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Primary History 58: The Olympics
The primary education journal of the Historical Association
THE OLYMPICS: TEACHING HISTORY TODAY
04 Editorial: Nelson Mandela, Apartheid and the Olympics
05 Think Bubble: What ever happened to the Standing Long Jump? - Peter Vass
06 Public celebration of the 1864 Olympian Festival - Dominic Wallis
PLANNING FOR THE OLYMPICS
08 Primary History and planning for teaching the...
Primary History 58: The Olympics
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The Charles Dickens Primary School Project
Historian article
For many years London South Bank University [LSBU] trainee teachers have been engaged in a wide range of mini history-led, cross-curricular projects in local primary schools, culminating in the students teaching lessons to groups of children. Some of these projects have been on different aspects of community history, including in-depth...
The Charles Dickens Primary School Project
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Podcast: Mad or Bad? Was Henry VI a tyrant?
Presidential Lecture 2011
Professor Anne Curry delivered her final Presidential lecture at the Historical Association Annual Conference 2011 in Manchester.
Henry VI (1422-61) was England's youngest king, only nine months old when he succeeded his famous father. Traditionally he is seen as incompetent, pious and, latterly, insane, and thereby causing the Wars of...
Podcast: Mad or Bad? Was Henry VI a tyrant?
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'Be bloody, bold and resolute': Two possible interpretations of 'local history'
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum and some content may be outdated.
As a pre-Plowden primary teacher who queued to get my copy of that report in 1967 and as a contributory author to the Cambridge Primary Review (Alexander, 2009) forty-two years later I can claim, not an...
'Be bloody, bold and resolute': Two possible interpretations of 'local history'
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On-demand Primary CPD: Spring 2026
Information
We know that it’s not easy for teachers to access CPD: workload is high, budgets are tight and it can be difficult to get out of school. We know how essential your CPD is to you and that is why we have worked to provide a wide range of on-demand...
On-demand Primary CPD: Spring 2026
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Ofsted Framework 2025: What does it mean for me?
Primary CPD in partnership with the Geographical Association
6 March 2026
Book Now
Supporting quality in primary history and geography
The Ofsted 2025 EIF and report card system are now in schools. The Deep Dive has gone but does this mean that subject expertise no longer matters? In fact the opposite is true. Subject remains at the heart...
Ofsted Framework 2025: What does it mean for me?
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Webinar series: AI in primary history
HA webinar series for primary teachers and history subject leaders
What does this series cover?
The proliferation of generative artificial intelligence is transforming education, the economy and society at a blistering pace. In the face of such seismic change, it can feel daunting. Whatever your level of experience with AI, this new webinar series will equip you to make informed...
Webinar series: AI in primary history
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Florence Nightingale
Primary History resource
Born: May 1820; Died: August 1910
Background and early life
Florence Nightingale was born to a wealthy evangelical family in Florence, Italy in 1820. She was named after her place of birth. It was normal at the time for girls from wealthy families to be educated at home by a governess,...
Florence Nightingale
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New Multi Academy Trust History Leads Network
Open to all MAT history leads
New: Multi Academy Trust History Leads Network
The HA is teaming up with a group of history leads across different Multi Academy Trusts to re-ignite a network group dedicated to those leading history across a trust. The network will meet 3 times per year, twice online and once in-person, and meetings will...
New Multi Academy Trust History Leads Network
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A local history toolkit
Toolkit
Produced by the Historical Association for the National Literacy Trust's "The Olden Times" newspaper resource, May 2011. For more recent resources on local history enquiries see:
Local significant individuals
Local history scheme of work: your local high street
Local history scheme of work: transport
Incorporating local history into a scheme...
A local history toolkit
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Previous Young Quills winners
Information
Each year the Historical Association runs the Young Quills, a competition for published historical fiction for children and young adults. The Young Quills books for each year must be published for the first time in English in the year preceding the competition. Divided by age suitability, the books are given...
Previous Young Quills winners
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Young Historian Awards 2025 – the winners
4th September 2025
Spirit of Normandy Trust SeniorAvani De Santis [Guildford Grammar School, Western Australia]Kyle Luk [Loughborough Grammar School] Caspar Wright [Wells Cathedral School]
Spirit of Normandy Trust Key Stage 3 Anne Andrews [St Mary’s Menston Catholic Voluntary Academy, Leeds]Rafferty Ludlow-Maisey [Crypt Grammar School, Gloucester]Robert Moczynski [Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Wakefield]
Spirit of...
Young Historian Awards 2025 – the winners
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Young Quills 2025 – the winners
The Young Quills Awards for best historical fiction for young people
Each year, the Historical Association runs the Young Quills, a competition for published historical fiction for children and young adults (14+). The Young Quills books for each year must be published for the first time in English in the year preceding the competition – so 2024 for this year’s selection....
Young Quills 2025 – the winners
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Primary Committee biographies
Information
Find out more about the HA's committees here
Helen Crawford (Committee Chair)
Helen studied history at university and has worked in primary schools for twenty years as a class teacher, history subject leader, inclusion manager and senior leader. Most of her teaching career has been in London schools, but...
Primary Committee biographies
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Young Quills shortlist for 2025
The HA's annual awards for best historical fiction for young people
Each year, the Historical Association runs ‘Young Quills’, a competition for published historical fiction for children and young adults (14+). The Young Quills books for each year must be published for the first time in English in the year preceding the competition – so 2024 for this year’s selection.
Our aim...
Young Quills shortlist for 2025
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Young Quills 2025
16th April 2025
Each year, the Historical Association runs Young Quills, a competition for published historical fiction for children and young adults (14+). The Young Quills books for each year must be published for the first time in English in the year preceding the competition – so 2024 for this year’s selection.
Our...
Young Quills 2025
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Primary History Survey 2024: the results
The HA's biennial survey of history in primary schools
Children love history – it is accessible, interesting, there is a growth in diversity of content and it is inclusive for different abilities, according to our survey. This is down to the hard work and dedication of their teaching and support staff. It is great news for our young people....
Primary History Survey 2024: the results
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On-demand webinar series: History and literacy: better together
On-demand webinar series for primary teachers and history subject leaders
History is a highly literate discipline, but what should the relationship be between primary history and the general teaching of literacy and English? The answer is that primary history should be modelling what it is like to think, speak, read, write and listen in an historical way. However, the subject...
On-demand webinar series: History and literacy: better together
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Diagrams in History
Historian article
One of the gifts of the social sciences to history is the use of expository diagrams; but attention is rarely given to the history of diagrams. Maps - schematized representations of locations in spatial relation to one another - can be dated back to Babylonia in the late third millennium...
Diagrams in History
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Write Your Own Historical Fiction competition 2024 – the winners
The HA's writing competition for children aged 10-15 years
Real history contains some of the most fanciful, exciting, worrying and incredible stories – learning about the past can open our eyes to how people have interacted with the world and each other for centuries. It is not surprising that alongside the real history most cultures and traditions have a...
Write Your Own Historical Fiction competition 2024 – the winners
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Young Historian Awards 2024 – the winners
16th September 2024
Spirit of Normandy Trust Senior
Vivaan Davda – The Cathedral and John Connon School, Mumbai
Spirit of Normandy Trust Key Stage 3
Joshua Broadbent – Royal Grammar School, Guildford
Spirit of Normandy Trust Primary
Salisbury Cathedral School
Best School History Magazine [sponsored by the Mid-Trent and Mercia Branch]
St Alban’s School
Stockport...
Young Historian Awards 2024 – the winners
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On-demand webinar series: Building and securing disciplinary thinking in primary history
On-demand webinar series for primary teachers and history subject leaders
What does this series cover?
This series of webinars will consider how disciplinary knowledge is slowly introduced into the primary curriculum, built upon and strengthened.
We know that substantive knowledge in history is the substance ('the stuff') we teach: the facts which we are sure about and which all have...
On-demand webinar series: Building and securing disciplinary thinking in primary history
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Online course: Ofsted subject reports: supporting quality history and geography
Primary CPD in partnership with the Geographical Association
The Ofsted history and geography subject reports of 2023 highlighted several areas of strength and improvement in primary schools. However, it emphasised that pupils’ experience of both subjects and disciplines could differ significantly between schools.
We are pleased to offer another opportunity to attend this supportive, practical one-day course from the...
Online course: Ofsted subject reports: supporting quality history and geography
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Online course: Teaching empire through material culture
HA online course for primary and secondary teachers
The topic of empire lends itself ideally to a material approach – the objects often provide the opportunity to bring in indigenous voices to our study of the imperial past, while our classroom experience has shown that objects provide a powerful channel through which to access complex and sometimes uncomfortable...
Online course: Teaching empire through material culture
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Webinar series: Deep dive with confidence
HA webinar series for current and aspiring primary history subject leaders
"This series was very useful in preparing for Ofsted and ensuring I was considering the curriculum outcomes sufficiently."
What does this series cover?
We are pleased to offer teachers another chance to access this series of webinars which will address the implications of the 2023 Ofsted subject report for primary...
Webinar series: Deep dive with confidence
