KS3 History

Introduction

History is such an important subject for students as it gives them an understanding of the world around them and how events in the past have shaped the present. At Allerton High, we pride ourselves on our diversity and inclusivity and this is something we are proud to reflect in our History curriculum. An understanding of local, national and world History allows students to explore and question all aspects of the past. Students will explore a range of topics to improve their knowledge and understanding of core historical skills such as chronology, similarity and difference, cause and consequence, significance and change over time. They will also develop historical skills by looking at different interpretations of the past, evaluating them and making judgement on them, as well as evaluating sources from the past.

Year 7

Students develop their historical skills and understanding of concepts such as chronology, causation and change & continuity across a range of topics on British and World History, including the Norman Conquest, medieval life, religious changes and a world study of empires including the Mali and Mughal Empires.

Year 8

We continue with the focus on historical concepts in Year 8 by studying a mix of social, political, cultural and military History topics. We focus on protests such as the suffragettes, the British Empire and its impact, the slave trade and the Civil Rights Movement in America

Year 9

The topics in Y9 give students a clear understanding how modern history has shaped the world we live in today. This theme includes the Cold War, the Vietnam War and the assassination of John F Kennedy. We also include wider world History on South Africa and LGBTQ History, finishing with a case study on American history from the American West to 1920s America.

For more detail on each year group, please see the termly overview document below.

How is the course assessed?

At KS3, students are assessed each half-term with a combination of knowledge questions, some of which test knowledge from previous topics, and skills based questions. Each assessment also includes working out what can be told from a historical source. Each scheme of work and assessment are based around a historical skill such as significance, source skills or interpretations which are tested on the assessment.

Homework and learning outside of the classroom

We run Humanities club each Thursday which encourages students to combine their interest in History and Geography. This focuses on topics that we may not cover in the classroom and is often run by students who have a particular interest in a topic.