History

Curriculum Intent

The History department at Sunbury Manor School aims to offer a curriculum that engages all learners and makes them curious about their locality and the wider world around them. We also intend to make links to contemporary situations to highlight the relevance of history to the future generation. We also endeavour to develop their own opinions based on a respect for evidence, and to build a deeper understanding of the present by engaging with and questioning the past.

History is an important subject to broaden a students’ skill set. By studying the past, students further their empathy, communication and literacy skills. They learn to critically judge a wide range of written and visual interpretations through the evaluation of sources. It also fosters a sense of local and national identity.

KS3 students study a wide-ranging curriculum that incorporates British, European and World history. We focus on topics commonly found on the National Curriculum. Year 7 follow the medieval time period from the Norman Invasion ending with the Stuarts and the English Civil War. Our Year 8s look at a range of topics in the timer periods between 1700s and early 1900s. Topics include the development of the British Empire and its effect on the wider world as well as the Industrial revolution and WWI. Year 9s look at the 20th century as an era of conflict, not just wars but also political conflict with ‘votes for women’ being one of our key topics.

At KS4, our students follow the Edexcel GCSE History course. We have selected topics that students have some prior knowledge of as the foundations to explore and build upon. Topics include a study of how medicine has developed in Britain from c.1250 to the present day, Superpower Relations and the Cold War 1941–91, Early Elizabethan England and Weimar and Nazi Germany 1918-39.

In History, we also implement our curriculum make use of visual sources as well as the more traditional written evidence. We like to engage our students by making history relevant to their lives and bringing topical situations into our teaching. For example, we have a local history project that focuses on the individuals listed on the local WWI war memorial. We also work in conjunction with other departments to develop common strategies to improve literacy skills that are transferable throughout the whole school. Discussion and debate are a regular feature of lessons, as well as empathy tasks to tackle social, spiritual and moral aspects in history.

We offer extra-curricular activities that enrich our curriculum. An annual WWI Battlefields trip helps develop understanding of WWI at KS3 but also aids our study of the British Sector of the Western Front as part of the GCSE Medicine in Britain course. We have also invited Holocaust survivors in, to talk to our students, which is incredibly powerful. We also encourage our students to look for the signs of local history in the world around them.

A Sunbury Manor History student will leave the school as a well-rounded individual with lifelong skills that are transferable to many career paths. History is a well-respected, academic subject and students that study the subject are confident to challenge interpretations and can form strong arguments, supported by the necessary evidence. History is also a subject that helps improve literacy and communications skills which are valued aspects of many vocations in life.

As a department we are extremely blessed to have three subject specialists, with over forty years of teaching amongst them, whose degrees draw upon Archaeology, Classical Civilisations, modern world History and historical literature. We are situated in the Humanities building that has three designated, well-resourced History classrooms to facilitate our varied approach to learning.

Curriculum Overview

 


Autumn 1

Autumn 2

Spring 1

Spring 2

Summer 1

Summer 2

 

Y7

 

Historical skills – How be a Historian.

The Normans and their impact on England

The Normans and their impact on England

 

The Middle Ages-power struggles and everyday life

The Middle Ages-power struggles and everyday life

Tudor England – changes to religion and impact on the country.  

The Stuarts – continued religious and power struggles of the time

 

 

Y8

 

The Stuarts – continued religious and power struggles of the time

Empires around the world and their impact on the colonies

Slavery to freedom – tracing the start of slavery, role within the empires and fight for equality

The Industrial Revolution

The growth of towns and cities

Employment opportunities

Depth study of WWI – battles, conditions and weapons as well as

Local study – Jack the Ripper investigation of the late 1800s/ 1900s London

 

 

Y9

 

Depth study of WWI – battles, conditions and weapons as well as

USA in the 1920s – looking at interwar years in another country with a focus on the impact and reasons for immigration and the great depression

WWII – looking at the significant changes caused by this world event including the Blitz, the battle for Britain and the dropping of the atomic bombs

The Holocaust – looking in depth at how this atrocity was able to happen and drawing connections to modern day issues

Post 1945 British History – looking at how the past has shaped the world we live in today – including Margret Thatcher, the miners strikes, and the Windrush generation

End of KS3 20th century skills unit – students will use all of their developed historical skills from the past 3 years to delve deeper into other 20th century topic such as suffergettes and Historical interpretations on Hitler and his actions.

 

 

Y10

 

Edexcel: Medicine in Britain c1250-present

Edexcel: Medicine in Britain c1250-present

Edexcel: Superpower Relations 1941-1991

Edexcel: Superpower Relations 1941-1991

Early Elizabethan England 1558 - 1588

Early Elizabethan England 1558 - 1588

 

 

Y11

 

Edexcel: Historic Environment - WWI

Edexcel: Superpower Relations 1941-1991

Edexcel: Superpower Relations 1941-1991

Edexcel: Early Elizabethan England 1558 - 1588

Edexcel: Early Elizabethan England 1558 – 1588

 

Revision

Revision and GCSE Exams

 

 

Key Stage 4 Specification

Subject Leader:

Mrs. V. Riley

Contact:

vriley@sunburymanor.surrey.sch.uk

Exam Specification:

Edexcel GCSE (9-1) History

 

Summary of course content

Paper 1

Medicine in Britain c1250 to present – 20%

The British Sector of the Western Front: injuries, treatment and the trenches – 10%

Paper 2

Superpower relations and the Cold War 1941-91 – 20%

Early Elizabethan England 1558 - 1588– 20%

Paper 3

Weimar & Nazi Germany, 1918-39 – 30%

Assessment

Paper 1 – 1h15 exam worth 30% (52 marks)

Paper 2 – 1h45 exam worth 40% (64 marks)

Paper 3 – 1h20 exam worth 30% (52 marks)

What type of activities take place in lessons?

Source analysis

Essay writing

Researching

Mind Mapping

Problem solving

Report writing skills

Critical analysis - of events, people, documents etc

Peer assessment

What type of homework tasks will be set?

Research tasks to further understanding

Source analysis tasks

Forming opinions/making judgements

Essay writing

Exam skills

How will it help me in the future?

History is very useful for many subjects where making a decision and reading between the lines is a necessary skill. E.g. Law, Journalism, Civil Service jobs, Teaching etc

Gives you the following skills:

  • Understanding people
  • Problem solving
  • Report writing skills
  • Critical analysis - of events, people, documents etc
  • Your ability to communicate: both spoken and written
  • Logical thought processes

How will this course build on what I have studied in Year 9?

You have just started learning the basic skills of source analysis. In Years 10 & 11 these will be developed so you get a full and rounded sense of the messages trying to be conveyed in the sources.

You will continue to develop your decision making and essay writing skills.

Year 9 gives you an insight into what happened during WWII, during the course you will be looking at the political side to the Nazi regime and focusing on how they maintained control over Germany. 

The Elizabethan England course will build on work undertaken in Year 7.

Year 9 work will also help understand trench conditions during the Medicine through time paper.

What skills will I develop?

  • Understanding people
  • Problem solving
  • Report writing skills
  • Critical analysis - of events, people, documents etc.
  • Your ability to communicate: both spoken and written
  • Logical thought processes
  • Essay Writing
  • Source Analysis