Welcome to History

All about me:

• Learn about their immediate environment by using knowledge from observation, discussion, stories, non-fiction texts and maps.
• Children learn about their door numbers and where they live.
• Using pictures, children learn to draw simple maps of how to get from school to the local park.
   

People who help us:

• Can talk about the lives of the people around them and their roles in society

Fantasy:

• Understand some important processes and changes in the natural world around them, including the seasons and changing states of matter.

Traditional Tales:

• Children learn to explore the natural world around them by, making observations and drawing pictures of animals and plants.

Dinosaurs & Animals:

• Children understand that some things happen in nonfiction texts and (when appropriate) maps.
• Children have real minibeasts and plants to help them observe the changes that occur. 
•  Children look at a range of maps of the world. 
• Children about different countries and hot and cold climates.
   

How have toys changed over time?

• Toys can be grouped into categories depending on similarities and differences
• Toys look and feel different. Their characteristics can be described using adjectives.
• Toys from the past were different from toys in the present.
• There are similarities and differences between old and modern toys.
• Toys can be ordered on a timeline from oldest to newest.
• Artefacts can be displayed in museums or galleries for the public

How has transport changed over time?

• There are many different modes of transport that we use today.
• Journeys made in the past were different from today.
• Over time, engines have made boat journeys faster and safer.
• Factories meant that cars could be mass produced so they became cheaper, practical and more families could buy them.
• Buses are vehicles that carry more than 10 passengers. Buses have changed over time, as technology has developed
• Over time, bicycles have become much safer, more comfortable and easier to use. Different bicycles can be ordered on a timeline.
• The invention of the train had a big impact on people’s lives.
• Underground railways were introduced in busy cities to ease congestion 
• Journey by flight has changed over time.
• The invention of the spaceship was a significant in the history of transport.

Have we always liked to be beside the seaside?

• The seaside is a place by the sea where tourists like to go for their holidays.
• The seaside has both natural and man made features.
• There are a wide variety of popular activities at the seaside.
• Traditional seaside holidays included sea bathing and puppet shows. 
• Seaside holidays today are similar and different to in the past.

Who are the three most powerful Monarchs since 1066, and what are your reasons for selecting them?

• The UK has a hereditary monarchy, which means that the role is passed down in the family.
• William I won the Battle of Hastings in 1066 and conquered England.
• King John signed the Magna Carta and no monarch has had absolute power since. 
• Both Henry VIII and Elizabeth I were powerful monarch. 
• There were many different battles for power that led to fair, parliamentary rule.
• The British monarchy today is constitutional.
   

How could the Great Fire of London have been prevented?

• In 1666, London was very different to how it is today. King Charles II was the king and transport and landmarks were very different to how they are today.
• The Great Fire of London spread through a sequence of events.
• Samuel Pepys and John Evelyn were both eyewitnesses to the Great Fire of London. Their accounts tell us what life was like in London in the 1660s and the impact of the Great Fire of London.
• Many people kept goods such as tar, oil and brandy in their homes, which were highly flammable. Houses in 1666 were made mostly from wood so they were combustible. 
• Many Londoners lost their houses and became homeless. Homeless Londoners took shelter outside the city.
   

How have the human rights heroes you have studied made a difference to our world?

• Historians use criteria to talk about how significant people are. 
• The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) was written to make sure that everyone is treated fairly.
• Apartheid was a form of racism that kept black people and white people in South Africa separated. Nelson Mandela fought for equality and justice for black people.
• In 1950s America, segregation kept black people and white people separate
• The bus boycott was started by Rosa Parks to fight for black and white people to be treated the same.
• Martin Luther King Jr. was the leader of the Civil Rights Movement in America leading peaceful protests to fight for equality.
• Malala Yousafzai started a charity to help girls achieve equality in education.

When do you think it was better to live – the Stone Age, Bronze Age or Iron Age?

• Britain, prehistory included the Stone, Bronze and Iron Ages.
• In the Neolithic Period, people started to tame animals and plough fields (agriculture). As a result, people began to form permanent settlements.
• People could make new goods from bronze and other metals. As a result, some people became wealthy for the first time.
• The tribes of Iron Age Britain shared similar customs with the tribes of Europe.
• Stonehenge is a monument built from many different stones.
• The earliest civilizations were more advanced than prehistoric Britain. Life was not the same in other parts of the world.
   

Who were the ancient Greeks and how have they influenced our lives today?

• The Myceneans had come to dominate mainland Greece with a distinct culture of their own and expanded through former Minoan territory after 1450BC.
• The Greeks lived in smaller cities called city states. Each city state ruled itself and had its own government, laws and army.
• The Classical Period is often referred to as ‘the Golden Age of Greece’. From 508BC, Athenian democracy was established.
• Athens and Sparta were the two most important city-states. They were supported by leagues - networks of coercive alliances.
• Alexander the Great conquered an empire & several kingdoms between 333-323BC
• The Greeks influenced a range of modern aspects of life including philosophy, mathematics, astronomy, medicine, drama, sculpture and architecture.

Why did the Romans invade Britain and how successful were they?

• Romans wished to expand their empire to gain wealth and power 
• At the time of the Roman invasions, Britain was split into different tribal areas.
• The Romans formed alliances with tribes in Britain.
• The strength of the Roman army was key to the success of the expansion of the Roman Empire.
• Some people resisted Roman occupation of Britain.
• Boudicca and her rebel army fought against the Romans.
• The Romans needed to build defences in the land they had conquered.
• To defend land, the Romans built forts
• Roman Britain went through a series of important changes due to the decline of the Roman Empire 
   

How have the Romans influenced our country and culture today?

• Through archaeology, we can learn a lot about who lived in Roman Britain through the excavation of burial sites and analysis of artefacts and investigation of human remains. From human bones and teeth, archaeologists can determine the ancestry of those buried there. 
• Romans built infrastructure across Britain (towns, and roads to connect them) in order to travel and trade.  
• Romans held the belief that there were many gods and goddesses (polytheism).  The Britons also believed in more than one God and Goddess and were able to worship their own gods as long as they also respected the Roman ones.
• At first, Christianity was banned, however Roman emperors converted and eventually declared it the official religion of the empire. 
• The Romans developed a trade network across the empire.
• The Romans introduced a currency and coins to make trade easier across empire.
• The legacy of the ancient Romans includes: an alphabet and writing; words we use today; the calendar and a number system. 
• Archaeological sites can tell us a lot about what life was like in Roman times.  We can make predictions using the sources and evidence we find.
   

How do we know about what everyday life was like in Maya civilisation?

• The ancient Maya civilisation consisted of separate city-states.
• Maya society was separated into a hierarchy with a ruler at the top and slaves at the bottom.
• Religion was an important part of daily life for the ancient Maya people. They worshipped different gods and goddesses (polytheism) and also worshipped the ruler and their ancestors.
• The ancient Maya relied on agriculture, foraging and hunting, however it was difficult to farm the ancient Maya lands so they developed technology to make it easier.
• The ancient Maya wrote using pictures we call hieroglyphs.
• The ancient Maya civilization declined over time. In around 900AD many cities were abandoned.
   

How was Anglo-Saxon and Viking Britain different to Roman Britain?

• The Anglo Saxons and Vikings could gain control in Britain due to the power vacuum left behind by the Romans.
• Many Anglo-Saxons settlers lived in small villages.
• Viking used their longships to travel extensively. They could sail in shallow water which meant they could travel up rivers as well as across the sea.
• Viking society was separated into a hierarchy with the king at the top followed by the jarls, karls and thralls/slaves. 
• The Anglo-Saxons were originally pagans but King Ethlebert became the first king to convert to Christianity.
• Anglo-Saxon Britain was divided into 7 kingdoms ruled by a different king. Earls governed large areas of England on behalf of the king.
• King Alfred’s victory at the Battle of Edington was decisive, forcing Guthrum to withdraw from Wessex and agree to the division of England. The Vikings settled in the Danelaw.
• King Alfred defeated the Danes and consolidated English rule under the Kingdom of Wessex
• Artefacts provide evidence for what life was like for the Anglo-Saxons and Vikings.
• Gildas, Bede and the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle are the main literary sources of information about the Anglo-Saxon period.
• Sutton Hoo was discovered in 1939 and is one of the most exciting discoveries in British archaeology.           
   

Was the Industrial Revolution positive or negative?

• The Industrial Revolution was a time in British history where the country changed hugely from a mostly rural society to an industrial one.
• The British Empire was important for trade as it provided raw materials which were taken back to Britain and turned into manufactured goods.
• Profits from the transatlantic slave trade enabled these raw materials to be bought transforming the British economy.
• The invention of machines transformed the textile industry and contributed to the growth of the factory system.
• Steam has been the driving force behind British industry for 300 years. Without it, the Industrial Revolution could never have happened.
• Much of the machinery and buildings, trains, railway bridges and steam engines, were built out of iron. Steam engines needed a huge amount of coal to function, so coal mining became a very important industry.
• Canals are manmade rivers that spread around the country to transport goods such as coal and iron.
• The industrial revolution transformed the class system of British society.
   

What was the Golden Age of Islam and how has it helped us today? 

• The Abbasid Caliphate founded the city of Baghdad.  
• The time was described as the ‘Golden Age of Islam’ because the Round City had been built and trade brought wealth to the city.
• The creation of the ‘House of Wisdom’ added space for scholars and scribes to work within it. Scholars translated and studied many texts from ancient Greece, the Roman Empire and ancient India.
• Key scholars made advancements in the fields of science, mathematics and medicine.
• The decline of the Islamic Empire was the result of a series of challenges to power.
• In 1000AD, culture in the cities of Baghdad and London was very different to each other.
   

What made the ancient Egyptians one of the most successful civilisation?

• There were over 30 dynasties that ruled ancient Egypt over the course of 3000 years. Pharaohs ruled Egypt and were believed to be gods. The pharaoh created all of Egypt’s laws.
• Ancient Egyptian society was structured in a hierarchy like a pyramid. Life was different for people at different levels in the system.
• Ancient Egyptians developed irrigation methods to increase the amount of land they could use to grow crops and food to support a growing population.
• To prepare for death, Pharaohs built temples and massive pyramid tombs filled with all the things they would need to guide and sustain them in the next world.
• Egyptians wanted their lives to continue beyond death, and strongly believed in preserving the body and providing the dead with what they would need in the afterlife.
• Egyptologists study Egypt and have been fascinated by the history of the ancient Egyptians.

How did World Wars One and Two change both warfare and British society? 

• The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand sparked a chain reaction of alliances which drew the majority of Europe − and then the world – into war.
• The colonies of the British Empire supported the war effort by providing many soldiers.  
• In 1916, the Military Service Act introduced conscription calling for every unmarried man aged between 18-41to enlist for military service.  
• On the Western Front, the war was fought by soldiers in trenches. There were many lines of German trenches on one side and many lines of Allied trenches on the other. 
• Life on the home front saw a change in the role of women. Taking on roles traditionally reserved for men, had an impact on women’s rights for example in 1918, women were given the right to vote.
• The Treaty of Versailles was signed in 1918 ending World War One. It gave Germany harsh peace terms to follow such as taking blame for starting the war.
• In the 1930s, Britain followed a policy of appeasement to avoid a war. It allowed Hitler to expand German territory unchecked 
• The Nazis created prejudice in Germany against groups of people they considered ‘non-German’.
• The persecution of Jews (and others considered ‘non-German’) began with the removal of their rights, and ultimately resulted in the murder of millions. 
• ‘The Blitz’ was the German bombing of Britain’s home front during World War II. It destroyed over a million homes and killed over 40,000 civilians. Children were evacuated from the cities to safer rural areas. 
• After World War Two the Labour Government introduced reforms to tackle the ‘Five Giants’ of poverty, establishing the Welfare State. 
• Britain needed skilled labourers to help rebuild the country and relied on immigration to fill the jobs in constructions and the service sector.
• In 1945, the United Nations (UN) was formed to maintain international peace. Many countries signed the UN charter and follow its terms on conflict and resolution.