Keystage History Blog – updates from Neil
Latest posts
When outstanding is not outstanding
BookmarkOfsted’s director of corporate strategy, Luke Tryl, said yesterday: “What we can’t tell is if the levels of education in…
Read MoreAt last OFSTED is seeing sense with its lesson observations
BookmarkFor 7 of the most miserable years of my professional life, I had to carry out OFSTED inspections. Not because…
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How to get high quality written answers from your KS2 pupils
BookmarkAs we all know, developing pupils’ extended written answers requires structures preparation. Pupils need to develop their own thinking on…
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Gove’s reply to my letter criticising his inane proposals for NC history,sent via my MP
BookmarkYou might be interested in Gove’s response to my criticism of the new NC proposals, sent via my local MP….
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Gove’s attacks on ‘infantilised’ history teaching: sign of desperate man
BookmarkGove ridiculous lampooning of a couple of Russell Tarr and the Historical Associations’s suggested learning activities for history has all…
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Top Tips for teaching….Stone Age to Iron Age
BookmarkStone Age to Iron Age The British Isles has been populated by humans for 750.000 years but only became an…
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What have the Anglo-Saxons ever done for us? Some KS2 answers
BookmarkIf you asked Michael Wood what the Anglo-Saxons ever did for us he would give a very full and erudite…
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History teachers take lead in helping pupils spot fake news
BookmarkLearning to identify fake news online requires a set of skills and knowledge that help you evaluate information. You also…
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Fun anachronism-spotting activity set in 1796, for GCSE History of Medicine
BookmarkMost anachronism activities used in schools are the rather naff ones put before Y7 pupils in an introduction to What…
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Outstanding new KS2 Tudor Britain planner now available
BookmarkIf any of you have been waiting for the new up-dated Tudor planner, you can now request it via email…
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2 fun facts for pupils studying Florence Nightingale at KS1 and 2 key learning points
BookmarkJust thought these two fun facts might interest your pupils, building on infants’ interest in animals rather than death rates…
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5 quick ideas to help you to develop pupils’ genuine historical understanding at KS1 and 2
Bookmark Try to develop a sense of adventure which motivates the pupils. The new lesson on Ancient Egypt has pupils…
Read MoreOFSTED and primary history-latest
Bookmark Sean Harford recently criticised schools that force pupils to repeatedly practice comprehension exercises for KS2 tests and repeats concerns…
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Time for sweeping change in history assessment at KS3, GCSE and A level is NOW.
BookmarkWhen so much time has been spent on measuring pupils’ progress in KS3 using spurious data derived from blunt assessment…
Read MoreFamous people at KS1- new resources from BBC
BookmarkOver the last few weeks I have been approached by several companies bidding for the contract to produce animated films…
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Keeping up-to-date with your teaching of Victorian Britain at KS2
BookmarkWe often talk to children about the benefits that brought so many people into industrial towns in the first half…
Read MoreExpert advice on local history at KS1 and KS2 by OFSTED lead inspector
BookmarkEx-subject lead for history at OFSTED has recently written this very helpful booklet for English Heritage. A great place to start…
Read MoreGove admits need to U-turn on history proposals
BookmarkListening doesn’t come easy to Gove. He’d rather just pontificate about what he thinks is best for us, irrespective of…
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Is this really the end of the Tudors, Victorians and WW2 at Key Stage 2?
BookmarkAside from Ancient Egypt, these are the three best taught history topics in KS2 so it is madness to ditch…
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Rationale for teaching Benin (West Africa) c. AD 900-1300 as your non-Western society in the KS2 history National Curriculum for 2014
BookmarkThere are two principal reasons why I think Benin was included as one of only three optional non-Western societies. The…
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Great short 5 minute video on Vikings guaranteed fun!
BookmarkIf you’re looking for a clever, funny and informative overview of the Vikings that your Y5s will really enjoy go…
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KS1 : Going to the Seaside-the mystery of the pier
BookmarkOne of the more interesting features of the Seaside holidays topic is the fact that it opens up discussion, even…
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New brilliantly differentiated lesson on Tudor theatre for KS2: 5 great differentiation strategies that don’t need masses of prep.
BookmarkNew brilliantly differentiated lesson on Tudor theatre for KS2: 5 great differentiation strategies that don’t need masses of prep. You…
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Really effective strategy : Dear Producer (video critique) features in new KQ6 lesson on Ancient Greeks
BookmarkThose of you familiar with the technique Dear Producer will know that it asks pupils to evaluate how well a…
Read MoreWhat can the Ancient Greeks tell us about leading history at KS2?
BookmarkIn these days of accountability and showing that we are doing what is required, there is a temptation for subject…
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How much Irish history do your pupils learn?
BookmarkLise Hand the Times columnist recently described a visit to see the film Michael Collins with her well-educated and well-known…
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Photo of Scott’s disconsolate team at South Pole up for sale
BookmarkPupils have often wondered how a photograph could possibly be taken showing all five of Scott’s team in shot, given…
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French Revolution-what do the 1793 playing cards tell us?
BookmarkInteresting new lesson on using 12 colourful playing cards to encourage students to work out what mattered most to the…
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Excellent animation of how Stonehenge was built
BookmarkGreat English Heritage showing how Stonehenge was built WATCH: The brilliance of our prehistoric ancestors and the creation of @EH_Stonehenge…
Read MoreAs a history subject leader, do you hold your colleagues to account?
BookmarkIt is a truth universally acknowledged that it not good for one’s health to read OFSTED reports in the summer…
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GCSE History of medicine: What was the most important medical advance in the last 200 years
BookmarkRecently a sample of 11,000 doctors was asked to name the most important medical advance in the last 200 years.The…
Read MoreFlipping the GCSE history question: stopping students answering the questions that wasn’t set! An example from Crime and Punishment using zones of significance
BookmarkWe all know students who have answered the question that hoped would appear on the question, regardless of the actual…
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DfE criticises types of history teaching. Are you their target?
BookmarkNick Gibb, Minister for Schools has again sounded off about the virtues of formal didactic teaching of knowledge and has…
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KS1 Wright brothers topic KQ5 explores change using spectrum activity
BookmarkThose of you teaching a topic on flight, in the sky or ‘up and away’ might be interested to know…
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10 most significant battles of World War One
BookmarkStaff from the Imperial War Museums have just published their list of the 10 most significant battles of the First…
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Why Teach Students to “Think Like Historians?”
BookmarkSam Wineburg will be familiar to many of you. If not do try to read his stuff. Sam is at…
Read MoreUsing simple ‘how plausible’ strategy for high-intensity thinking from KS2 to A level
BookmarkSometimes the simplest ideas have the most impact, probably because we don’t over-complicate. Looking for a way of getting students…
Read MoreGrades 1-9 flightpath in history; or so you thought
BookmarkI’m sure you has pretty limited expectations of what exemplication of grade 1-9 flightpath might look like . So its…
Read MoreWhat OFSTED says about primary history: 3 things you need to know
BookmarkOFSTED’s views on primary history are difficult to find. The last Lead Inspector for history offered these three opinions before…
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Top 5 features of expert history teaching at KS1
BookmarkTop five features of expert teaching at KS1 The key is challenge. Only by you setting high expectations will you…
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Learning in primary and secondary history : The 4 Ps, Gingerbread men and other thoughts on active learning
BookmarkI have always favoured actively learning in history, not least because it frees the teachers to talk to individuals about…
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GCSE history : Medicine and World War One resource
BookmarkThis PowerPoint presentation , linked to clips from the film Battle of the Somme, is a must for those of…
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New A level resources for teaching Thatcherism
Bookmark The BBC has recently archived 17 programmes, news items and documents which illustrate Thatcher’s image transformation from suburban housewife…
Read MoreRelevance in A level history
BookmarkI’m sure many of you have felt exasperated, from time to time, with students who answer questions about the extent…
Read MoreDefenders of the new history curriculum have their say: a dozen dons can’t be wrong?
BookmarkIn this morning’s Times, supported by a front page and leader aticle, a dozen dons have come out of the…
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Henry VIII on the money. The strange case of the one pound coin
BookmarkThis is not so much a full lesson as an introduction to the Break with Rome. It revolves around the…
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Holocaust teaching and need for training for history teachers
BookmarkHolocaust teaching at KS3: what we should be doing! In addition to advising that history teachers and colleagues in other…
Read MoreStop using ‘can-do’ statements to assess KS3 history
BookmarkIt has always concerned me that context-free can-do statements have NO PLACE in HISTORY TEACHING. How can we possibly consider…
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Are you teaching your KS1 the truth about Guy Fawkes?
BookmarkIn many schools I hear teachers tell the same story about Guido Fawkes. Guy Fawkes was angry at the King…
Read MoreLaunch of new website www.keystagehistory.co.uk
BookmarkHi, Just a short note to say that a new website is being launched this week for teachers of history…
Read MoreWritten by Neil Thompson
All content on Keystage history is written and quality assured by Neil Thompson, a former history teacher, county history adviser and Ofsted inspector with more than 30 years’ experience in history education.