History at St Johns
At St Johns, our children become historians, through engagement in a rich and broad history curriculum. Through this, our children come to understand their place in the world, and in the long story of human development. The study of history challenges pupils to make sense of the striking similarities and vast differences in human experiences across time and place through considered study and enquiry and in line with our school’s core Christian Values (respect, hope and love).
The aims of our History curriculum are to develop pupils who:
- Have a keen historical curiosity
- Have a secure understanding of time and chronology
- Understand and appreciate the rich and diverse world in which they are growing up
- Have a knowledge of significant people and events
- Are able to compare and contrast changes over time
Pupils make progress in history by developing their knowledge about the past (this knowledge is often described as ‘substantive knowledge’) and their knowledge about how historians investigate the past, and how they construct historical claims, arguments and accounts (often described as ‘disciplinary knowledge’). We achieve this through introducing our children to the past through carefully considered topics, relevant to enabling them to understand the history of our locality and beyond. Through this, and relevant historical enquiry, children develop an understanding of conventions of time and chronology. They study events in their own lives and in those of adults around them. They are told stories of the past to help them distinguish between fantasy and reality.
At St Johns, we pride ourselves on our inclusive approach to curriculum delivery, and when appropriate we adapt our lessons and use of teaching resources in order to meet the individual needs of all learners. In order to assess children’s development of historical knowledge and understanding, teachers assess formatively through each lesson and through the use of the key questions which are also used to focus teaching.
At St Johns, children begin their journey as historians in the Foundation Stage learning about their personal history, along with finding out about significant individuals such as Eglantine Jebb and Neil Armstrong. In Key Stage One, children further explore their locality and the wider world through engaging topics, including castles, and Remembrance as well as further study of significant individuals such as Elizabeth I. In Key Stage Two, children continue their journey as historians through increasing their knowledge of history around the world. Children cover topics including the Stone Age, Ancient Egypt, The Romans, The Anglo-Saxons and thematic topics that span a number of historical periods such as Deal or no Deal – a study of trade and commerce across the ages. Additionally, throughout their historical development, children learn about where they live through the study of our rich local history beginning with our uniquely named village (Ruyton XI Towns – the only village in the UK with Roman Numerals in its name) and extending out to look at the Roman and Tudor legacies of Shrewsbury and even Chester.
Our history curriculum is enhanced through trips, planned to deepen children’s understanding of a topic and to make history come alive for them. Recent trips have included: Whittington Castle, Deva in Chester and World Museum Liverpool. Learning is also developed through teachers’ use of Shropshire Library and Museums Services, for example through the provision of artefact boxes so that our children are able to immerse themselves ‘hands on’ in a topic.
Rolling Programme for History/Geography
Key Stage One and Two from Autumn 2022
Year A is 2022/23
Rolling Programme for History and Geog
Dragonfly Class Trip to Shrewsbury Museum and Art Gallery – Charles Darwin study
