In this article, Julia Huber examines how task design can support pupils’ historical thinking in the primary classroom. Drawing on her own practice, she shares examples that develop conceptual understanding in areas such as significance, similarity and difference, continuity and change, and interpretations...

This article is free to everyone. For access to hundreds of other high-quality resources by primary history experts along with free or discounted CPD and membership of a thriving community of teachers and subject leaders, join the Historical Association today In this article, we explore examples of children’s writing, from...

In this article, Damienne Clarke examines how coins can be used as a focus for history teaching and learning in Key Stage One. She describes the emergence of coins from older systems of bartering, as well as their role as tokens of commemoration for significant people and events. This article provides...

Children are introduced from the start of their lives to the idea that someone is in charge.  Helen Crawford and Karin Doull explore how the question ‘Who is in charge?’ can be used with EYFS children to develop ideas of power, authority and agency. The article looks at its relevance...

The Neolithic period provides many challenges – the huge length of time, the limitations of evidence, the many different aspects.  This article suggests how a teaching programme might  be structured to explore the period.  It promotes the idea that these people, so distant in time, were much as we are...

Polly Gillow uses ice cream, something children will readily relate to, as a means of exploring similarities between past and present, drawing on a range of sources and contexts together with practical activities including their sense of taste...  

Lindsey Rawes has provided a range of activities which she uses with children to engage them in developing their historical knowledge and understanding. She has included retrieval practice, engaging children as detectives when looking at artefacts, and evaluating the understanding of historical questions through card sorts, considering similarities and differences, and using...

A theme in the Early Years will have many cross-curricular links, encompassing many of the different areas of learning in the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Statutory Framework. The focus for this article is on historical elements of Understanding the World; however there will be some cross-over into other areas of...

Story and enquiry – that’s what I think of when considering history. The stories of events and people pull you into the past and stories generate a curiosity that encourages exploration. ‘Finding out’ is central to what we do in history. Our early-years classrooms must provide vibrant and challenging environments...

Please note: the 'What's the Wisdom On' film series has been produced principally for secondary school history teachers, however some of the content is transferrable to a primary setting. Secondary members can view the film here 'What’s the wisdom on…' is a popular feature in our secondary journal Teaching History and provides the perfect stimulus for a department meeting....

I was inspired to put pen to paper to include an article putting Coronavirus in some sort of historical perspective after reading Peter Frankopan’s article in The Times newspaper on 28 March. The article entitled ‘Pandemics are terrifying but they can make the world better’ is written by Peter Frankopan...

Migration is rarely absent from the news and arouses political, social cultural and emotional responses which range from compassion to hostility, racism and anti-racism. By exploring migration in the past, it is possible for children to go beyond current issues and appreciate that, rather than being a recent characteristic of...

Read more like this: EYFS scheme of work EYFS Medium term plan: Toys and Games Early Years Foundation Stage (article) Early Years: learning about the past (article) Using 'Development Matters' in the Foundation Stage (article) For many children, going to nursery school is a key part of their day. It...

The most recent HA survey suggests that crime and punishment is a popular theme as a Key Stage 2 development study covering the period after 1066. It is easy to see why. Crime, criminals and punishment have a fascination for many and herein lies its appeal as well as a...

This article looks at how children can utilise and manipulate mathematical data to make sense of a historic past. The focus is on helping children see the numbers as a resource for understanding the experiences of those that lived in this place. Aim: Understand historical concepts such as continuity and...

Advertising is a central part of our everyday lives. There are few ways to escape it and it has a long pedigree. It has long been recognised that it can help sell products through the power of the punch line or the visual image. Trade cards appeared as early as...

When deciding to teach the topic of Benin to my Year 5 pupils I was somewhat daunted by the fact that I had never taught it before, and I was determined that it be a meaningful experience which benefited their narrative, chronological and historical skills-based understanding of the subject. I was...

Food is a theme that can provide many opportunities for children to develop their understanding of the past. This is a popular theme in many Early Years settings and Reception classes. It can be planned at any time of year and can be adapted in many ways.

Communication is at the heart of what it is to be human, and the British postal service has helped to shape the modern world as we know it today. From cryptic Victorian Valentine cards to a lion encountered on Salisbury Plain, there is nothing ordinary about the story of the post! The British postal service...

There is something fascinating about what people wore in the past. From corsets to clogs, the evolution of clothing and footwear can give an insight into different periods of history, an excellent way of engaging with the past. Shoes, in some form or another, have been around from the earliest...