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 3.

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 3 or 10 weeks later in term 1 Year 4 is hardly likely to matter that much.

Ancient Egypt : a new Pompeii?

A few weeks ago, Egyptian archaeologists the discovery of a “lost city” of the pharaohs dating back some 3,400 years…

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planner
Outstanding medium term planner for Ancient Civilizations: Egypt Y3

At one point in recent years, there were real fears that Ancient Egypt would be axed from the KS2 curriculum….

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planner
Outstanding Scheme of Work for Stone Age to Iron Age

This scheme of work, judged outstanding by an OFSTED history inspector now links to all the fully-resourced outstanding lessons and…

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stoneage
Stone Age to Iron Age – KQ1 – Is it true to say that Stone Age man was just a simple hunter gatherer only interested in food and shelter?

This KS2 outstanding history lesson on the Stone Age revolves around the reveal of an object found at Star Carr…

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stoneage
Stone Age to Iron Age – KQ2 – How much did life change when man learned how to farm?

This session focuses on the concept of change and continuity. Pupils learn of the major changes that came in the…

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artist illustration
Stone Age to Iron Age – KQ3 – What can we learn about life in the Stone Age from a study of Skara Brae?

Enquiry based lesson on images of the remains of buildings found from a study of Skara Brae, a stone-built Neolithic…

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Saxon Grave KS2
Anglo-Saxons – KQ2 – The mystery of the empty Saxon grave.

This highly engaging lesson places pupils in the role of detectives.  After a short briefing they have to work out…

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stonehenge
Stone Age to Iron Age – KQ4 – Why did they build Stonehenge?

Pupils are shown a video tour of the site and discover when, where, and how it was built. They speculate…

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danebury
Stone Age to Iron Age – KQ5 – What was life like in the Iron Age and how do we know?

Pupils speculate as to what holes in the ground shown in an aerial photograph might be, before annotating an artist’s…

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Dragons Den in history
Stone Age to Iron Age – KQ5b – Dragons Den : Which technological development should our Iron Age settlement get next?

Set the scene. A group of the most important members of the Iron Age settlement have gathered to consider their…

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maiden castle
Stone Age to Iron Age – KQ6 – Iron Age Hill Fort at Maiden Castle

Iron Age Crimewatch AD 50.   Who killed the 52 dead bodies at Maiden Castle?  Key Question 6 KS2 pupils…

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ancient egypt
Ancient Egypt – KQ1 – Launching the Enquiry. So you think you know about Ancient Egypt?

What can we quickly add to what we already know about Ancient Egypt? This way of starting should build on…

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Ancient Egypt – KQ4 Part 1 – What can an old clay model and a pair of old sandals tell us about life in Ancient Egypt 5,000 years ago?

What does the evidence tell us about the everyday life for men women and children? Here the focus is on…

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Crimewatch Ancient Egypt: Tomb Robbers
Ancient Egypt – KQ4 Part 2 – Using evidence of Life in Ancient Egypt KS2 – Pupils love playing history detectives

Crimewatch Ancient Egypt: Tomb Robbers This fun activity is a brilliant way of developing pupils’ deductive thinking skills in a…

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Ancient Egypt – KQ4 – Additional Smart Task

(NB This is not included on the planner) How can we learn so much about Ancient Egypt from just these…

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upils use this website to actually assist Anubis in carrying out a mummification
Ancient Egypt – KQ5 Part 1 – Embalming the dead in Ancient Egypt : Great history and great literacy too

Helping the Hopeless Embalmer This really fun lesson, in the style of ‘mantle of expert’, asks the children to help…

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Scene from the Book of the Dead. Pupils take on the role of characters in the image and act out the journey of Ani to Osiris and the afterlife
Ancient Egypt – KQ5 Part 2 – After-life lesson KS2

Understanding the Book of the Dead: from page to stage Using simple drama techniques to make a very old document…

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pyramids
Ancient Egypt – KQ6 – What did Ancient Egypt have in common with other civilizations at the time?

The main activity here is called gallery. Pupils are shown images (printed from the KQ6 PowerPoint) which are displayed around…

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ancient world
Ten things your KS2 pupils should know about language and communication in the ancient world.

This article should inform your teaching of the Ancient Civilizations topic Imagine a world without writing-without any writing at all:…

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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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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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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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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…

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