Planning effective historical enquiries at Key Stage 1 lays the foundation for developing children’s curiosity, critical thinking, and understanding of the past. By asking the right questions during the planning process, teachers can create meaningful and engaging learning experiences that support historical thinking from the very start. This guide presents ten essential questions designed to help shape purposeful, age-appropriate enquiries. Each question encourages reflection on how to spark interest, build knowledge, and support young learners in drawing conclusions from evidence. Whether you’re new to enquiry-based history or refining your approach, these prompts will enhance the quality of your KS1 planning.
- Is this area of content significant enough to spend time on?
- How can we turn this area of content into a rigorous and motivating enquiry question?
- Can we focus the enquiry on individual people?
- How will pupils communicate their understanding through an engaging end product?
- How will we hook the
