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Whatever did the Greeks do for us?
Primary History article
The National Curriculum asks us to help our children to study ‘Greek life and achievements and their influence on the western world’ [DfE 2013]. Lots of books explore the ancient Greeks [see, for example, Ancient Greece by Alf Wilkinson, Collins Primary Histories, published in 2019]. It is a familiar topic....
Whatever did the Greeks do for us?
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How an atlas and a very old map can help us make sense of the ancient Greeks
Primary History article
The ancient Greeks were a maritime people – they travelled and traded vast distances by sea, but rarely left sight of land. They were also a very divided nation. Separate city states fiercely guarded their independence, only uniting [sometimes!] to fight against a common enemy like the Persians. The Greeks all...
How an atlas and a very old map can help us make sense of the ancient Greeks
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Throw away the worksheets!
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum and some content may be outdated.
Those teachers who can still manage a school trip to the British Museum are in for a treat. The new Michael Cohen Gallery (Room 61) is everything a museum exhibition room should be. Its focus is...
Throw away the worksheets!
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Using museums and artefacts
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the current National Curriculum and some content may be outdated.
Over several years of reporting on primary history, the use of museums and artefacts has been identified in Ofsted reports as an issue for schools to address. Although there is now far greater expertise in...
Using museums and artefacts
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Developing enjoyable historical investigations
Primary History article
About 2,000 years ago, a baby was born. No, not that baby. Not Jesus. This baby was a girl. Where she was born and what she was called we don't know but I'll call her Helena - it feels rude to go on just calling her ‘she'. When Helena grew up she became wealthy. Perhaps...
Developing enjoyable historical investigations
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Archaeology: A view from the classroom
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the current National Curriculum and some content and references are outdated.
Perhaps it is the earthiness of the ground beneath our feet which arouses pupils' curiosity. Or maybe, the idea of the unexpected with the hope of finding something precious or unusual, that is so engaging about archaeology....
Archaeology: A view from the classroom
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Teaching with Meaning: Supporting Historical Understanding in the Primary Classroom
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum and some content may be outdated.
In essence, history is a record of human affairs. The problem in making this record is that events are past and gone and have to be reconstructed. Evidence may be uncertain and incomplete. Inevitably, several...
Teaching with Meaning: Supporting Historical Understanding in the Primary Classroom
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Ankhu and Nebu of Deir el Medina
Primary History article
Perhaps the hardest skill to develop in history is a sense of period. What was it really like to live in Ancient Egypt? Who should we study? Or, in this case, which workers were typical? Were these craftsmen in Deir el Medina typical of all the workers in Egypt? Or...
Ankhu and Nebu of Deir el Medina
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Ways of making Key Stage 2 history culturally inclusive: A study of practice developed in Kirklees
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum.
Kirklees, West Yorkshire comprises Huddersfield, Dewsbury and Batley. There is a population of 300,000. Minority, ethnic pupils account for nearly 20%. Over the next decade it is predicted that there will be an increase in the number of pupils of Pakistani, Indian,...
Ways of making Key Stage 2 history culturally inclusive: A study of practice developed in Kirklees
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The creative history curriculum
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the current National Curriculum and some content and links may be outdated.
Do you give in to bullying, stay loyal to your leader, admit your actions, betray your neighbours, challenge discrimination or just keep quiet? These were the issues faced by Year 4 children at East...
The creative history curriculum
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Means and Ends: History, Drama and Education for Life
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum and some content may be outdated.
John Fines, Raymond Verrier and I frequently taught as a team trying to discover where drama work and history meet. We were interested in helping children get a grasp of past events which have influenced their...
Means and Ends: History, Drama and Education for Life
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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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Linking history and science: how climate affected settlement
Primary History article
Karin Doull looks at how previous civilisations were affected by natural climate change, often precipitated by volcanic eruptions. She suggests that any investigation into ancient civilisations should consider how physical geography contributed to the initial settlement and development. She argues that we should also look at what might have contributed to...
Linking history and science: how climate affected settlement
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Thinking through history: Story and developing children's minds
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the current National Curriculum and some content and references are outdated.
Story is the crucial factor in children’s awareness of past times in their ‘mythic’ phase of mental development, see page 4. Everyone loves a story, stories ‘open out fresh fields, the illimitable beckoning of horizons to imagination…...
Thinking through history: Story and developing children's minds
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Teaching Famous People at Key Stage One
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum and some content may be outdated
Studying famous people at Key Stage One has obviously been an issue for many years and no matter how long you have been teaching the name Florence Nightingale seems to appear as the only famous...
Teaching Famous People at Key Stage One
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Creating Stories For Teaching Primary History
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the current National Curriculum and some content and references are outdated.
With primary history contributing to writing, some research by Sandra Dunsmuir and Peter Blatchford into pupils aged 4-7 has relevance to history teaching. The findings were published in the "British Journal of Educational Psychology", edition...
Creating Stories For Teaching Primary History
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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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The potential of primary history
Primary History article
In this article Alison Kitson and Michael Riley consider the potential of the primary history curriculum to educate children about climate change and sustainability. They suggest some important principles, and a range of strategies, that could be used to develop a stronger emphasis on environmental history in primary history.
The potential of primary history
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Significant anniversaries: the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb
Primary History article
“At last have made wonderful discovery in Valley; a magnificent tomb with seals intact; re-covered same for your arrival; congratulation.”
When Howard Carter sent these words via telegram to his friend and patron Sir George Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon on 6 November 1922, he had yet to fully appreciate...
Significant anniversaries: the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb
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The importance of history vocabulary
Primary History article
Teachers and schools should surely be forgiven for quickly turning to the pages containing the ‘subject content' - within the new 2014 history curriculum - and finding out ‘what' they should be teaching. This is especially true for Key Stage 2 where children must now learn British history from the...
The importance of history vocabulary
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Exploring the many aspects of neolithic Britain
Primary History article
The Neolithic period provides many challenges – the huge length of time, the limitations of evidence, the many different aspects. This article suggests how a teaching programme might be structured to explore the period. It promotes the idea that these people, so distant in time, were much as we are...
Exploring the many aspects of neolithic Britain
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The role of oracy in primary history
Primary History article
East-the-Water is a primary school in Bideford, Devon. It has recently been awarded a Gold Award Quality Mark. Among many strong features, one was the emphasis on using oracy effectively in history. In this article, Kelly Bridle outlines its role, especially in connecting periods and events across the history curriculum using a range of connectors,...
The role of oracy in primary history
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Unlocking the treasures of early Islam
Primary History article
Lucy Hawker demonstrates her school’s approach to teaching early Islam though focusing on its significance and demonstrating how lessons are effectively sequenced to develop subject knowledge and understanding. The article also indicates rich opportunities that this topic provides for links with other subjects...
Unlocking the treasures of early Islam
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The Coronation
Primary History article
On 6 May 2023 King Charles III, together with Camilla, the Queen Consort, will be crowned in Westminster Abbey. The Coronation provides rich opportunities for history lessons at both Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2. At Key Stage 1 it naturally lends itself to Key Stage 1 ‘changes within living...
The Coronation
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Sporting legacy: the history of endeavour
Primary History article
One of the highlights of 2021 for many people was getting up early over the summer and avidly watching events at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics unfold: feats of bravery and endurance, heartbreak and celebration. It will, of course, enter the history books and the pub quiz questions, not least because...
Sporting legacy: the history of endeavour
