History

The History curriculum at Wellesley is designed to allow students to explore, analyse and investigate concepts such as continuity and change, cause and effect, and chronology. The selected topics; from toys and pirates in the Early Years, to King John and Magna Carta in Year 8, allow students to identify and discuss not just historical people and events but also the importance of our British values. Teaching methods vary; we use a combination of independent learning, re-enactments, school trips and discussion to engage and inspire the pupils

The ripples of history are all around us. The children soon learn that the past can help us better understand the present as well as enabling them to make predictions about the future. To understand how we can find this out the children carry out their own research and begin to understand the nature of evidence in all of its diverse forms. They try to interpret primary and secondary sources, weigh them up and reach their own conclusions about the perspectives and motivations of people from the past.

It is of the highest priority that children are equipped with the historical skills that will allow them to achieve their goals. To this end we focus on embedding and developing the historical skills of chronology, essay writing, source analysis, investigation and recall of knowledge. By the time the pupils leave Wellesley in Year 8 they are thoroughly prepared to take on the academic rigours of history at their chosen secondary school.