Trotts Hill Primary School and Nursery
We intend to provide a high quality history curriculum which should inspire in pupils a curiosity and fascination about Britain’s past and that of the wider world. Our teaching equips pupils with knowledge about the history of Britain and the wider world; learn about the lives of significant people of the past; understand the methods of historical enquiry and be able to ask and answer questions. We teach children to understand the complexity of people’s lives, the process of change, the diversity of societies and relationships between different groups, as well as their own identity and the challenges of their time. We want children to enjoy and develop a life-long love of learning about history by gaining this knowledge and skills.
National Curriculum
Year 5 pupils, sorted clue cards to place the Viking era in historical context.
Year 1 had a wonderful time at Knebworth House. The children visited the house. They found the secret room, wrote their names using the old alphabet, tried on Tudor clothing and saw the different rooms. In the afternoon the children had a great time in the maze and looked for specific foods and plants.
Level 3 students, from Oaklands College Theatre in Education Tour, performed a Horrible Histories play based on the Ancient Greeks. The children then had the opportunity to participate in an acting or dance workshop themselves.
Year 4 had an amazing visit to the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge on Tuesday. We spent time sketching patterns in the Armoury and Ceramic galleries in the morning. After lunch, we were met by our guide, Roseanna, who took us to the Ancient Egyptian galleries. We spent time discussing what we could see and tell from a large sculpture, which turned out to be a huge coffin lid! In the exhibition, we saw lots of interesting artefacts which will really help with our history learning.
Year 2 were joined by Kate from Stevenage Museum to start the term with a workshop on the Great Fire of London. The children showed off an impressive knowledge of 17th Century England. She brought many artefacts for them to interact with and explore.
After studying the legend of Theseus and the Minotaur in English, Year 5 thought about how much of it was true. They considered evidence such as artefacts, frescos and buildings.
Year 6 took part in a brilliant World War Two day in school led by Kate from Stevenage Museum.
All children experienced what life was like for those who were evacuated to the countryside. The children were given identity cards to fill in as well as learning about rationing of clothes and food.
The children then handled a range of WW2 artefacts where they asked questions about what they were, what they were used for and who they belonged to. The children enjoyed dressing up as Nurses, Air Raid Wardens and Billeting Officers.
We were using a variety of sources and artefacts to ask and answer questions about the Anglo Saxons.
Year 3 enjoyed a fantastic day at Celtic Harmony learning about the Stone Age. They saw fire created, heard a Stone Age story, hunted and gathered, prepared soup and built a shelter.
The children were detectives and had to deduce information from the art gallery set up in class, which contained images from the Mayan civilisation. The children had to investigate possible reasons why the Maya were a significant society worth studying in schools.
Year 3 had a great day at St.Albans Cathedral learning about the Romans. They met a Roman soldier, learnt about the Romans in St.Albans and the story of St.Alban. They finished the day by creating their own Roman mosaics.
Year 1 visited Knebworth House as part of their history topic this term. They were able to explore the house, wear clothes from the Tudor era and take part in outdoor games which would have been played in the past. The children had a wonderful time and learnt a lot about local history.
In Spring 1, year 2 have been learning about The Great Fire of London. On Wednesday 8th February, year 2 spent the morning exploring different artefacts from Stevenage museum linked to the Great Fire of London. The children were able to compare houses, lighting and the fire service from 1666 to today. They also thought about what people may have saved from the fire and why they did this as well as learning what an eyewitness may have experienced during the fire. The children then went outside and recreated the fire of London by burning our model houses that we have made. The wind moved the fire from house to house just like it would have done in 1666.
Year 4 returned from an incredible day at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge. They spent the morning exploring the exhibitions, looking at ancient artefacts and discovering many new facts about the Egyptians. In the afternoon, they used papyrus to paint their own Egyptian inspired painting.
Year 2 have been learning about the plague in London in 1665 and 1666. For home learning, they researched more information about the plague doctor and created a poster or their own plague doctor mask.
Year 5 made suggestions about how a small Athenian army could possibly have defeated a ten-fold larger Persian army in the Battle of Marathon. Among the suggestions were: better weapons, formation, organisation, tactics and determination. They then sorted statements into the categories of Athenian Strengths and Persian weaknesses.
Year 4 made links to their topic on the Anglo Saxons by acting out the story of Beowulf.
Year 6 took part in a brilliant World War Two day in school led by Kate from Stevenage Museum.
All children experienced life preparing to be evacuated to the countryside. Here they were given and explained the importance of identity cards and evacuation tags to fill in as well as learning about rationing of clothes and food.
The children then handled a range of WW2 artefacts where they asked questions about what they were, what they were used for and who they belonged to. The children enjoyed dressing up as Nurses, Air Raid Wardens and members of the Home Guard.
Year 3 participated in a fantastic day at Celtic Harmony to learn all about life in the Stone Age. They saw fire being created, learnt about Stone Age tools, hunted and gathered, made soup and took part in a trading activity.
Today Year 3 visited the Verulamium museum in St.Albans as part of their learning about the Romans. They had an opportunity to dress up as a Roman and took part in a Roman market role play. They had chance to explore the museum before having a picnic in the park.
All classes celebrated the Platinum Jubilee. Children learnt facts about the life of Queen Elizabeth II, ordered photographs and events and explored the key changes to life in Britain during her 70 year reign.
Year 5 have examined the transition of the Vikings from raiders to settlers by looking at events in the history of their occupation of England, and the discoveries made by the excavation of York city centre, which changed the stereotype of them as simply vicious invaders.
The children used a range of sources to find out about an aspect of the past. Some children researched the features and purposes of Maya masks and then they created their own.
Today year 4 came into school dressed as Ancient Egyptians. In the morning, Stevenage museum provided us with a workshop where children were able to practice mummifying a body, being archaeologists, writing hieroglyphics and carrying out the weighing of the heart ceremony. Children then spent the rest of the day learning about canopic jars. They learnt about the four canopic jars that were used and looked at different pictures of how they have been created. They then planned and sketched their own canopic jar, choosing an animal to guard their internal organs. Following their sketch, the children then used clay to create 3D models of their canopic jars. They were really proud of how they turned out. When the jars are dry they will be painted and decorated.
Spring Term Year 1 - Knebworth House Visit
This term Year 1 went on a trip to Knebworth House to find out about our local history. We had a fantastic time on the tudor treasure trail, learning about calligraphy, tudor schools and even learning some tudor dances! We had the chance to look around the kitchen and herb gardens and talked about what food they grew at Knebworth House in tudor times, and also had fun exploring the maze and visiting the dinosaur trail!
Year 2 had a wonderful morning investigating different artefacts linked to The Great Fire Of London.
Year 2 have produced an amazing display of their learning about the Plague.
Through role play, we investigated the origins of democracy in Ancient Greece. The topic under debate was whether a magnificent temple to the goddess Athena should be built. After a public discussion and a vote, it was decided that such a monument would be an asset to Athens.
Year 2 created some wonderful home learning linked to their history topic: The Great Plague. The children focused on researching and making their own plague doctor masks.
Autumn Term 2021 Year 1 Old and New Toys Workshop
In History this half term, Year 1 are learning about old and new toys. Today, Kate from Stevenage museum came into school to give us a workshop all about toys. We looked at photos from the past and present and discussed how we can tell if they are old or new. We also investigated lots of different toys from different time periods and thought about how old they might be.
During October we celebrated Black History Month. The children explored the lives of inspirational people including: Marcus Rashford, Mary Seacole, Rosa Parks, Matthew Henson, Mae Jemison and Lewis Hamilton. Nursery, Reception and Year 2 also explored musicians.
Year 6 took part in a brilliant World War Two day in school led by Kate from Stevenage Museum.
The children experienced life preparing to be evacuated to the countryside. They were told about the importance of identity cards and were given their own to complete. They also had evacuation tags to fill in as well as learning about rationing of clothes and food.
The children then handled a range of WW2 artefacts where they asked questions about what they were, what they were used for and who they belonged to. The children enjoyed dressing up as Nurses, Air Raid Wardens and Billeting Officers.
Year 3 visited Celtic Harmony as part of their learning on the Stone Age. They spent the day hunting and gathering, cooking soup, building dens, hunting animals alongside trading for goods and learning about Stone Age tools.
Stevenage Museum visited Year 4 as part of their learning about the Ancient Egyptians. They took part in a fantastic workshop where they explored artefacts, wrote using hieroglyphics and even mummified a body!
As part of their learning about Ancient Egypt, Year 4 created some fabulous Egyptian sarcophaguses.
The children took part in a very exciting Roman day where they made clay pots, designed mosaics and learnt about Roman army formations.
During October all classes across the school celebrated Black History Month. Classes read the book 'The Undefeated' and discussed the lives of the people in the book. Classes explored many different aspects of Black History including: the story of Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King, the Slave Trade, music artists and celebrated differences in hair, skin and eye colour. Learning was shared in a whole school virtual assembly.
