-
Evidential understanding, period knowledge and the development of literacy: a practical approach to 'layers of inference' for Key Stage 3
Teaching History article
Claire Riley explains how she developed and improved the ‘layers of inference' diagram-already a popular device since Hilary Cooper's work-as a way of getting pupils fascinated by challenging texts and pictures. Working with the whole ability range in Year 9 she analyses her successes and failures, offering many practical suggestions...
Evidential understanding, period knowledge and the development of literacy: a practical approach to 'layers of inference' for Key Stage 3
-
Film: Surviving the Stone Age
Primary History Workshop Annual Conference 2019
This primary workshop took place at at the Historical Association Annual Conference, Chester, May 2019. The workshop featured: Chris Trevor – Presenter of HA subject leader courses/Primary Education consultant and Dave Trevor – Co-presenter of Prehistoric workshops and ex teacher.
This workshop dispelled the popular myths and stereotypes of the Old...
Film: Surviving the Stone Age
-
Being ambitious with the causes of the First World War: interrogating inevitability
Teaching History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum and some content may be outdated
Gary Howells asks hard questions about typical teaching and assessment of historical causation at Key Stage 3. Popular activities that may be helpful in addressing particular learning areas, or in teaching pupils to use the...
Being ambitious with the causes of the First World War: interrogating inevitability
-
'What's that stuff you're listening to Sir?' Rock and pop music as a rich source for historical enquiry
Teaching History article
Building on the wonderful articles by Mastin and Sweerts & Grice in TH 108, Simon Butler urges us here to make greater use of rock and pop music in history classrooms. His reasons are persuasive. First, it provides a rich vein of initial stimulus material to tap, helping us to...
'What's that stuff you're listening to Sir?' Rock and pop music as a rich source for historical enquiry
-
The Tenth Grade tells Bismarck what to do: using structured role-play to eliminate hindsight in assessing historical motivation
Teaching History article
Neomi Shiloah and Edna Shoham show how history teachers in Israel have begun to move away from traditional talk-and-chalk based teaching. They describe a blend of role-play and ICT that not only grabs pupils’ attention and caters for different styles of learning but also helps pupils to appreciate the difficulties...
The Tenth Grade tells Bismarck what to do: using structured role-play to eliminate hindsight in assessing historical motivation
-
Animation case study: Indus Valley figurines
Primary History case study
Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum.
Since the advent of animation software for schools, I wanted to trial an animation project, inspired by the quirky human and animal figurines, model wheeled carts and toys, all of terracotta, from the Bronze Age Indus Valley civilisation which clamour for clay...
Animation case study: Indus Valley figurines
-
Podcast Series: German History 1918-1948
Multipage Article
An HA Podcasted History of Modern German History: 1918-1948 featuring: Sir Ian Kershaw, Professor Jill Stephenson of the University of Edinburgh, Dr Christina von Hodenberg of Queen Mary, University of London and Professor Benjamin Ziemann of the University of Sheffield.
Podcast Series: German History 1918-1948
-
How Michael moved us on: transforming Key Stage 3 through peer review
Teaching History article
Thomas Tallis history department have an interesting approach to planning. Whereas, all too often, this most time-consuming and intellectually demanding of teachers’ tasks is rendered invisible, and is supposed to happen by magic in the middle of the night, this department chose to make the planning process genuinely collaborative, pivotal...
How Michael moved us on: transforming Key Stage 3 through peer review
-
Historical Association Annual Conference - Terms & Conditions
Information
Please read these terms and conditions carefully before booking onto the Historical Association’s Annual Conference. You should understand that by booking a place at this Conference, you agree to adhere to these terms and conditions.
Please note that these terms and conditions are only applicable to the HA’s Conference and...
Historical Association Annual Conference - Terms & Conditions
-
History-specific support – for every career stage
Information
Register for the HA's SLT newsletter for more
Our biannual SLT newsletter will give you up-to-date information and support on managing history including updates on current issues, priorities and policy issues. Register here
Subject-specific support is an essential investment in your teaching staff, equipping them with the knowledge and...
History-specific support – for every career stage
-
Case Study: Teaching World War 1 and professional development
Primary History case study
Please note: This article pre-dates the current National Curriculum and some content and references may be outdated.
During the autumn term 2008 I covered World War I as an example of how to attempt a cross curricular project at KS 2 [7-11 age range] with Newly Qualified Teacher Status [QTS] students. During my...
Case Study: Teaching World War 1 and professional development
-
On-demand webinar: Responding to historical questions and engaging in extended writing at A-level
Webinar series: Developing students’ historical thinking at A-level
Webinar series: Developing students’ historical thinking at A-level
Session 2: Responding to historical questions and engaging in extended writing
This second session will consider how teachers have helped their students to develop coherent explanations of historical processes and to form judgments in response to historical questions. The session will then engage with...
On-demand webinar: Responding to historical questions and engaging in extended writing at A-level
-
Visual Literacy: Learning through pictures and images
Primary History Article
Please note: this article pre-dates the current National Curriculum and some content and references are outdated.
What questions does the portrait raise in your mind?
What messages does the artist intend to convey?
How does the artist convey those messages to the intended audience? What might have been the circumstances under which the...
Visual Literacy: Learning through pictures and images
-
Investigating children's awareness of changing values and attitudes through stories written in the past
Primary History article
Talking about historical stories written at different times in the past can reveal much about the more sophisticated understandings that young children have of the past. Primary school children often work with artefacts, historic architecture and sites to enable them to visualise and reconstruct the past. However, these sources do...
Investigating children's awareness of changing values and attitudes through stories written in the past
-
Report on the Bristol Branch's A-level Russian History Conference
16th May 2024
The Bristol Branch of the HA’s A-level Russian History Conference27 March 2024
‘Such a great event – both for students and teachers. Many thanks…for organising it, and for sharing excellent resources’ (Mark Kauntze, Head of History Redland Green School, Bristol)
‘Brilliant, thank you… our students really enjoyed the experience.’ (Phill...
Report on the Bristol Branch's A-level Russian History Conference
-
Evidenced based history teaching - teacher as researcher
Article
Introduction
Systematic, sustained provision of in-service courses has virtually disappeared. Increasingly, teachers' main source of professional development is the Internet. There is, however, a huge difference between reading about new approaches and skills and transforming that information, that understanding, into new ways of thinking, planning and teaching.
This is where...
Evidenced based history teaching - teacher as researcher
-
British National Curricula For History 1989-2011
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum and some content may be outdated.
The national history curricula for Northern Ireland, England and Wales have passed through various stages since working groups were set up in England and Wales in 1989. Developments have been distinct, with Northern Ireland having quite...
British National Curricula For History 1989-2011
-
Apology: Move Me On, TH185
17th January 2022
The Historical Association would like to offer an unreserved apology for serious errors of judgement in relation to the Move Me On problem presented within Teaching History 185.
We recognise that the content of this feature has caused offence, that it contained negative stereotypical biases which we failed to recognise and act...
Apology: Move Me On, TH185
-
The Historian 140: Out now
Journal news
It sometimes seems to those of us living in Scotland, Ireland and Wales that our histories have no importance to anyone beyond our borders and when Americans, and others around the world, say ‘England’ when they actually mean the ‘United Kingdom’, it is hard not to bristle. Contributors to this...
The Historian 140: Out now
-
Write Your Own Historical Fiction Competition 2026
The Historical Association Historical Fiction Prize
Please note: entries for this year’s competition have now closed. Winners will be announced by the end of October 2026.
Each year we are so impressed by the ever-increasing number and standard of entries we receive around such a wide range of historical periods and settings. You can take a look at...
Write Your Own Historical Fiction Competition 2026
-
Integration and cross-curricularity: History, Humanities And Social Studies
Primary History article
Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum and some content may be outdated.
From the late 1960s until 1989 history was almost universally taught in primary schools as an element in integrated crosscurricular programmes, normally social studies or humanities.
The 1989/1990 National Curriculum: History radically changed this. It introduced...
Integration and cross-curricularity: History, Humanities And Social Studies
-
Develop your whole school history provision
New and improved features
Corporate membership offers a comprehensive package of support. It delivers all the benefits of individual membership plus an enhanced tier of resources and CPD access to boost the development of your teaching staff and delivery of your whole school history provision.
Enhanced benefits include:
Exclusive access to guides in the...
Develop your whole school history provision
-
Who are we?
Information
There are many ways you can support our work to bring history to all:
Become a Member
Give HA membership as a gift
Make a donation
Contribute an article
Other ways to support us
We are a registered charity incorporated by Royal Charter (charity no. 1120261). We support the teaching, learning...
Who are we?
-
Celebrating success and recognising achievements – the Quality Mark evening!
The Historical Association's Quality Mark for History
On Friday 8 November 2024 there was a glittering event for those schools who have achieved the Quality Mark (QM) for History. We wanted to celebrate those who have put in the hard work and dedication to raise the standard of education, awareness, knowledge and enjoyment of history teaching in their...
Celebrating success and recognising achievements – the Quality Mark evening!
-
Protestantism and art in early modern England
Article
“I am greatly honoured to receive the Medlicott medal and I thank the President for his much-too-kind remarks. It is fifty years since I attended my first meeting of the Historical Association and heard a lecture by Professor Medlicott himself, no less. The Association does a wonderful job in encouraging...
Protestantism and art in early modern England
