Springwood Heath Primary School

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History

Intent

At Springwood Heath Primary School, we follow the CUSP (Curriculum with Unity Schools Partnership) History curriculum to provide our pupils with a rich and engaging understanding of the past. Our intent is to inspire curiosity, deepen understanding, and develop a strong sense of chronology through a knowledge-rich approach.

The CUSP History curriculum is carefully sequenced to build historical knowledge, vocabulary, and skills over time. Pupils explore a diverse range of people, places, and events—from ancient civilisations to more recent history—through enquiry-based learning. We aim to develop critical thinking, evidence-based reasoning, and an understanding of how the past has shaped our world today.

By embedding disciplinary knowledge—such as understanding cause and consequence, continuity and change, and historical significance—our pupils become thoughtful, analytical, and reflective historians. We ensure all learners, including those with SEND, have access to a meaningful and inclusive history curriculum that builds cultural capital and prepares them for future learning.

Implementation

At Springwood Heath, we implement the CUSP History curriculum through carefully structured units that build progressively on prior knowledge and understanding. Each unit is sequenced to revisit and deepen key concepts, ensuring that children know more and remember more over time.

Our history lessons follow a consistent structure across all year groups, beginning with retrieval practice to activate prior learning and strengthen memory. High-quality, subject-specific vocabulary is explicitly taught and revisited regularly to develop pupils’ disciplinary language and confidence in using it.

Each unit includes:

  • A clear historical focus and enquiry question
  • Chronological understanding and contextual knowledge
  • Opportunities to investigate sources and evidence
  • The development of historical concepts such as significance, cause and effect, and change over time

Teachers use knowledge organisers, visual timelines, and carefully chosen resources to support learners of all abilities, including those with SEND. CUSP’s approach ensures that history is not taught in isolation, but interconnected through themes such as power, monarchy, civilisation, and migration, helping pupils make links across time periods.

Assessment is woven throughout lessons via questioning, discussion, and low-stakes quizzes, enabling teachers to identify gaps and adjust teaching accordingly. Work is recorded in history books, showcasing the progression of knowledge, skills, and understanding over time.

 Early Years

In Early Years at Springwood Heath Primary School, children begin their journey as young historians through the ‘Past and Present’ strand of the Understanding the World area of learning.

Our intent is to spark curiosity about the past and to help children make sense of their world by exploring how life has changed over time. We lay strong foundations for historical understanding by encouraging children to talk about their own lives, their families, and events that have happened in the past.

Through high-quality texts, storytelling, and meaningful discussion, children learn to:

  • Use everyday language related to time (e.g. yesterday, last week, a long time ago)
  • Talk about past experiences and significant events in their lives and others’
  • Compare similarities and differences between now and the past (e.g. homes, transport, toys)
  • Begin to understand concepts of change, continuity, and chronology

We create rich, purposeful opportunities for exploration through role play, artefacts, photos, and family engagement activities. Children are encouraged to ask questions, share memories, and build a sense of time and place.

By the end of Reception, our children have a secure foundation in early historical thinking. They are curious, confident to talk about the past, and ready to build on this knowledge as they move into the Key Stage 1 history curriculum.

KS1

In Key Stage 1, we build on the strong foundations laid in Early Years and introduce children to the structured study of history through our carefully sequenced CUSP curriculum. Our aim is to develop curious, reflective young historians who enjoy learning about the past and understand its relevance to the present.

Through engaging and knowledge-rich units, children begin to:

  • Develop a sense of chronology by exploring events within and beyond living memory
  • Learn about significant individuals, such as Florence Nightingale and Mary Seacole, and their impact on national and global history
  • Study key events such as the Great Fire of London and changes in everyday life over time
  • Use historical vocabulary confidently (e.g. past, present, long ago, before, after)
  • Ask and answer questions, consider evidence, and begin to recognise different viewpoints

Our teaching is enriched with storytelling, drama, artefacts, and high-quality visuals to bring the past to life. Retrieval practice and revisiting of core concepts are embedded in every unit to ensure children remember and build on what they’ve learned.

Children are taught to think like historians—using evidence, sequencing events, and identifying similarities and differences. All pupils, including those with SEND, are supported to access and enjoy a rich and inclusive history curriculum.

By the end of KS1, pupils at Springwood Heath have developed a secure understanding of the past, a growing historical vocabulary, and the foundations needed to thrive in Key Stage 2 history.

KS2

In Key Stage 2, pupils at Springwood Heath continue their journey as historians through our carefully sequenced and knowledge-rich CUSP History curriculum. Building on the strong foundations of KS1, pupils deepen their understanding of chronology, historical concepts, and disciplinary thinking.

Our curriculum is designed to develop pupils’ knowledge of British, local, and world history. Each unit is explicitly mapped to ensure progression in both substantive knowledge (the facts and events of the past) and disciplinary knowledge (the methods and thinking of historians).

Pupils study a broad range of historical periods and themes, including:

  • Ancient civilisations such as Egypt, Greece, and the Maya
  • Key periods of British history including the Romans, Anglo-Saxons and Vikings, and the impact of the monarchy
  • Significant events such as the Second World War and the Windrush generation
  • Local history studies and thematic comparisons across time (e.g. migration, democracy, empire)

Across KS2, children develop their ability to:

  • Place events accurately on a timeline and make chronological connections
  • Use and evaluate primary and secondary sources
  • Identify causes and consequences, similarities and differences, and historical significance
  • Ask meaningful questions, challenge assumptions, and form well-evidenced opinions

Each lesson includes opportunities for retrieval, vocabulary development, and structured discussion. Knowledge is revisited regularly to secure understanding and long-term memory. Teachers use knowledge organisers, timelines, and rich visual resources to support all learners, including those with SEND.

By the end of KS2, pupils leave Springwood Heath with a coherent understanding of the past, the ability to think critically about historical evidence, and the curiosity and confidence to continue their historical learning into secondary school and beyond.

Vocabulary

Vocabulary development plays a crucial role and can be effectively supported using the CUSP (Curriculum with Unity Schools Partnership) scheme of learning. CUSP places a strong emphasis on the deliberate teaching of historical vocabulary to help pupils articulate their understanding with precision and confidence. Through carefully sequenced lessons, children are introduced to tiered vocabulary—such as subject-specific terms like "empire," "monarchy," and "civilisation"—which are revisited and embedded across different historical units. This cumulative approach ensures that pupils not only learn new words but also understand their meanings in context, enabling them to make connections across time periods and themes. By integrating vocabulary instruction into every lesson, CUSP empowers learners to think, speak, and write like historians from an early age.

Impact

The impact of our CUSP History curriculum is evident in the depth of knowledge, historical understanding, and enthusiasm our pupils demonstrate. Through a carefully sequenced and well-delivered curriculum, children develop a secure understanding of key historical concepts and chronology.

By revisiting and building upon prior learning, pupils retain core knowledge and vocabulary, allowing them to make meaningful connections across time periods and themes. They confidently use historical language and can explain significant events and developments with accuracy and insight.

Our pupils:

  • Demonstrate curiosity and critical thinking when exploring the past
  • Can ask and answer thoughtful historical questions
  • Use evidence to support their ideas and challenge assumptions
  • Understand how history has shaped the world they live in

Regular retrieval, formative assessment, and purposeful discussion enable teachers to monitor progress and ensure that all pupils, including those with SEND, are achieving well in history. Book looks, pupil voice, and lesson observations show that children enjoy history, engage actively, and are developing as reflective, informed young historians.

Ultimately, our CUSP History curriculum equips pupils with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in the next stage of their education and to become thoughtful, informed citizens with a strong sense of identity and place in the world.

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