Why do we learn history?
The History curriculum at Ark Soane aims to ensure that students are better able to understand the past, enabling them to participate in educated discourse around the discipline. This in turn will enable them to participate in the various social and political worlds that exist within society. The curriculum achieves this by ensuring that students not only have broad and strong substantive knowledge – a coherent picture of the past – but also understanding of the discipline of history.
Head of Department
Mike Hill
Our approach
Students will study a coherent, chronological narrative of British history, as well as significant aspects of world history. Since the past is diverse, students will also study a diverse past: a broad range of human experiences and perspectives in diverse settings that take students into the unfamiliar, broadening their experience and horizons by giving them knowledge of communities distant from their own. The knowledge students gain from this study will not only help students to build a strong sense of the past, but also will transform how they see the world, helping them to interpret all that they hear, see, or read.
At GCSE, students will follow the Edexcel course. As part of this, students will study the Norman Conquest, the history of medicine, Weimar and Nazi Germany and the Cold War
Year 7
| Autumn 1 | Autumn 2 |
|---|---|
| World views in c.1000 | Contested power, contested land (11th and 12th centuries) |
| Spring 1 | Spring 2 |
|---|---|
| Empires: expansion and collapse (13th century) | Stability and instability (14th and 15th centuries) |
| Summer 1 | Summer 2 |
|---|---|
| Religious revolution and resistance in the 16th century | Silver and gold |
Year 8
| Autumn 1 | Autumn 2 |
|---|---|
| Emerging empires in c.1600 | The British Isles in the 17th century |
| Spring 1 | Spring 2 |
|---|---|
| Expanding empires | The Enlightenment and French Revolution |
| Summer 1 | Summer 2 |
|---|---|
| Industrial Revolution | 19th century political reform |
Year 9
| Autumn 1 | Autumn 2 |
|---|---|
| The First World War | Russian Revolution and interwar Europe |
| Spring 1 | Spring 2 |
|---|---|
| Second World War and the Holocaust | Decolonisation |
| Summer 1 | Summer 2 |
|---|---|
| Campaigns for Civil Rights | Post-war Britain |
Year 10
| Autumn 1 |
|---|
| Norman Conquest |
| Spring 1 |
|---|
| History of Medicine |
| Summer 1 |
|---|
| Weimar and Nazi Germany |
Year 11
| Autumn 1 |
|---|
| The Cold War |
| Spring 1 |
|---|
| Revision |
| Summer 1 |
|---|
| Revision |