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Teaching The Indus Valley Civilisation in the 21st Century
Primary History article
This article discusses how mathematical concepts, literacy requirements and other areas of the curriculum can be harnessed to promote meaningful historical enquiry and understanding. This is especially so for a history topic which lends itself to enquiry based learning, scrutiny of every little clue, and speculation about the very many...
Teaching The Indus Valley Civilisation in the 21st Century
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Sumerian history through story-telling and expressive movement
Lesson Plan
The Sumerian mystery lesson is based on a story about what people found in one of the royal tombs of Ur dating from about 4000 years ago. (This was in ancient Mesopotamia, near what we now call the Persian Gulf.)
(These resources are attached below)
The story is full of...
Sumerian history through story-telling and expressive movement
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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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Think Bubble - Interpretation
Article
One of my favourite places in France is Poitiers Cathedral. Whenever I set out from the north or drive home from the south, I can usually find an excuse to stop off there. For me, its crowning glory are its 13th Century choir stalls with their wonderful medieval figures and...
Think Bubble - Interpretation
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Working effectively with your local history societies: the benefits and challenges
Primary History article
Local history provides rich opportunities to engage children in their immediate local area and understand their own history and how history contributes to a greater overall understanding and bigger picture. In this article, Nick Harman shares his school’s experience of participating in an exciting joint project with the local heritage...
Working effectively with your local history societies: the benefits and challenges
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Progression in historical learning
E-CPD
N.B. This unit was produced before the 2014 curriculum and therefore while much of the advice is still useful, there may be some out of date references or links.
This unit is concerned with the way that children's learning takes place in history. Without understanding the progression, it becomes impossible to...
Progression in historical learning
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Objects and visual image exemplar: toys and games
Exemplar
This was a half-term cross-curricular topic with a mixed Year 1/2 class. It focused on forces in science, storytelling in English, and objects and pictures in history. The children in the class had a wide range of abilities, with a large number having very poor expressive language. Therefore many of...
Objects and visual image exemplar: toys and games
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Reading documents exemplar: Victorian school advertisement
Exemplar
Reading documents exemplar: Victorian school advertisement
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Teaching and learning through personal, family and local history
E-CPD
N.B. This unit was produced before the 2014 curriculum and therefore while much of the advice is still useful, there may be some out of date references or links.
This unit is concerned with the way that primary age pupils can make use of their own personal, family and local history...
Teaching and learning through personal, family and local history
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In the Footsteps of our Ancestors: Beamish - a unique educational experience
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the current National Curriculum and some content may be outdated.
What kind of experience will be remembered by the children in your class in 20 or 30 years’ time? A trip to Beamish, The North of England Open Air Museum, would be a likely candidate....
In the Footsteps of our Ancestors: Beamish - a unique educational experience
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Raising the achievement of higher-attaining pupils: some challenging activities on Ancient Greece
Primary History Article
Karin Doull offers advice on raising the achievements of higher attaining pupils.
Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum and reference the old QCA, but offers some useful activities on Ancient Greece.
Raising the achievement of higher-attaining pupils: some challenging activities on Ancient Greece
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Creativity in history
Primary History article
Ask anyone for a list of creative subjects in schools and it is unlikely that history will be top of that list. However, over the last two-and-a-half years we have been working as part of a Creativity Collaborative of schools that seeks to foster creativity across the whole curriculum, including...
Creativity in history
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Teaching ‘changes within living memory’: making the most of your school
Primary History article
The Key Stage 1 curriculum requires an exploration of changes within living memory, and what better way to do this than discovering the history of your own school! In this article, Helen Crawford and Sandra Kirkland provide guidance and suggested activities to explore change and continuity in your own locality. ...
Teaching ‘changes within living memory’: making the most of your school
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How We Used to Sleep
School Resources
Want to take a fresh look at medicine through time with your students?
If so, you might be interested in teaching them about sleep’s history in the Renaissance. By focusing on sleep – something that we all do and have an opinion on – students can be introduced to changing...
How We Used to Sleep
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Chronology: blank timelines
Resource
Chronology: blank timelines
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One of my favourite history places: Neuschwanstein Castle
Primary History feature
Visiting Neuschwanstein Castle is a dramatic if seemingly unreal experience and for this reason it is one of my favourite historical sites. The castle is situated on the slopes of the Alps in Bavaria, close to the village of Hohenschwangau, overlooking low-lying plains to the north. The ornate turrets, Romanesque windows...
One of my favourite history places: Neuschwanstein Castle
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The Amesbury Archer
Primary History article
One of the requirements for the Key Stage 2 history curriculum is that children learn about changes in Britain from the Stone Age to the Iron Age. In some ways this is a challenging period to teach – the evidential record is patchy, it is open to interpretation, and there...
The Amesbury Archer
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World War II: breathing life into a local history enquiry
Primary History article
Debbie Doolan explores how the locality of her school, Worle School in North Somerset, was impacted by a significant event, World War II. What is particularly pertinent is not just the range of activities in this topic but the way the theme was refined over a number of years. It...
World War II: breathing life into a local history enquiry
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The wheels (and horses…) on the bus
Primary History article
A theme in the Early Years will have many cross-curricular links, encompassing many of the different areas of learning in the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Statutory Framework. The focus for this article is on historical elements of Understanding the World; however there will be some cross-over into other areas of...
The wheels (and horses…) on the bus
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Teaching about Remembrance Day in EYFS
Primary History article
Remembrance Day (11 November) is an important time for children to learn about how we choose to both represent and remember significant events in the past. Within EYFS, learning about remembrance most obviously lends itself to Understanding the World – with a focus on children making connections between past and present,...
Teaching about Remembrance Day in EYFS
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Artefacts in the neighbourhood
Primary History article
Alf Wilkinson uses an everyday object found near you – a post box – to develop your children’s history skills.
Look carefully at the picture. It is a familiar object in the neighbourhood. It is a postbox – there will be one (or more) near you. Go out and look...
Artefacts in the neighbourhood
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Developing historical understanding across all areas of the EYFS framework
Primary History article
Children in nursery and reception classes do not, of course, learn history. They meet the subject for the first time when they start Year 1. However, what children learn – and how they learn – in EYFS is important for preparing them to learn history. This goes beyond building knowledge...
Developing historical understanding across all areas of the EYFS framework
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The legacy of ancient Sumer
Primary History article
Ancient Sumer was a fascinating civilisation that flourished at the same time as other key ancient civilisations. It is credited with having developed vital elements of technology such as the potter’s wheel, written language, complex mathematical concepts that are still used today and much else. This article focuses on the...
The legacy of ancient Sumer
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Exploring the history of space
Primary History article
Children have long been captivated by the idea of space exploration and this year marks the anniversary of several significant events, including the 50th anniversary of the European Space Agency and the 10th anniversary of Tim Peake’s launch to the International Space Station. In this article, Kate Rigby explores how...
Exploring the history of space
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Ancient Sumer: the cradle of civilisation
Primary History article
In 1936 the next eagerly awaited Agatha Christie novel had just been published and readers were transported to a region that, from 1922 had been named Iraq, but through history had been part of Mesopotamia. The plot focuses on an archaeological dig that was taking place there, the victim is...
Ancient Sumer: the cradle of civilisation
