History
The Black Country Schools Federation
At The Black Country Schools, we view history as a vital discipline for developing analytical thinking, cultural understanding, and a deep awareness of how the past shapes the present. Through the CUSP History Curriculum, pupils explore key events, civilisations, and figures, while engaging in historical enquiry that deepens their knowledge and critical thinking.
Curriculum Intent
Our history curriculum ensures that pupils:
- Develop rich, secure substantive knowledge across British and global history
- Think critically as historians through concepts such as causation, significance, and chronology
- Engage in enquiry using evidence, artefacts, and primary sources
- Make connections across periods, civilisations, and themes
- Use precise historical vocabulary to articulate complex ideas
We are currently working towards the History Quality Mark, reflecting our commitment to curriculum excellence, local heritage studies, and rigorous subject leadership.
Early Years Foundation Stage
In EYFS, history is rooted in “Understanding the World” and supports children to:
- Develop chronological awareness through events in their own lives
- Explore historical figures and celebrations through story and discussion
- Recognise how homes, transport, and technology have changed
- Use early historical vocabulary linked to time, people, and place
These foundations prepare children for structured historical study in Key Stage 1.
Curriculum Structure
The CUSP History Curriculum is built around six key concepts:
- Chronology
- Developing a mental timeline of history
- Sequencing events and civilisations
- Using vocabulary such as BCE, CE, century, decade, reign
- Cause and Consequence
- Understanding why events happened
- Exploring their effects on people, places, and future change
- Change and Continuity
- Identifying what has changed and what has stayed the same
- Comparing life across time periods
- Similarity and Difference
- Understanding diverse experiences and perspectives
- Comparing societies, rulers, and civilisations
- Historical Enquiry
- Asking and answering questions using sources
- Evaluating reliability, bias, and interpretations
- Historical Significance
- Studying people and events that shaped history
- Evaluating their lasting impact on the world
These recurring themes are explicitly taught and revisited, building schema and deepening understanding year-on-year.
Lesson Model
Each CUSP history lesson follows a consistent, evidence-informed sequence:
- Connect – Activate prior knowledge and link to known content
- Explain – Teach vocabulary, context, and new content
- Example – Model historical enquiry and disciplinary thinking
- Attempt – Pupils practise using knowledge in context
- Apply – Independent tasks to secure knowledge
- Challenge – Extend thinking through comparative or evaluative tasks
This structure supports knowledge retention, disciplinary fluency, and high expectations.
Local History: The Black Country Context
Year 2: How Has Our Local Area Changed?
- Changes within living memory: housing, transport, and community life
- Local sources: maps, photos, oral histories
- Notable figures and local industry
Year 6: How Did WWII Impact Our Community?
- Role of local factories and airfields
- Evacuation, rationing, and post-war rebuilding
- Memorials and remembrance: connecting past with present
These studies help pupils connect personal identity to broader historical contexts.
Curriculum Progression
Key Stage 1
- Changes within living memory
- Significant national events (e.g., Great Fire of London)
- Lives of individuals (e.g., Mary Seacole, Rosa Parks)
Lower Key Stage 2
- Ancient civilisations (Egypt, Greece, Rome)
- British prehistory and Roman Britain
- Local history linked to national themes
Upper Key Stage 2
- Anglo-Saxons, Vikings, and Medieval Monarchs
- Civil Rights, Empire, and post-war Britain
- Thematic studies: power, democracy, migration
By Year 6, pupils hold a connected, chronological understanding of history and are ready for the disciplinary demands of KS3.
Assessment
Pupils’ historical knowledge is assessed through:
- Retrieval and low-stakes quizzes
- Structured writing and extended responses
- Oracy: articulating historical ideas and arguments
- Source analysis and critical questioning
Assessment is formative, precise, and feeds directly into planning and instruction.
Further Information
For:
- CUSP History curriculum overviews
- Knowledge organisers and enquiry questions
- Local history project examples
Please contact the CUSP team at cusp@unitysp.co.uk
