Keystage history

Shang dynasty – KQ2 – How different was the Shang society to other civilizations at the time?

Using the expert/envoy technique to research and disseminate information from dossiers on a range of different aspects of Shang society, pupils have to show how good a teacher they are…

Shang dynasty – KQ3 – What can we tell about the Shang dynasty from the objects that have survived?

Here the focus is on developing enquiry-led learning which is as much about asking valid historical questions as it is about finding answers . From trying to generate 12 killer…

Shang dynasty – KQ4 – Why has our understanding of the Shang dynasty changed so much in the last 100 years?

Opening up the tricky concept of interpretations of the past, this session enables pupils to grasp that history is always having to be rewritten in the light of new evidence….

Shang dynasty – KQ5 – What was distinctive about the Shang people’s beliefs?

Having used a fast-paced Information Run activity to acquire the key points about Shang religion pupils are set the task of evaluating a made-for-schools TV program showing their real understanding…

Shang dynasty – KQ6 – If the Shang dynasty was so well organised why did come to an end after just 600 years and what makes it so special for people today?

Pupils compare 5 different simple textbook explanations, which they colour code, before building their own explanation, based on what seems most plausible to them, which they then write up. Most…

Seaside knowledge organiser – KS1

You are learning about this topic to help you to understand how different life was over the last 100 years. As many of you will have been to the seaside,…

Bulletin – September 2023

Welcome to the September 2023 edition of the Keystage history newsletter, just in time for the start of the new school year. Whether you are a new subscriber, one of…

Columbus knowledge organiser – KS1

Columbus is a world-famous navigator and explorer whose daring voyages in search of the Indies led to the opening of the Americas. The world today would be a very different…

Ancient Egypt and other ancient civilisations knowledge organiser – KS2

You are learning about ancient Egypt, because it is the best known and most popular of the early civilisations that grew up over 5,000 years ago. This was the time…

OFSTED’s latest findings on primary history 2023

Periodically, OFSTED offers a report that codifies the main findings of their most recent subject specific visits. The last major report was in 2011 but two years ago they also…

Scott of the Antarctic knowledge organiser – KS1

You are learning about Scott as he was one of Britain’s most famous explorers. Perhaps you are studying other explorers too such a Columbus or even the men who first…

Crime and punishment knowledge organiser – KS2

You are studying this topic in history because it helps you to understand how things have changed,(and have stayed roughly the same) over a long period of 1000 years. What…

Black and British knowledge organiser – KS2

You are studying this topic in the hope that you will discover how Black British is an important part of British history. Looking back over 2000 years of British history…

Victorian Britain knowledge organiser – KS2

You are learning about Victorian Britain because this was a really significant period of huge change in industry and technology, with amazing inventions that we still use today. But its…

Mayan civilization knowledge organiser – KS2

The height of Maya civilization came at the time when the Saxons were fighting the Vikings in Britain, but it was the Mayan society that was in many ways more…

Grace Darling knowledge organiser – KS1

You are learning about Grace Darling because at a young age she carried out a brave rescue and saved 9 men from a shipwreck. She was the daughter of a…

Benin knowledge organiser – KS2

Benin was a very important civilization, not just within Africa but in world history too. An important part of what you’ll learn is a comparison with Benin offers a good…

Mary Seacole knowledge organiser – KS1

Mary was a remarkable lady best remembered for her work during the Crimean war (1853-1856) where she helped injured soldiers, even riding on horseback onto the actual battlefields. Although not…

Wright brothers knowledge organiser – KS1

For centuries, man had dreamed of flying like birds. By the end of the 19th century, men could rise into the air using balloons, kites and gliders, but always needed…

Moon landing knowledge organiser – KS1

This event captured the attention of the whole world with hundreds of millions, perhaps 1 in every 5 people, watching on TV. On July 20, 1969, two astronauts did what…

Sinking of the Titanic knowledge organiser – KS1

In this topic you are going to find out about the most famous ship, at the time the biggest ever built – the Titanic. It was a ship like no…

Teaching interpretations – top 10 key messages

In a recent article in the Historical Association’s Primary History publication the ever-reliable Tim Lomas attempted to identify the top 10 key messages to bear in mind when teaching the…

Vikings knowledge organiser – KS2

Probably one of the most captivating of KS2 history topics, the Vikings present wonderful opportunities to capitalise on pupils’ fascination and to do some in-depth work on using sources and…

Florence Nightingale Knowledge Organiser – KS1

Florence Nightingale Knowledge Organiser – In their study of Florence Nightingale, often compared to the lesser-known Mary Seacole, pupils learn not only about the pioneering role of a determined lady…

Anglo-Saxons knowledge organiser – KS2

During this period England emerged as a recognisable nation and Christianity became established. The recent coronation of Charles III is the latest for a king of England: over a thousand…

Great Fire of London knowledge organiser – KS1

The Great Fire of 1666 is an event that most people know about today not least because it changed the face of London as we know it today. It provides…

Keeping up to-date with teaching of the Maya – Archaeologists uncover scoreboard for ancient Maya ball game

In the Archaeological Zone of Chichén Itzá, archaeologists from the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) have discovered a circular shaped stone marker they believe to be a scoreboard…

EYFS and History in OFSTED deep dives

According to OFSTED (January 2023), inspectors will want to know how key stage 1 builds on the knowledge that children learn in the early years. They will want to look…

Moving on to the next stage in learning

There is a paragraph that seems to be copied and pasted into a number of deep dive OFSTED reports I have read recently. It goes something like this: …

Golden threads or Gordian knot? How to weave first order historical concepts into the fabric of your history curriculum

Talking about ‘first-order’ historical concepts, by which I mean ideas such as empire and invasion, civilization, power and authority has always been a central part of the discourse surrounding school…

Rosa Parks – KQ1 – Can we work as history detectives to work out what Rosa Parks did that made her famous?

Pupils are pitched straight into the role as history detectives using mainly visual clues to piece together the possible reasons why Rosa Parks might be famous to then have their…

Thinking about Women’s History Month? – March 2026

What can you do? Well at KS1, how about broadening the range of significant people you offer to the pupils to study. Why not go beyond Florence Nightingale and Mary…

Statutory Guidance: National curriculum in England: history programmes of study

First published 11 September 2013 by Department of Education. View document on Department of Education website Applies to England Purpose of study A high-quality history education will help pupils gain…

National curriculum in England – History programmes of study: key stages 1 and 2

View document on Department of Education website Purpose of study A high-quality history education will help pupils gain a coherent knowledge and understanding of Britain’s past and that of the…

National curriculum in England – History programmes of study: key stage 3

View document on Department of Education website Purpose of study A high-quality history education will help pupils gain a coherent knowledge and understanding of Britain’s past and that of the…

OFSTED Webinar on primary and secondary History 2023

Many of you will have read the lengthy OFSTED paper on research findings into the history curriculum published in 2021, and many more will have read my summary of the…

Policy and vision in Key Stage 2 history

Having seen so many Key Stage 2 history policies that nobody on the staff ever refers to, it seemed pretty futile to add to the list! Policies are such personal…

Keeping up-to-date with developments in primary history

Every few years, the Primary wing of the Historical Association carry out a survey of primary schools to see what the current picture of history teaching and provision looks like….

The coronation of King Charles III

Central activity: Mantle of the Expert The coronation of Charles III will take place on 6 May 2023. Preparations for the event have been going one for a long time,…

Adapting Keystage history lessons – FAQs

1. Why are lessons still called ‘outstanding’? I am often asked how the lessons section of the site should be used and why the term outstanding is still used when…

Ancient Greece knowledge organiser – KS2

In your study of Ancient Greece you will learn how a civilization that flourished over 2500 years ago still influences our lives today. Even the Olympic games come from this…

Rosa Parks – KQ2 -What can we learn about what sort of person Rosa was from stories of her early life?

Based on 3 key episodes from Rosa’s life, drawn from a lively story book, pupils act out 3 key episodes and have to select adjectives that best describe the aspects…

Rosa Parks – KQ3 – What was life like for black people living in southern USA in the 1950s?

This session looks at what life was like for Black people living in the southern parts of the United States in the 1950s. Back then, people didn’t always have the…

Rosa Parks – KQ4 – Why do you think Rosa acted as she did on that day that made her famous?

In this session pupils explore what drove Rosa to take her stand in December 1955, going beyond oversimplification of a tired seamstress to examining evidence that she was politically motivated….

Rosa Parks – KQ5 – How did Rosa’s action lead to life for black people getting better?

How did Rosa Parks’ refusal to give up her seat help bring about change? In this KS1 lesson, pupils become museum curators, sorting muddled pictures and captions to explore what…

Rosa Parks – KQ6 – How should we remember Rosa Parks today?

How should we remember someone who helped change people’s lives? In this final enquiry, KS1 pupils draw on their learning about Rosa Parks to suggest and compare ways of celebrating…

Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee – KQ6 – How do we see the importance of Queen Elizabeth all around us in our lives today?

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Written by Neil Thompson