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Film: What's the wisdom on... Evidence and sources (Primary)
Article
Please note: the 'What's the Wisdom On' film series has been produced principally for secondary school history teachers, however some of the content is transferrable to a primary setting. Secondary members can view the film here
We know how difficult life is for teachers in the current circumstances. We also understand your need...
Film: What's the wisdom on... Evidence and sources (Primary)
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Music in the History Curriculum
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the current National Curriculum and some content and references are outdated.
In a primary school in Devon, there is a teacher who sings to his class every day: traditional songs; love songs; lyrical ballads; sea shanties; tales of mystery and suspense; songs of ritual and ceremony, hunting songs,...
Music in the History Curriculum
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Teaching about the Russian invasion of Ukraine and events happening there
Article
The events of the last few days appear to have come out of nowhere to many people, especially children. While tensions have existed in the region for some time Russia’s decision to attack Ukraine was without provocation.
To have war return in such a way to the edges of Europe...
Teaching about the Russian invasion of Ukraine and events happening there
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Putting the Story back into History
Primary History article
Children love stories. They like the drama, the excitement, the chance to listen and to wonder. Narrative is a very important part of history and sometimes, by concentrating on facts or on skills, we tend to lose the view of the big picture, especially in the Key Stage 2 curriculum...
Putting the Story back into History
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The Roaring Twenties: teaching a decade of change across Key Stages 1 and 2
Primary History article
This article explores how one topic can be used in different ways to support historical understanding at Key Stage 1 or Key Stage 2. The themes highlighted could link into possible golden threads to enable connections to be made across a school’s curriculum. The ‘Roaring Twenties’ also provide a real...
The Roaring Twenties: teaching a decade of change across Key Stages 1 and 2
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History in the Foundation Stage
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum.
In September 2000, the introduction of a foundation stage for children aged three to the end of the reception year was widely welcomed for the way in which it confirmed a distinct identity for the early years in education. The recent guidance...
History in the Foundation Stage
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Cabinets of Curiosities, The History of Museums
Article
Delving into the origin and history of museums, one finds that particular themes emerge which are still present amongst the underpinning dynamics of museums in the 21st Century. Inseparable from the story of museums and galleries, for example, are the notions of ‘collecting’ and ‘curiosity’ and likewise, one’s attention is...
Cabinets of Curiosities, The History of Museums
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In My View: Children Writing History
Primary History article
Getting ready
Before actually putting children to paper and pencil it is useful to spend some time clarifying the issues relating to the written task through other verbal media, which will help above all the least able pupils. We have found the following activities help children prepare for writing at...
In My View: Children Writing History
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History book for the literacy hour
Article
Jo Barkham reviews the book 'A Street Through Time, A 12,000 year journey along the same street', illustrated by Steve Noon and written by Dr Anne Millard, and comments on how the book can be used at Key Stage 1.
History book for the literacy hour
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Slavery in Britain
Primary History article
Images reflect the social customs and attitudes of the society in which they are produced, and we may nowdisapprove of these attitudes. Conversely, our own ideas of what is right and wrong may well have been unacceptable in the past. Among these are the rights accorded to children, the disabled,...
Slavery in Britain
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Opportunities for making use of your local park
Primary History article
Local parks are important local amenities that both enhance our wellbeing and provide an important contribution to the environment, especially in urban areas. This article identifies ways in which you can explore your local park, an amenity that, is familiar to most children, within its historical perspective. It considers resources...
Opportunities for making use of your local park
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Drama and story telling
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum and some content may be outdated.
Everyone loves a story - especially a story well told. To encourage learning all primary teachers should consider the creative art of telling a story, as well as developing a variety of ways of interacting through...
Drama and story telling
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Primary History at Key Stage 1
Primary Expert Podcasts
Please note: this resource pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum
In this series of podcasts Dr Penelope Harnett, UWE and Sarah Whitehouse Senior Primary Lecturer at University of the West of England examine good history at Key Stage 1.
1. Chronology
2. What should history at Key Stage 1 do? Local History
3....
Primary History at Key Stage 1
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Primary History at Key Stage 2
Primary Expert Podcasts
In this series of podcasts Karin Doull, Principal Lecturer and Subject Co-ordinator (Primary History Education) at the University of Roehampton examines good history at Key Stage 2. 1. What makes a good primary history curriculum? 2. What makes a good history curriculum at Key Stage 2?3. Personalisation and local links4. The...
Primary History at Key Stage 2
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Film: What's the wisdom on... Similarity and Difference (Primary)
Article
Please note: the 'What's the Wisdom On' film series has been produced principally for secondary school history teachers, however some of the content is transferrable to a primary setting. Secondary members can view the film here
'What’s the wisdom on…' is a popular feature in our secondary journal Teaching History and provides the perfect stimulus for a department meeting....
Film: What's the wisdom on... Similarity and Difference (Primary)
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Chronology and local history: Year 6
Primary History case study
Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum and some content may be outdated.
Editorial note: This short paper introduces a highly creative, imaginative and enthralling case-study of a local history project for year 6 pupils. The teaching programme has a chronological spine that provides coherence and focus. Chronology is...
Chronology and local history: Year 6
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Communicating about the past: Resource H
Article
Key stage 2-3 History Transition Project: sample scheme of work on Alexander the Great
This resource was created as part of the above project whose activities are described in the introduction to Resource D. Three teachers, Geraint Brown (an AST) and Matt Stanford, both of Cottenham Village College, and Dave...
Communicating about the past: Resource H
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Pull-out posters: Primary History 101
The British Civil Wars; Young Quills 2025
Poster 1: The British Civil Wars
Poster 2: Young Quills 2025
Pull-out posters: Primary History 101
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Prehistoric Scotland
Classic Pamphlet
Prehistory is an attempt to reconstruct the story of human societies inhabiting a given region before the full historical record opens there. Its data, furnished by archaeology, are the constructions members of such societies erected and the durable objects they made. The events which should form its subject matter naturally...
Prehistoric Scotland
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Primary History summer resource 2025: Women with power
Primary member resource
For this year’s Primary History summer resource, we have selected a focus on the lives of women at a particular period – that of the Anglo-Saxon or the early medieval period. This period covers a substantial period of time – around 600 years. It was a time of catalyst and...
Primary History summer resource 2025: Women with power
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Pull-out posters: Primary History 97
Paris Olympics; Parks and gardens in Britain since 1066
Poster 1: Paris Olympics 1924
Poster 2: Parks and gardens in Britain since 1066
Pull-out posters: Primary History 97
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Artificial Intelligence (AI) in primary history – take CARE!
Primary History article
Teaching has embraced many revolutionary changes before: the photocopier, the calculator, the internet, even the smartboard! The Assistant Director-General of UNESCO (2023) though feels that these could pale into insignificance when compared to the rise of AI. This article looks at ways in which Generative AI might be used by...
Artificial Intelligence (AI) in primary history – take CARE!
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Archaeology - An approach to teaching history at Key Stage 2. Curriculum history
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum.
Alongside modern University buildings, at Beckett Park, (part of Leeds Metropolitan University), there is evidence of a monastic grange, a seventeenth century farmhouse, and an eighteenth century mansion which was extended in Victorian Times. The Beckett Park Archaeology Project was established in...
Archaeology - An approach to teaching history at Key Stage 2. Curriculum history
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Primary History summer resource 2024: the Ancient Greeks
Primary member resource
Our free summer resource for 2024 is intended to enhance your subject knowledge about Ancient Greece.
The first article looks at an individual Greek, Pytheas. Often Greece is taught largely as an insular place of city states, but the reality is that Greece was heavily involved in trade and they...
Primary History summer resource 2024: the Ancient Greeks
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Pull-out posters: Primary History 95
Deaf Londoners in the 1660s
Everywhere you look in history you can find deaf people and sign languages.
Pull-out posters: Primary History 95
