History
RATIONALE
The History curriculum at Cloughwood Academy has been designed to meet the needs and support students who may have missed a significant amount of learning in this subject. Pupils may have experienced disrupted or no experience in this subject and may arrive, no matter what year, with gaps and misconceptions that this curriculum will address.
- The History curriculum is structured thematically and practically to make historical concepts tangible, encourage critical thinking, and allow learners to explore topics in a simplified, relevant, and student-centered way.
- The History curriculum builds foundational knowledge incrementally, incorporates active learning strategies, encourages discussion and reflection, and provides scaffolding to boost confidence and re-engage students.
- The History curriculum is flexible, personalised, and context-driven, focusing on student interests and needs rather than rigid content coverage, and emphasises skills development alongside knowledge acquisition.
INTENT
Our intent is to provide a History Curriculum that is:
- Engaging, accessible and meaningful for learners who may be disengaged by History and may have lost confidence in the subject.
- Students develop chronological awareness, understanding of key historical events and concepts, critical thinking, source analysis, and the ability to communicate historical ideas effectively.
- Lessons use stories, case studies, local history, hands-on activities, debates, and multimedia to connect history to students’ lives and interests.
- Differentiated instruction, scaffolding, visual and interactive resources, language support, and flexible assessment methods ensure all learners can participate and succeed.
- The curriculum fosters confidence, independence, collaboration, communication, resilience, and curiosity about the past and present.
- It builds transferable skills like research, analysis, and reasoning, encourages lifelong learning habits, and provides a foundation for further study or informed citizenship.
IMPLEMENTATION
- ·Each student in KS3 will have one 50-minute lesson a week of history.
- ·Each student who chooses History GCSE in KS4 will have three 50-minute lessons a week.
- ·Lessons will begin with a short retrieval task (recapping previous knowledge), followed by the introduction of new content through direct instruction and interactive activities.
- ·Students engage in a mix of teacher-led instruction, group discussions, hands-on activities, project work, and reflection tasks, with regular review sessions to consolidate learning.
- Content is sequenced thematically and spirally, revisiting key concepts with increasing complexity while integrating skills development throughout.
- Strategies include scaffolding, visuals and multimedia, retrieval practice, modelling, questioning, group work, and practical activities to enhance understanding and retention.
- Learning is differentiated through varied tasks, targeted support, alternative formats, pacing adjustments, and choice of activities to match student interests and abilities.
- Students have access to timelines, primary sources, manipulatives, interactive digital tools, case studies, real-world tasks, and reading supports to aid understanding.
- History will be assessed through formative assessment through questioning, quizzes, peer/self-assessment, and project feedback; summative assessment via structured tasks, presentations, written work, and practical projects.
IMPACT
- Progress is monitored through a combination of formative and summative assessments, teacher observations, work samples, and regular feedback.
- Indicators include increased participation, initiative in tasks, sustained focus, willingness to contribute in discussions, and positive attitudes toward learning.
- Regular low-stakes quizzes, retrieval activities, marked work, and behaviour/engagement logs provide a clear picture of how students’ knowledge, historical skills, and learning behaviours are improving over time.
- Students transfer historical understanding and skills to real-world contexts, cross-curricular projects, problem-solving tasks, debates, and presentations.
- The curriculum develops study skills, research and analytical abilities, self-regulation, and confidence, preparing students for exams, further education, or independent life choices.