In our teaching of history we aim to give children an awareness of the past and how it was different from the present, an understanding of the sequence of historical events and an ability to explore some of the ways in which historians find out about the past.

The key aims for history are to ensure children:

• know and understand the history of the British Isles, in a coherent and chronological narrative, including how people's lives have shaped the nation and how Britain has influenced and been influenced by the wider world
• know and understand significant aspects of the history of the wider world, including ancient civilisations, expansion and dissolution of empires, characteristic features of past non-European societies and achievements and follies of mankind
• gain and use a historically grounded understanding of abstract terms such as 'empire', 'civilisation', 'parliament' and 'peasantry'
• understand historical concepts such as continuity and change, cause and consequence, similarity and difference, significance - use these to make connections, analyse trends, frame historical questions
• understand methods of historical enquiry, including how evidence can be used to make historical claims and make contrasting arguments
• gain historical perspectives by placing their historical knowledge into different contexts

Initially children learn about general historical themes including changes in living memory, everyday lives of people, famous men and women, change and developments over time, reasons for events, and different interpretations of history.

In Key Stage 2 we teach specific historical periods at times, including:

• changes in Britain from Stone Age to Iron Age
• the Roman Empire and its impact on Britain
• Britain's settlement by others (including Vikings, Anglo-Saxons and Scots), Aspects of themes in British history since 1066 (such as features of Victorian Britain), Ancient Greece and Ancient Egypt (or other early civilisation), and a non-European society (the Ancient Maya) that contrasts with British history
• an aspect of our local history is also investigated.

Different aspects of history are taught in varying degrees of detail, and many are included within broader themes, not necessarily being taught as discrete history units.