History Intent

At St. Gregory’s we view History as incredibly important.  We see it as a form of Cultural Capital, essential knowledge that children need about the world and what has come before in order to make them educated citizens. We understand that our pupils may not have the advantages outside the school that others have in terms of access to a variety of opportunities that help them learn about history and the wider world.  However, at St Gregory’s we are committed to an ethos that never accepts that where children start from will impact their ability to reach any level or achievement or future they choose.

Within the study of History at St Gregory’s we aim to inspire pupils to be curious about the past. We want them to gain an understanding of local, national and international history because we think it is important for them understand the world the diversity of society. These aims are in line with our own curriculum drivers of Diversity and Community.

We aim to follow the National Curriculum. We believe it provides a sold bedrock from which to achieve these aims.

We aim to help children understand how things have changed over time, build a mental chronology of significant world events  and time periods to help them understand why people behaved in the way they did. We believe that History will support children to appreciate the complexity of people’s lives, the diversity of societies and the relationships between different groups. Studying History allows children to appreciate the many reasons why people may behave in the way they do, supporting children to develop empathy for others (a key aspect of our Catholic teaching) while providing an opportunity to celebrate what we have learned from the past.

We aim to develop pupils’ understanding of how historians study the past and construct accounts -the disciplinary knowledge - and empower them with the skills to carry out their own historical enquiries.  These are the skills of a historian.

In order to prepare pupils for their future learning in History, alongside key topic knowledge and factual information  (substantive knowledge) we aim to develop children’s understanding of abstract concepts such as: power, invasion, settlement and migration, empire, civilisation, religion, trade, achievements of humankind, society and culture. Within these we aim to expand children’s understanding of the past so that they might better appreciate and understand the present and future.

Within History, we aim to inspire pupils to be curious and creative thinkers who develop a complex knowledge of local and national history and the history of the wider world. We want to build an awareness of significant events and individuals in global, British and local history and recognise how things have changed over time. We feel it is important that pupils to develop the confidence to think critically, ask questions, and be able to explain and analyse historical evidence.