At Rosehill Infant School, our History curriculum is designed to develop children’s curiosity about the past and help them make sense of the world around them. From EYFS through to Key Stage 1, pupils build knowledge and understanding of chronology, significant people and events, and how life has changed over time.

Early Years Foundation Stage 

In EYFS, History forms part of Understanding the World and is delivered through a balance of adult-led activities and continuous provision.

Children begin by exploring their own experiences and developing an awareness of past and present. They talk about their families, recall events and begin to understand changes over time. Through stories, photographs and role play, they are introduced to events and people from the past.

Adults support learning through high-quality interactions, questioning and modelling language. Children are encouraged to use simple vocabulary such as before, after, old and new, helping them to begin to organise their understanding of time.

Key Stage One

In KS1, learning builds on these early experiences and is carefully structured so that knowledge and skills develop over time.

Pupils are taught to:

• Develop a clear sense of chronology, placing events in order
• Learn about significant individuals and historical events
• Explore aspects of local history
• Identify similarities and differences between past and present
• Ask and answer questions using simple sources such as pictures and artefacts

Teachers ensure that learning is revisited and built upon, helping pupils to strengthen their understanding and make connections across topics. Lessons are designed to be engaging and enquiry-based, encouraging children to think, question and discuss like young historians.

Progression and Sequencing

Learning is planned so that children move from:

• Understanding their own lives and recent events
• To exploring events beyond living memory
• To recognising changes over time and historical significance

Key concepts such as chronology, change and comparison are revisited regularly to support long-term understanding.

Vocabulary

A strong focus is placed on developing and embedding historical vocabulary. Words such as past, present, timeline, change, before, after, similar and different are introduced, modelled and revisited so that pupils can confidently talk about their learning.

Assessment

Teachers assess pupils’ understanding through ongoing observation, questioning and discussion, as well as recorded work in KS1. This allows teaching to be adapted to meet the needs of all learners and ensures that knowledge and skills are securely developed.

By the end of Key Stage 1, children are able to talk about what they have learned, describe how things have changed over time and use simple historical vocabulary with increasing confidence. They leave Rosehill Infant School with a secure foundation for further learning in History and a growing interest in the past.

Delivery of the curriculum:

Nursery: Mrs Rouse says “History in nursery is children demonstrating an understanding of the passive of time, such as following a routine and beginning to say ‘yesterday’ or ‘before I...’”

Reception: Miss Morley and Mrs Sangha say “History in reception is linking history to our own experiences of what has happened in the past in our own, as well as others, lives. We observe through different context changes over time and things from the past. We explore this in a cross curricular way and link this to our current learning.”

Year One: Mrs Hardy, Mrs Wheeler and Miss Barber say “History in year one is explorative of personal history with consistent use of language. It involves making comparisons between the old and new, teaching how things have changed and why. Year one history is a journey that moves from the personal to the history of important people from the past and the history of the world and local area.”

Year Two: Mrs Shah and Miss Asia say “History in year two is broad and balanced, inclusive, engaging and enriched to link the past with the present. This is achieved by bringing key famous people to life and explaining past invents and how they affect today.”