject-specific criteria for outstanding primary…

The teaching process in history at KS2

Key Stage 2 history teaching is often unfairly caricatured as a teacher telling interested pupils lots of interesting stories: fun…

Help Tom to fight the Great Fire. Smart Task

This ICT based activity draws heavily on the superb new website created as a joint enterprise by the National Archives,…

Long-term planning at Key Stage 2

The advent of the new curriculum for history marked the most significant change in your school’s history planning for over…

Short-term planning in history at KS2

As a rule, this site does not recommend the publication of short-term planning, preferring instead to focus on very detailed…

History and literacy at Key Stage 2

Although OFSTED still points out that opportunities for exploiting the link between history and literacy are still being overlooked, the…

KS1 : Going to the Seaside-the mystery of the pier

One of the more interesting features of the Seaside holidays topic is the fact that it opens up discussion, even…

Views of learners in history at Key Stage 2

There has been very little published research on the views of KS2 pupils on their history work, other than lots…

The learning process in history at KS2

Given that this site specialises in giving practical support to busy teachers and subject leaders, you may be surprised to…

Roles of learners

One of the best ways of exciting young children in history is to put them in role. Dorothy Heathcote’s approach…

Left luggage activity on the Titanic using artefacts provided by a Southampton Museum

Imaginative history outcomes at Key Stage 1

A key part of motivating infants in history is providing interesting practical products that really stimulate their interest. When so…

50 imaginative history learning activities for KS1

This ground-breaking section offers a massive range of ideas, arranged in alphabetical order. Some of the titles may seem a…

Are we fair to the Vikings? A question of interpretation. SMART TASK KS2

Pupils are shown a range of stereotypical images of Vikings, using slides 2 and 3. This should be used to…

Testing a simple hypothesis about where the early Anglo-Saxons lived and how we know

This ambitious but engaging lesson asks children to test some simple hypotheses about where the early Saxons settled. They start…

When Prohibition was so popular when it was introduced, why had it failed within 12 years? SMART TASK

In this varied series of activities, students predict from pictures, categorise influence cards, and create a tweet before structuring an…

Raising attainment at Key Stage 4

This section of the site contains four different types of advice. There is general advice, outlining factors that usually explain…

Italian foreign policy-outstanding lesson

At what point did Mussolini seem to side more with Germany than with Britain or France? Students arrive at the…

‘Gladstone’s conversion to Home Rule was a calculated political act’. Assess the validity of this claim

Start by posing the question as a puzzle to be solved. Why would Gladstone convert so suddenly to Home Rule…

Using Fiction: teaching Stone Age to Bronze Age in history at KS2

Using Boy with the Bronze Axe by Kathleen Fidler to help you teach Stone Age to Bronze Age and Skara…

The Empire strikes back! SMART TASK KS3

Having previously investigated the criticism of empire, students now set about defending it. After studying a contemporary Indian view of…

Teaching source work imaginatively in AS and A2 history

Imaginative approaches to source work Again, 10 examples are provided on a separate PowerPoint presentation. The approach has been to…

Curriculum planning for post-16 history

As all schools and colleges have their own schemes of work I have not made the modelling of good schemes…

Why should Mary Anning be remembered? Have your say. SMART TASK

In Lyme Regis they are going to improve their Museum dedicated to Mary Anning. It will cost a lot of…

New brilliantly differentiated lesson on Tudor theatre for KS2: 5 great differentiation strategies that don’t need masses of prep.

New brilliantly differentiated lesson on Tudor theatre for KS2: 5 great differentiation strategies that don’t need masses of prep. You…

Inclusion at Key Stage 1

In addition to advice on: being healthy, staying safe, enjoying and achieving, making a positive contribution etc, this site focuses…

Personalised learning in history at KS 1

This is certainly one of the key areas to be focusing on in the next few years and lies at…

Gender issues in history at Key Stage 1

It is tempting when thinking about boys’ achievement to focus on teaching and learning, but there is a stage before…

Gifted and Talented in history at KS1

Much has been written in general terms about identifying and then catering for able pupils in history. OFSTED and others…

Motivating pupils in history at Key Stage 1

The essence of what appeals to pupils can often be summed up by the words, People, Puzzle and Point. Children…

Smart Task Puzzle Corner – Why did so many infants die when the death rate was falling?

Puzzle corner: SMART thinking skills task on why so many infants continued to die before their first birthday at a…

Who started the Korean War? Smart Task

In this short starter smart task students are given two contradictory accounts of the start of the Korean War, both…

Really effective strategy : Dear Producer (video critique) features in new KQ6 lesson on Ancient Greeks

Those of you familiar with the technique Dear Producer will know that it asks pupils to evaluate how well a…

Using artefacts to help children’s historical understanding at Key Stage 1

Since the early 90s, artefacts have become increasingly available either to purchase or to loan. Many firms offer useful replicas…

Using ICT and film at Key Stage 1

This section alerts you to where you will find examples of published best practice as well as featuring a few…

Teaching chronology at Key Stage 1

Mention the teaching of chronology to most infant teachers and their eyes glaze over. Their experience is that it is…

‘100’ great ideas for teaching history at KS1

At present there are nearly 80 ideas arranged in alphabetical order. You will see that a brief description is offered,…

What makes an outstanding lesson in history at KS1?

There are no separate OFSTED criteria for outstanding primary history let alone for infants alone. The criteria HMI use are…

The teaching process in history at KS1

The approach offered on this site is only one of many you might know, or even use. Heaven forbid that…

Personal & Family: Ourselves Key Stage 1

It is not always easy knowing what history to teach very young infants. There are three main issues. How do…

Teaching Myself – Muddled Bags

As you would expect, it is far better to start with the children themselves and images of them growing up,…

Teaching Nursery Rhymes to Key Stage 1

This topic is extremely well suited to children in Year R as part of the Foundation stage curriculum. Not only…

Using minute papers to monitor student progress in GCSE and A level history lessons.

Minute papers are small doubled-sided A5 sheets, blank other than the pre-printed heading which is always in the form of…

When Italy signed two peace treaties with Abyssinia just 7 years before, why then did Mussolini invade in 1935? Explanation builder

Students are given a short answer to this question that appeared as an answer on the Student Room website. It…

Keystage history

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