Why is history important?

We all live in the present and we plan for the future – but how do we understand where we’re going and what progress looks like? To know exactly where you’re going, you first need to understand where you have come from. For that you need an appreciation of history.  History inspires children to show curiosity about the past by asking questions, thinking critically, assessing evidence and developing clear perspectives about the past. Children develop an appreciation of human creativity and historical achievements. Studying history helps children to improve their decision making and judgment. History shows us models of good and responsible citizenship. History also teaches us how to learn from the mistakes of others.

Careers that the study of history supports include:

• History teacher
• Museum curator
• Archaeologist
• Researcher
• Tour guide
• Librarian
• Archivist
• Film production assistant
• Documentary filmmaker
• Historian
• Writer
• Reporter / journalist
• Genealogist

At The Wings' CE Trust, we aim to: 

• Enable children to think as historians by providing a range of primary and secondary sources, visiting historical sights of significance and through drama and role-play.
• Recognise the value of personal stories in history.
• Help children understand that historical events have been interpreted in different ways.
• Ensure that every phase has the opportunity to visit one site of historical significance per year.
• Promote curiosity and encourage children to be historians.
• Enable children to develop a knowledge of the past and understanding of how it can affect life today and in the future.
• enable children to become independent in the planning and reviewing of their work
• enable children to develop their full potential confidently and independently. 

The national curriculum for history aims to ensure that all pupils:

• know and understand the history of these islands as a coherent, chronological narrative, from the earliest times to the present day: how people’s lives have shaped this nation and how Britain has influenced and been influenced by the wider world
• know and understand significant aspects of the history of the wider world: the nature of ancient civilisations; the expansion and dissolution of empires; characteristic features of past non-European societies; achievements and follies of mankind
• gain and deploy a historically grounded understanding of abstract terms such as ‘empire’, ‘civilisation’, ‘parliament’ and ‘peasantry’
• understand historical concepts such as continuity and change, cause and consequence, similarity, difference and significance, and use them to make connections, draw contrasts, analyse trends, frame historically-valid questions and create their own structured accounts, including written narratives and analyses
• understand the methods of historical enquiry, including how evidence is used rigorously to make historical claims, and discern how and why contrasting arguments and interpretations of the past have been constructed
• gain historical perspective by placing their growing knowledge into different contexts, understanding the connections between local, regional, national and international history; between cultural, economic, military, political, religious and social history; and between short- and long-term timescales.