History at The Levels School
The history curriculum at The Levels School incorporates a mix of breadth and depth studies. The National Curriculum has been adapted to suit the needs and interests of the students, incorporating more chronological skills, cross-curricular links and links to the GCSE curricula. This will empower students with the confidence to access GCSE history as well as providing a good foundation of general historical knowledge for students who opt not to take history after Year 9. It is taught as interconnecting stories to aid in recall and to fire the imagination through a variety of media and means.
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In addition to The Levels School’s core values and skills, we aim to develop these specific skills in history:
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Chronology
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Change & continuity
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Cause & consequence
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Similarity & difference
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Significance
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Sources & using evidence
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Interpretations
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Historical writing
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Research
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Presentation
Key Stage Two
KS2 students are taught in mixed-age and mixed-ability groups consisting of children from Years 4 to 6. All KS2 children are taught the same history curriculum in a single year. To avoid repeating the same units, the KS2 curriculum has been mapped over three years, with students studying different units in years A, B and C.
As part of their studies of The Stone Age, students in KS2 take part in a joint history-geography caving trip in Year C.
Key Stage Three
GCSE
At The Levels School, history is an option which any student may choose to take at KS4. We offer Edexcel GCSE History (9-1), which is a challenging but immensely interesting and rewarding course. The GCSE contains four units which are all assessed at the end of Year 11 in three exam papers as outlined below.
Paper 1: Thematic Study & Historic Environment
This paper contains two sections. The main section (worth 20% of the total GCSE) is a thematic study of crime and punishment in Britain from the year 1000 to the present day. ​
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The second section (worth 10% of the total GCSE) is a depth study of the historic environment of Whitechapel during the Jack the Ripper period, 1870 - 1900.
Holiday Activities
If you're looking to support your child's history studies at home, try the following activities:
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Reading historical fiction, such as "War Horse" by Michael Morpurgo.
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Reading history fact books, such as the "Horrible Histories" series.
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Watching history films, TV shows and documentaries. BBC iPlayer has lots of great documentaries, and many children's films have a historical element to them. Children love films such as "A Knight's Tale" and Disney's "Robin Hood". The "Horrible Histories" TV show is also available to watch on BBC iPlayer and Netflix.
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Visit historical heritage sites. Shepton Mallet Prison and Glastonbury Abbey are both fascinating local history spots. The National Trust and English Heritage websites highlight lots more local sites for the whole family to enjoy. You can also go visit free sites, such as the fort at the top of Brent Knoll!
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History home crafts are a great, practical way for children to learn more about history. Why not build a fort out of pillows and blankets, a castle out of cardboard or decorate a cake in the style of the Georgians?
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Talk to older family members. Children are often fascinated by their own family history. Many members of your family may have lived through incredible events, such as the Cold War, 9/11 or the Millenium. Your child could even conduct an oral history report by interviewing a family member about a particular historical event that they remember.
