History

At Bell Farm our pupils are passionate about history. They are curious about the past and interested to understand how and why events occurred. They go on to question why people interpret the past in different ways and as a result, think about how the future is shaped. We believe that high-quality history lessons encourage skills of critical thinking, questioning, researching, and inspire pupils to develop perspective and judgement.

Wherever possible, links are made between subjects across the curriculum to contextualise and motivate learners. The learning objectives of each lesson draw from knowledge and skills included in the National Curriculum. Projects provide highly productive opportunities to use and apply basic skills in literacy and numeracy, whilst strengthening pupils’ learning in history or other subjects.

History lessons at Bell Farm are often complimented by different resources, ranging from high quality texts, picture books, artefacts, artwork and textbooks; all of which provide a further stimulus to extend historical enquiry skills.

In KS1, our pupils develop an awareness of the past and the ways in which it is similar to and different from the present. They learn about the passing of time and about some key people and events from historical periods. In KS2, pupils go on to develop a chronologically secure knowledge and understanding of British and World history. They continue to develop the skills learnt at KS1 and delve deeper into noting trends over time; constructing responses when faced with historical information, and understanding how our knowledge of the past is constructed from a range of sources.

At Bell Farm, history comes alive in any way that we can make it happen. One of these ways is through class trips. Visits include: The British Museum, The Natural History Museum, Henley Fort, Victorian school experience, Hampton Court, and several in-school workshops that involve actors leading enjoyable days.

Our hope is that the knowledge and skills acquired at Bell Farm will inspire pupils to become open-minded individuals who can leave the school ready to develop further and make a valuable contribution to society.

There are many good websites to support your childs learning in history. Here are some useful links you may wish to look at: