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How can we make effective use of the census in the primary history classroom?
Primary History article
If there is a list of sources that teachers are likely to be familiar with, it is almost certain that the census will be included. In part this is because this is something that we all participate directly in anyway so it has a personal resonance. It can hold a...
How can we make effective use of the census in the primary history classroom?
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Sources for the Great Fire of London and its context
Primary History feature
Nina Sprigge reveals two interesting sources that can supplement teaching the Fire of London.
Fire of London: fundraising for refugees
The receipt on the back cover provides evidence of national fundraising in 1666. It is touching that people from Cowfold, a little village outside London, cared enough to want to...
Sources for the Great Fire of London and its context
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Teaching primary history through concepts
Article
Teaching history in schools is quite new (it’s only been in the National Curriculum for English state schools since 1991), but the discipline of history as a subject is very ancient.
Thinking and writing in a recognisably historical way can be traced back to the ancient Greeks. Herodotus, an ancient...
Teaching primary history through concepts
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Primary History summer resource 2021: Using historical sources
Primary member resource
This year's free summer resource for primary members looks at using historical sources with primary pupils. Introducing children to sources is an important part of understanding the disciplinary nature of history. One of the key ideas we need to get pupils to understand is that history is based on sources, which...
Primary History summer resource 2021: Using historical sources
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Re-evaluating the role of statues
Primary History article
Like them or loathe them, statues are excellent learning resources and the recent events in Bristol and elsewhere should not dissuade us from using them to aid children’s historical knowledge and enquiry skills. In fact, in the current climate, statues need a careful re-evaluation of their role within our towns....
Re-evaluating the role of statues
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Changes in an aspect of social history from 1945 to 2000: youth culture
Primary History article
A history-themed topic based around music is a popular choice among many teachers and children. Music is after all a thread which runs through all of history, and one through which we can explore many other aspects of life in different times. It can be an exciting avenue into exploring...
Changes in an aspect of social history from 1945 to 2000: youth culture
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Using trade directories: reconstructing life 100 years ago
Primary History article
Alf Wilkinson has previously covered the importance of trade directories as a source that teachers can use in primary history. Alf develops this into a case study for a Lincolnshire village that can be used as a template for primary teachers. All communities have distinctive characteristics and Alf outlines these...
Using trade directories: reconstructing life 100 years ago
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Using shoes as an historical source
Primary History article
There is something fascinating about what people wore in the past. From corsets to clogs, the evolution of clothing and footwear can give an insight into different periods of history, an excellent way of engaging with the past. Shoes, in some form or another, have been around from the earliest...
Using shoes as an historical source
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Using original sources
Primary History article
Why would I want those old books in my classroom?
It has always been recognised that good primary history is able to connect the past with the world the children currently inhabit. That is why focusing on schools can be so useful. If there is one experience the children have...
Using original sources
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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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Using different sources to bring a topic to life: The Rebecca Riots
Primary History article
For primary school pupils a key aim of the National Curriculum for history is to understand the method of historical enquiry. Working with original sources is of course central to the whole process and provides a great way to inspire pupils’ experience of the subject. Young pupils, once they have...
Using different sources to bring a topic to life: The Rebecca Riots
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The Elizabeth cake
Primary History article
Hidden away on top of a dusty, battered cupboard in a local primary school were two equally dusty and battered log books. Each has seen better days and each could provide a range of links to local and national history. The log book was one of two found in one...
The Elizabeth cake
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Teaching sensitive subjects: slavery and Britain’s role in the trade
Primary History article
See also:
Teaching Slavery - HA guide
Slavery in Britain
Sarah Forbes Bonetta - scheme of work
Teaching Emotive and Controversial History
Diversity guidance for primary teachers and subject leaders
Slavery is a part of our history, and its impact can be seen in the statues of influential men, the...
Teaching sensitive subjects: slavery and Britain’s role in the trade
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Knowledge-rich approaches to history
Primary History article
In recent years, there has been growing support from policy makers in England for knowledge-rich curricula which view subjects like history as having cultural capital that all pupils should have access to regardless of background. The work of E.D. Hirsch has been particularly influential in arguing that a lack of...
Knowledge-rich approaches to history
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Emerging historians in the outdoors
Primary History article
I love history and I love the outdoors. I often find myself wondering who has walked down the same worn cobbled path, or climbed the same rickety stile. I am intrigued about a toy car I found in the garden, and speculate about who it might have belonged to. I...
Emerging historians in the outdoors
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Getting to grips with concepts in primary history
Primary History article
Perhaps one of the most perplexing aspects of teaching history is the fostering of conceptual understanding. History subject leaders often find this a challenging issue. Even if they have a decent grasp themselves, it can be difficult for others in the school who have to teach the subject.
Over recent...
Getting to grips with concepts in primary history
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Siege coins of the English Civil War
Primary History article
Looking at the bigger picture and focusing on the local impact can excite primary school children and help them make a connection to a significant event. Combining it with a cross-curricular approach can be a great challenge. One such period is that of the English Civil War which started in...
Siege coins of the English Civil War
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Dora Thewlis: Mill girl activist
Primary History article
Dora Thewlis was born in 1890 in Yorkshire to a family of textile workers employed in the mills around the Huddersfield Canal. She followed her mother and elder siblings into the mill at the age of 10, earning around £1 a week.
Dora’s family, and especially her mother, were very...
Dora Thewlis: Mill girl activist
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How can old advertisements be used in the primary classroom?
Primary History article
Advertising is a central part of our everyday lives. There are few ways to escape it and it has a long pedigree. It has long been recognised that it can help sell products through the power of the punch line or the visual image. Trade cards appeared as early as...
How can old advertisements be used in the primary classroom?
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Using the back cover image: Moustache cup
Primary History feature
The moustache cup I purchased on ebay is one of the most popular artefacts I use with students in a good game of ‘guess the object’. It has a wonderful quality of being at the same time familiar yet strange. Despite telling the students not to start with the question...
Using the back cover image: Moustache cup
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‘So why did they go into hiding?’ Anne Frank in her historical and social context
Primary History article
All too often Anne Frank becomes a symbol, used to show ‘the triumph of hope over evil’, even though she was killed during the Holocaust. Sometimes she is quoted utterly out of context to provide uplifting sentiments, or short phrases with redemptive messages.
What this lesson sets out to do...
‘So why did they go into hiding?’ Anne Frank in her historical and social context
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What can you do with an old postcard?
Primary History article
Whether looking at ‘events in living memory’ at Key Stage 1, or a local history study at Key Stage 2, old postcards are extremely useful. They are also relatively cheap and easy to get hold of.
One aspect that can easily be explored using old postcards is evidence - they are an...
What can you do with an old postcard?
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Making the children work for the information!
Primary History article
Your local museum is often a rich but sometimes overlooked resource. Images, documents and maps show a broad range of history but one that also relates to the children’s own local area. This allows children to see the connection with their own past, providing them with examples that they can...
Making the children work for the information!
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‘Not again!’ - an additional viewpoint on using railways
Primary History article
‘Not again!’ I can remember my son muttering as his football thudded against the kitchen wall, ‘I went there in Year 2 and then in Year 4 and now I have to go there again in Year 6.’ He was referring to his school trips to the remains of the gunpowder factories in our village,...
‘Not again!’ - an additional viewpoint on using railways
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The Shang: What can we tell about an ancient civilisation from one tomb?
Primary History article
The Shang Dynasty of China, based around the Yellow River area, is regarded as the first Chinese dynasty that we have written evidence for. It was established in around 1760 BC when Tang set up his capital in the city of Bo. Over the next 600 or 700 years the Shang Empire grew and shrank,...
The Shang: What can we tell about an ancient civilisation from one tomb?
