keystage 1

Knowing and being able to explain the sequence in which your pupils will experience their history topics is an important part of the history subject leader’s role. But it can be difficult to be sure what works best. With our wealth of experience we are well placed to give you this crucial advice. Indeed, we nail our colours to the mast so that our planning, lessons, assessment and progression all follow the same rationale and are pitched to particular year groups.

Generally, the fine distinction between year groups cannot be empirically proven by research but having worked with 500 primary schools on their history curriculum over 18 years the following resources are suitable for year 2.

That does not mean it cannot be taught in other year groups. Of course, let’s face it, whether it is taught in term 3 Year 2 or 10 weeks later in term 1 Year 3 is hardly likely to matter that much.

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KS1 Medium Term Planner for Spreading the Word: Caxton to Bell

The ‘significant people’ element of the KS1 history curriculum now requires pupils to compare achievements of individuals within a linked…

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william caxton
Caxton and Bell – KQ1 – What did Caxton do that was so important to us today?

Following a mysterious PowerPoint slow reveal in which pupils look for clues to Caxton’s fame, pupils are given a brief…

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caxton press
Caxton and Bell – KQ2 – Quick the King and Queen are coming! How Caxton changed the way books were made

Having shown pupils how books were made before Caxton’s time, the main focus of the lesson is on how the…

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Caxton
Caxton and Bell – KQ3 – How and why should Caxton be remembered?

Having discussed the possible options for ways of commemorating his achievement, pupils have to create a new plaque on his…

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Caxton and Bell – KQ4 – How did Alexander Graham Bell manage to make a telephone work so long ago? and why did he want to?

The focus here is on sequencing of events, looking for turning points in his life and for his personal motivation….

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Caxton and Bell – KQ6 – How has the telephone improved since the days of Bell?

This session really helps pupils to get a strong sense of change through time, linking the past of Bell’s time…

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Mary Anning Expert Advice
Mary Anning – KQ1 – Why do we remember Mary Anning?

This introductory session attempts to place Mary’s life in a broader context of time and place and to whet pupils’…

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Mary anning fossils
Mary Anning – KQ2 – What did Mary do in her life that was so special?

Pupils move from the sequencing of the major events of Mary’s life to a more sophisticated understanding of which of…

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anning and birch
Mary Anning – KQ3 – What sort of person was Mary that helped her to succeed in a man’s world?

This a much shorter enquiry than the others, and comprises just three short activities Step 1 Having recapped the story…

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elizabeth philpot
Mary Anning – KQ4 – Which other people were important in Mary’s life and why?

This activity is an interesting way of getting pupils to think about Mary’s life but in a non-narrative way. Instead…

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mary anning curiosity
Mary Anning – KQ5 – How do we know about Mary’s actions which happened so long ago?

The main activity in this session is called Prove it! A number of pieces of evidence from Mary’s time are…

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Mary Anning – KQ6 – How and why should Mary Anning be remembered? Have your say.

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

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The Great Fire – KQ1 – How can we work out why the Great Fire started?

This innovative session places pupils right from the start of the enquiry in the role of detectives to discover when,…

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samuel pepys diary
The Great Fire – KQ2 – What happened during the Great Fire and how do we know?

This lesson focuses on the idea of evidence and proof. Can pupils find evidence to back up statements made in…

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florence nightingale
Florence Nightingale – KQ1 – Why do we think Florence Nightingale is remembered?

Pupils make deductions from a range of visual clues to see if they can work out what job Florence Nightingale…

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Florence Nightingale – KQ2 – Why did Florence place herself in such danger by going to the Crimea?

Who influenced her decision to go? Already introduced to the major events in Florence’s life, children now speculate on why…

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The Great Fire – KQ3 – Why did the Great Fire burn down so many houses?

This Great Fire lesson focuses on developing children’s powers of explanations.  They will already have looked at the sequence of…

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fighting fit florence
Florence Nightingale – KQ3a – Fighting Fit. What did Florence do to improve the lives of the soldiers when she arrived in the Crimea?

In this lesson children compare the appalling conditions in the hospitals on Florence’s arrival at Scutari. With the help of…

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florence nightingale
Florence Nightingale – KQ3b – Smart task – What did people really think of Florence Nightingale?

Learning objectives children can respond in role showing awareness of differing attitudes to Florence they can judge whether each group…

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The Great Fire – KQ4 – Could more have been done to slow the spread of the fire?

This session comprises three distinct phases. The first is mime-based, looking at the firefighting methods used and discussing their disadvantages….

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After the great fire
The Great Fire – KQ5 – How did people manage to live through the Great Fire?

Miraculously for a city that was the third largest in the world, consumed by a fire that lasted for days,…

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The Great Fire – KQ6 – How shall we rebuild London after the Great Fire?

This lesson gives full rein to children’s creative flair, disciplined by evidence.  The City of London is offering a prize…

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Florence nightingale
Florence Nightingale – KQ4a – What was Florence Nightingale’s greatest achievement?

Pupils have been drafted in to help with the wording on a statue to Florence Nightingale which had badly worn…

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history detectives
Florence Nightingale – KQ5 – How do we know so much about Florence Nightingale when she lived so long ago?

This differentiated core activity is Prove it! Working in pairs as detectives with their own find the clue sheets and…

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florence nightingale
Florence Nightingale – KQ6 – Should Florence Nightingale rather than Mary Seacole have her statue at St.Thomas’ hospital?

NB This lesson overlaps, as you would expect, with a similar lesson on Mary Seacole. It is slightly different in…

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Mary Seacole blue plaque
Mary Seacole – KQ1 – How can we work out why Mary Seacole is famous?

This session focuses on working out WHY Mary Seacole is commemorated today 200 years after she was born, and looks…

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mary seacole
Mary Seacole – KQ3 – What was Mary’s greatest achievement and how do we know?

The focus here is mainly on the evidence for Mary’s achievement. This is important as she was a more-or-less forgotten…

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mary seacole
Mary Seacole – KQ4 – How did life change for Mary after the Crimean war?

Pupils create a fortunes graph showing the highs and lows of Mary’s life after the Crimea, identify a key turning…

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mary seacole
Mary Seacole – KQ5 – What made Mary so special?

A short session aimed at generating adjectives to capture the special qualities that Mary had and to provide examples of…

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mary seacole
Mary Seacole – KQ6 – Why doesn’t everyone agree that Mary deserves her statue at St. Thomas’ hospital?

This lesson places pupils in the role of Mantle of the Expert. A new monument to Mary Seacole was erected…

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Guidance for teaching Amy Johnson as a Famous Person in Key Stage 1

This study of a significant individual has been designed to form part of a broader topic on a similar theme…

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Wright Brothers
Teaching the Wright Brothers as a Famous Person in Key Stage 1

The Wright brothers offers an exciting opportunity for pupils to explore a topic that should engage their interest, provide plenty…

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Wright Brothers – KQ1 – What do you think the Wright brothers did to make them famous?

At the very start of the topic, on the assumption that you haven’t told them what the topic is about!!…

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Wright Brothers – KQ2 – How did the Wright brothers manage to be the first to launch a man powered flight?

This enquiry comprises a series of three smart tasks: the first is a sequencing task based on storytelling; the second…

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wright brothers
Wright Brothers – KQ3 activity 1 – Why did the Wright brothers succeed where others had failed?

Sarah Duck describes how her class tackled this key question. The task involves children reading small diamond-shaped text cards, to…

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wright brother flyer
Wright Brothers – KQ3 activity 2 – Spying on the Wright Brothers.

This reconstruction relay – part of KQ3, Why did the Wright Brothers succeed where others had failed – is fantastic…

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Wright Brothers – KQ4 – The Wright Brothers first flight. KS1 Prove it!

How can we possibly know about the Wright Brothers first flight when there’s nobody alive now who saw it? This…

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Wright Brothers
Wright Brothers – KQ4 – one teacher’s alternative approach – Wright brothers: prove to me that it really happened

This lesson was taught by Sarah Duck, Leading Teacher for History, Hampshire LA.  She kindly describes for us how the…

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Wright Brothers – KQ5 – How did flight change as a result of the Wright Brothers’ work?

This activity goes beyond simple sequencing of images, which pupils first attempted at the start of the topic, to explaining…

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wright brothers
Wright Brothers – KQ6 – How should the Wright brothers be remembered?

Commemorating the Wright brother’s achievements with words young children can understand Pupils have to create a plaque to commemorate the…

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Remembrance Day – When did we start wearing poppies and have we always done so?

More than a century ago, in 1921, paper poppies were first sold to raise money for returned soldiers of the…

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mary seacole
Are you teaching the right things about Mary Seacole to your children? 10 things to be sure to teach

Are you teaching the right things about Mary Seacole to your children? 10 things to be sure to teach: 1….

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Titanic – KQ1 – Launching the Titanic enquiry, drawing on pupils’ prior knowledge

What do we already know about the Titanic and what can we work out from a picture? This lesson’s activities…

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Titanic – KQ2 – What was so special about life on the Titanic?

What was so special about life on board the Titanic? and was it the same for everyone? In this enquiry…

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Titanic lesson
Titanic – KQ3 – How could the unsinkable Titanic sink?

This Y2 lesson takes pupils understanding beyond that of knowing what happened to the Titanic to work out why it…

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KS1 History Planner for Scott of the Antarctic topic

Medium term planning and planner for Scott of the Antarctic  KS1 This topic has been designed for Term 3 of…

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titanic
Titanic – KQ4 – How should we film the sinking of the Titanic?

Stephen Spielberg has asked for a historically accurate poster for a new film he is planning on the sinking of…

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Scott of the Antarctic – KQ1 – Who on earth is this famous person?

This fun first lesson on Scott of the Antarctic using the slow reveal technique of an iconic image to enable…

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Scott of the Antarctic – KQ2b -Scott of the Antarctic: From sequencing to Living graph Key question

This activity enabled children to see how certain events had a positive or a negative effect on Scott’s expedition to…

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scott of the antartic
Scott of the Antarctic – KQ3 -Why did Scott risk his life going to the South Pole?

The concept of an intrepid explorer may not be completely alien to even the youngest children as the media does…

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