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William Brookes and the Olympic Games
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum and some content may be outdated.
History flows like a river, sometimes quiet and unobtrusive, sometimes a raging torrent with wide-ranging effects on the world around us. It is punctuated by momentous events and significant individuals, who impact on its direction and...
William Brookes and the Olympic Games
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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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Arthur Wharton: the world’s first professional black footballer
Primary History article
Schools are now looking to extend their study of significant individuals away from many of the conventional ones. This article looks at a lesser known individual, Arthur Wharton, which could make a good choice for teachers wanting to tap into pupils’ interest. Arthur Wharton was the world’s first black professional...
Arthur Wharton: the world’s first professional black footballer
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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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Scheme of work: Journeys - the story of migration to Britain
Primary Scheme of Work, Key Stage 2 History (unresourced)
This unit is designed as a thematic course looking at the big picture of migration to Britain over time. There are many ways that the course can be adapted to include different content which may be more relevant for the local community around your school. Most of the content described in...
Scheme of work: Journeys - the story of migration to Britain
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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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How significant is the tragic story of the SS Mendi?
Primary History article
Historical anniversaries and events are often in the news, commemorated locally and nationally. I have found that getting the children involved in topics relating to these can really help them feel the importance of their learning, help them to appreciate the past and feel a sense of responsibility – a...
How significant is the tragic story of the SS Mendi?
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Using the back cover image: Westonzoyland War Memorial
Primary History feature
The image on the back cover is of the war memorial in Westonzoyland, Somerset. It consists of a concrete plinth with a metal shell-case set on top, on the front of which is a plaque which reads:
‘This shell was presented by Westonzoyland Parish Council to commemorate the memory of...
Using the back cover image: Westonzoyland War Memorial
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From Home to the Front: World War I
Primary History article
Events which encapsulate family, community, national and global history provide rich opportunities for engaging children. Some of these draw on positive memories associated with past events: the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, how people responded to the first flight to the moon, the Millennium celebrations. Yet it is perhaps gruelling...
From Home to the Front: World War I
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The Great Fire of London and the National Curriculum
Primary History article including Scheme of Work for Key Stage 1 (unresourced)
The Great Fire of London is a favourite National Curriculum teaching topic. This paper draws on the latest resources and teaching ideas to suggest how you can meet both the NC history requirements and the wider ones of the National Curriculum, particularly in integrated programmes that include teaching about the Great...
The Great Fire of London and the National Curriculum
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Learning to engage with documents through role play
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum and some content may be outdated.
First let me say that I did not research the materials used or plan this lesson. For this I must acknowledge, with thanks, that this is the work of my colleague, Mike Huggins, and the senior...
Learning to engage with documents through role play
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Making the most of a visit to the Museum of London Docklands
Primary History article
In this article Susie Townsend explores one of her favourite museums, the Museum of London Docklands, and explains why it has a real value and interest far beyond the locality. As well as covering the benefits of a visit, she also provides ideas for teaching activities across the primary age range....
Making the most of a visit to the Museum of London Docklands
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Where might the Gunpowder Plot sit within the principles of the new model curriculum?
Primary History article
The government has proposed creating a model curriculum for history. This will contain a range of non-statutory and supplementary guidance to focus history teaching. In July 2022, terms of reference to identify principles and approaches underpinning the model history curriculum were published. There will be an advisory panel that will...
Where might the Gunpowder Plot sit within the principles of the new model curriculum?
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Using photographic evidence to explore the impact of the Berlin Wall
Primary History article
I remember being struck by the quote from Primo Levi when leaving Anne Frank’s house in Amsterdam. He stated that ‘One single Anne Frank moves us more than the countless others who suffered just as she did but whose faces have remained in the shadows’. While not trying to make...
Using photographic evidence to explore the impact of the Berlin Wall
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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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Anniversaries: The Coventry Blitz and the Grave of the Unknown Soldier
Primary History article
This Autumn we remember two events related to the impact of war and how people have reacted to them. The first anniversary remembers the Nazi devastation of Coventry 80 years ago on 14 November 1940 and the second event relates to the body of the ‘Unknown warrior’ who was laid...
Anniversaries: The Coventry Blitz and the Grave of the Unknown Soldier
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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 history of medicine – warts and all – for Key Stage 2
Primary History article
The story of the history of medicine is HUGE! In fact, it’s a story within story within a story…
You only have to note the substantial amounts that have been written on the subject in the past, to realise that this is a story that could baffle and perplex even...
The history of medicine – warts and all – for Key Stage 2
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For whose God, King and country? Seeing the First World War through South Asian eyes
Primary History article
In October 1914 France faced defeat on what would later become the Western Front. If the Germans captured the channel ports then the small British Expeditionary Force (BEF) supporting the French would be cut off from Britain, and the channel ports themselves might be used to launch a German invasion of...
For whose God, King and country? Seeing the First World War through South Asian eyes
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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 tell about the Maya from a Spanish soldier?
Primary History article
This article focuses on the links between the Maya and Europe in the fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries, exploring the impact of the Spanish on the life and times of the Maya, as seen through the eyes of one man – Gonzalo Guerrero, who was shipwrecked off the Yucatan peninsula...
What can you tell about the Maya from a Spanish soldier?
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‘It’s a great big ship!’: Teaching the Titanic at Key Stage 1
Article
Edith Haisman, a 15-year-old passenger on the Titanic, exclaimed, ‘It’s a great big ship!’ when she first caught sight of it. Similar excitement could be generated among your pupils by incorporating a study of the Titanic into your curriculum. If you are tired of teaching about the Great Fire of...
‘It’s a great big ship!’: Teaching the Titanic at Key Stage 1
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Towards inclusion: A study of significant figures and disability within the national curriculum
Primary History article
Since the early days of the National Curriculum, considerable progress has been made to introduce children to an inclusive view of history. The research of the late Hilary Claire (1996) served as a major impetus and now primary teachers strive to ensure that no groups or individuals are marginalised, particularly...
Towards inclusion: A study of significant figures and disability within the national curriculum
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Teaching about racism, fairness and justice through key people
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum and some content may be outdated.
Our school has no uniform. You can’t predict what most children or teachers will wear from one day to the next. So the children were rather surprised one day in July 1996 when most of...
Teaching about racism, fairness and justice through key people
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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
