History

At Bentley Heath we want our children to love History. We have developed a high-quality history education that enables our historians to gain a coherent knowledge and understanding of Britain’s past and that of the wider world. Through the teaching of History, we wish to stimulate our children’s interest and inspire an understanding about the life of people who lived in the past so that our children learn to value their own and other people’s cultures in a modern, multicultural world.

Through the study of the ancient civilisations; the expansion and dissolution of empires; looking at characteristic features of past non-European societies and examining the achievements and follies of mankind, we inspire pupils’ curiosity to know more about the past. Beginning in Early Years, our young historians are encouraged to ask perceptive questions so that by the end of Key Stage 2 they think critically, weigh evidence, sift arguments, and develop perspective and form judgement.

History at Bentley Heath helps children to understand the complexity of people’s lives, the process of change, the diversity of societies and relationships between different groups, as well as their own identity and the challenges of their time. We recognise the importance of developing our children’s knowledge of substantive concepts, such as empire, tax, trade and invasion as well as instilling a secure chronological knowledge. Our curriculum has been carefully structured in a way that allows our children to make links in their learning, enabling our historians at Bentley Heath to successfully build upon previous knowledge and understanding.