Keystage history - Imaginative History Teaching in Primary and Secondary Schools
About Keystage History
Keystage history is the home of best practice in primary and secondary history teaching and learning. You can totally trust the authoritative, cutting edge, expert advice and you will be inspired by all the creative planning and teaching ideas. Subscribers love the wide range of fully resourced history lessons, all judged outstanding by a vastly experienced LA history adviser who has observed over 2,000 primary and secondary lessons and has carried out 60 national inspections for OFSTED. Every aspect of leading history 5-19 is covered in detail, from assessment and progression through to curriculum planning, raising standards and inspiring colleagues. This site is a must for any forward-looking subject leader.
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Making the Saxons relevant for BAME pupils
In the corridors of academia there has been much debate about the relevance of the british university and school history curricula to pupils.The popular author of a book on King Athelstan, Tom Holland claims: “It should not be beyond the wit...moreHow significant was Bannockburn? What do Y7 pupils think?
When your pupils watch any sporting even that features the Scottish national anthem, remind them of its links to Bannockburn and 1314. So why is it important and doesn't everyone agree? Sean Lang has recently stirred the controversy: “Robert the Bruce’s...moreMaking links in history at KS3: 5 simple questions to ask your pupils
more5 quick and simple questions to help pupils make links in history at KS3
- When else have we come across a diagram like this to show how society was organised? Example: This occurred in a Y8 lesson on the...
Is chocolate bad for your history lessons at KS2? Warnings about OFSTED and SOME cross-curricular approaches
With OFSTED putting the curriculum under even greater scrutiny, it is perhaps timely to re-consider assumption about delivery of history as a discrete subject or as part of a thematic approach. OFSTED will claim that schools are free to select...moreSwopping a Great Fire for a volcanic eruption? Looking for a new famous Event at KS1?
In a recent article in the Historical association’s Primary History Sue Townsend makes a very strong case for introducing the teaching the volcanic eruption at Pompeii at KS1. One had to be careful making suggestions like this. After all, history...moreHow important do people think school history is? Very..and thanks for making your history lessons so stimulating!
In a recent Yougov poll a large number of people across the political spectrum and age groups was asked to rank the importance of school subjects. Unsurprisingly the top places went to English , Mathematics Science, Computer science and sex...moreWhat was life like in Tudor London-a pocket history
If you are unsure of your knowledge of life in Tudor times, you could do a lot worse than to start with the Museum of London's Pocket Histories which contain useful information on all the principal aspects. https://www.museumoflondon.org.uk/application/files/5314/5450/2917/life-in-tudor-london-pocket-history.pdf...more
How to get KS1 pupils into history-13 ideas
If you haven't already come across this School Run website offers 13 different ideas for making history come alive with your pupils, including games, story books, visits, history re-enactments etc. What i like about the list is that they...more
Common assessment tasks in history at KS1
It is often difficult knowing how to assess pupils’ historical thinking at KS1. Are we simply testing literacy and /or recall? But what about historical understanding? Faced with this problem, I have been working with two large London primary schools....more
Medium-term planning for history at Key Stage 1
This part of the site contains a dozen detailed fully-developed enquiry-led, key question-driven medium term plans for all the major KS1 history -led topics. They have all been judged to be outstanding by an experienced OFSTED history inspector. All the...more
Swopping a Great Fire for a volcanic eruption? Looking for a new famous Event at KS1?
In a recent article in the Historical association’s Primary History Sue Townsend makes a very strong case for introducing the teaching the volcanic eruption at Pompeii at KS1. One had to be careful making suggestions like this. After all, history...more
How should Scott be remembered today? KQ6
Exciting finale to the topic sees pupils analysing different ways in which Scott has been commemorated in the past, coming up with their own 21st century ideas and then completing a diamond-4 prioritising activity before acting as historical advisers to...more
How will your school commemorate the end of World War One in 2018?
This short advice sheet invites schools to consider how they will commemorate the centenary of armistice day and provides an illustrated PowerPoint presentation offering 8 attractive ideas to set you thinking. This supports two outstanding lessons that feature on the website:more
Swopping a Great Fire for a volcanic eruption? Looking for a new famous Event at KS1?
In a recent article in the Historical association’s Primary History Sue Townsend makes a very strong case for introducing the teaching the volcanic eruption at Pompeii at KS1. One had to be careful making suggestions like this. After all, history...moreHow should Scott be remembered today? KQ6
Exciting finale to the topic sees pupils analysing different ways in which Scott has been commemorated in the past, coming up with their own 21st century ideas and then completing a diamond-4 prioritising activity before acting as historical advisers to...moreHow will your school commemorate the end of World War One in 2018?
This short advice sheet invites schools to consider how they will commemorate the centenary of armistice day and provides an illustrated PowerPoint presentation offering 8 attractive ideas to set you thinking. This supports two outstanding lessons that feature on the website:more
Great PowerPoint on World War Two for KS2
If you are looking for a great 20 slide PowerPoint presentation on the Home Front in World War Two, you would be hard-pressed to find one better than the Imperial War Museum's https://www.iwm.org.uk/learning/resources/second-world-war-posters...more
Planning for teaching Life in Tudor times at KS2
moreAs you know, the requirement to study Life in Tudor Britain was mysteriously and inexplicably removed from the Key Stage 2 curriculum in 2014. As one of the best-taught and popular of all the history topics that...
KS2 Why did Henry Break with Rome? Love or religion? Key Question 2
moreThis KS2 history enquiry revolves around Henry VIII’s divorce and the break with Rome, one of the best-known stories in English history. At first, Henry, this larger than life figure, seems almost to be a perfect guest on...
How should Germany be treated at the Paris peace conference? KS3 or KS4 task
This short but engaging task precedes any detailed analysis of the terms of the treaty itself. It has four distinct elements: prediction; analysis of a rarely seen German poster; attaching significance; and refining ideas based on most recent scholarship. Step 1 Firstly,...more
So you think your pupils know about Witchcraft in early modern Britain.
1. Were witches burned in English-speaking countries? A. No, they were hanged not burned, because witchcraft was a felony. This was also true in North America. 2. Were millions of witches put to death? A. No, the real number was nearer 50,000 across...more
What can we tell about the Ancient Greeks from a study of their Olympics? KQ5 part 1
moreWe thought we would offer you a range of different cameos showing how the history of the Olympics could be imaginatively integrated into your current teaching.
The teaching activities below have all be tried and tested in schools and...
How should Germany be treated at the Paris peace conference? KS3 or KS4 task
This short but engaging task precedes any detailed analysis of the terms of the treaty itself. It has four distinct elements: prediction; analysis of a rarely seen German poster; attaching significance; and refining ideas based on most recent scholarship. Step 1 Firstly,...more
Which cartoon best explains the paradox of the Nazi Soviet pact?
moreThe Unholy Alliance: why on earth did Hitler and Stalin sign the Nazi-Soviet Pact when they clearly hated each other?
Starting with the historical puzzle of why Stalin and Hitler signed the Non-Aggression pact on August 1939 which so shocked the...GCSE History: Guide to planning and teaching Edexcel 9-1 GCSE
E Lots of thinking has taken place to decide the best way to structure the new Edexcel 9-1 GCSE history course. The rationale behind this plan comes straight from successful classroom practice.. One of my former Advanced Skills Teachers has written this about...more
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About Me
Neil acts as an educational consultant for history for schools throughout the country. After teaching for 12 years, during which time he ran two departments and was a member of the Senior Leadership, Neil moved into advisory work,
For 18 years, he supported 70 secondary and 450 primary and special schools in Hampshire during which time he carried out over 60 national OFSTED inspections. More recently he has been heavily involved in running about 40 highly acclaimed national training courses a year for primary and secondary history teachers, as well as bespoke whole staff INSET days in primary schools.
