At The Bliss Charity School, we use the Kapow Primary scheme that has been adapted to include our local history and reflect the needs of our children. This enables children to confidently gain a coherent knowledge and understanding of their own local history, Britain’s past and that of the wider world. Children will be inspired to know more about the past, think critically and ask perceptive questions. They will explore key enquiry questions and answer these critically using the knowledge they have gained within the topic, referring to evidence. This is done through an immersive, creative and topic-linked curriculum.

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 while providing an opportunity to learn from mankind’s past mistakes. Bliss aims to support pupils in building their understanding of chronology in each year group, making connections over periods of time and developing a chronologically-secure knowledge of History.

To achieve this, history is embedded within our curriculum using the Kapow Primary scheme, to ensure a depth of experience and knowledge. This is mapped using the national curriculum and is demonstrated through our history curriculum design, progression of learning objectives and skills and engaging lessons. Cross curricular outcomes in history are used when appropriate, with strong links between the history curriculum and English lessons, to provide further contextual learning. Our school provides numerous immersive experiences to deepen children’s understanding of time periods through trips, workshops and topic days.

The Kapow Primary scheme emphasises the importance of historical knowledge being shaped by disciplinary approaches, as shown in the diagram above. These strands are interwoven through all our History units to create engaging and enriching learning experiences which allow the children to investigate history as historians do. Throughout the learning sequence at Bliss, history is made relevant to pupils by linking to the theme of ‘children’ as an investigative thread through several units, with local links when possible.

Children use timelines to reinforce their chronological understanding of the history of Britain and how this links to the wider world. These are utilised and built upon through each year group. Key disciplinary and substantive concepts are introduced and revisited through enquiry questions for each unit.  Children are given opportunities to draw upon the knowledge and evidence they have explored to answer them critically. This provides our children with the key skills and knowledge needed for the next step of their education.

As historians, when children leave Bliss they can show an enjoyment and curiosity towards learning the history of Britain and the wider world. Children can demonstrate through assessments, enquiry questions, evidence of work and data that they confidently and competently show they have a clear chronological understanding of the British and world history they have covered. Children can recognise similarities, differences and significance between people and events and are able to evaluate different sources of information. They can demonstrate a strong knowledge base of the history covered, and be able to recall key information. They can use their acquired knowledge and understanding of core historic skills and apply them in their ever-changing world.