In this unit of study, Class 1 pupils begin to explore their community - learning what it means to be part of a school and village community and how Chelford has changed throughout history.

Children will discover and explore Chelford’s rich agricultural history and the importance of farming on the village economy.

A key part of the historical enquiry aspect of this unit is evaluating historical maps as a source of reference when comparing how the village has developed over the past 250 years. Children will investigate the origins of street names and developments - such as Cricketers Green and Dixon Drive and consider what buildings have been replaced, relocated and which remain.

Children will also learn how the opening of Chelford Station in 1842 impacted in the village - including a study of the fateful events of 22nd December 1894, when a train crash at the station stole the lives of 15 people.

Another aspect of this unit is to investigate how Chelford CE Primary School has changed - including interviewing ex-pupils who attended the School at its former site.

This unit of study offers the opportunity for children to learn about, and compare, the achievements of three significant people form the past - Florence Nightingale, Mary Seacole and Edith Cavell. Pupils will learn about the work of these nurses and their legacies, which are celebrated today.

In learning about the conditions that these influential nurses worked in, children will be given the opportunity to compare and contrast nursing from the past to that of today. This is supported by the opportunity to question and interview contemporary healthcare workers - which offers the opportunity for children to compare primary and secondary source evidence.

A highlight of this unit is the Florence Nightingale workshop delivered by the Freshwater Theatre Company.

This unit of study also enables the children to recognise those within our community who help others - the unsung ‘superheroes’ and ‘superheroines’ who dedicate their lives and careers to serving others.

In this unit of study, children learn about the history of the United Kingdom, with a specific focus on the time and reign of Queen Victoria.

Why focus on the Victorian period?

Not only was the Victorian era such a fascinating time in British history - the expansion of the British Empire, industrialisation, great inventions to name a few of the advances made in this period - it is also a major influence in many areas of the Chelford Curriculum which children study across all classes thus knowledge of this period of time provides a firm foundation for subsequent units of study in both history and geography.

This unit of study introduces pupils to what life was like in Britain in the past and the significance of the events of 2nd - 5th September 1666 - known more commonly as The Great Fire of London.

Children spend the first half term learning about London at the time of 1666 and how it had grown from an early Roman town 2,000 years ago. They also compare 1666 London to today. Children learn how different life was in 1666 - comparing housing, healthcare, fire services (including equipment and techniques used for putting out fires), and the day-to-day dangers associated with 1666 London. They also learn about Great Plague 1665-1666, a significant event closely related to the Great Fire of London.

Having explored the context of London life in 1665-166 during the first half term, the second half term is dedicated to learning about the events of the fire and the aftermath - including the importance of Samuel Pepys’ diary extracts in enabling historians to gain an understanding of the events before, during and after the great blaze.

In reviewing the topic, children revisit the key topic questions - ‘what was great about the Great Fire of London’ and complete the end of unit Socrative assessment.

As part of the cross-curricular topic Hot and Cold, children learn about the geographical differences between places in the world that experience hot dry climates, such as the deserts, and the frozen landscapes of the polar regions.

To complement this topic in history, children learn about the challenges faced by some of the world’s most significant explorers - with a focus on Ernest Shackleton’s 1914 - 1916 expedition to Antarctica.

This is a relatively short unit of study that enables children to recognise some of the achievements of significant explorers in history.

To begin, children learn what explorers are and what they do. They compare how explorers have changed overtime, drawing similarities and differences between the accomplishments of Robert Falcon-Scott and Ernest Shackleton with Neil Armstrong.

A children turn their attention to an in-depth look at Shackleton’s Endurance expedition, they will apply their knowledge and understanding of the challenges that the harsh, arctic environments present and explore what they would need to survive in such conditions.

From there, children learn of the circumstances that led to the sinking of the Endurance and the subsequent successful rescue of Shackleton and his crew.

In reference to the wider Chelford Curriculum, children will learn that the sinking of the Endurance occurred around the time of WWI, placing their chronological knowledge and understanding within the context of previous learning about Edith Cavell.

This study of Ancient Greece helps to build pupils’ knowledge and understanding of the achievements and legacies of the early civilisations. This unit of study, designed for Class 2 pupils, is delivered as part of a two-year rolling programme. As a consequence, some children will have previously studied other ancient civilisations - The Ancient Sumer, Indus Valley, Shang Dynasty and a more in-depth study of the Ancient Egyptians. To that end, at the start of this unit of study, children firstly develop their awareness of the period of the Greeks in the context of other ancient civilisations and extend this to locate Greece on a map of Europe.

Having established a context for the development of the Greek civilisations, pupils then recognise the influence of the Greek Empire at its height, identifying its expansion across Europe and modern day Middle East.

Children will learn about what life was like in Ancient Greece, focusing on the contrasting similarities and differences between two of the most significant city states: Sparta and Athens. As part if this, children will learn about the legacy of the Greeks - including the introduction of democracy, arts and education as well as exploring the origins of the Olympic Games and how artefacts help historians build a picture of what the Ancient Games was like.

Pupils will then explore how Greek societies were constructed and whetherAncient Greece was a fair and equal place to live before finally discovering how their beliefs in the Ancient Gods and Goddesses impacted daily life. Children will learn that the Greek Empire came to an end at the hands of the Romans following defeat at the Battle of Corinth.

In this unit of study, children learn all about the fascinating life and achievements of Mary Anning and consider how her lack of recognition reflected the gender inequality that existed in Victorian Britain.

Children will learn how fossils are historical primary sources and can provide information about what life was like on Earth millions of years ago. They will learn that some of the most significant fossil discoveries in Britain were found by Mary Anning.

Mary Anning was born in 1799 in Lyme Regis, England, and became a pioneering palaeontologist. Despite limited formal education, she developed expertise in fossil collecting and identification. Anning's discoveries, including the first complete Ichthyosaurus skeleton, revolutionised the understanding of prehistoric life. She excavated numerous fossils along the Jurassic Coast, gaining international recognition for her contributions to science. Anning faced gender and class barriers in the male-dominated scientific community of her time. Her work laid the groundwork for modern palaeontology and helped shape evolutionary theory.

Despite financial hardships, she persisted in her scientific pursuits and gained respect among prominent scientists. Anning's legacy as a self-taught scientist and fossil collector continues to inspire generations of researchers.

She died in 1847, but her impact on the field of palaeontology endures.

anning dinosaurs and rocks .pdf

In this unit, children will learn about how early humans lived. They will learn how our earliest ancestors lived in the Stone Age, identifying the three key periods: Palaeolithic, Mesolithic and Neolithic and the features and advances made in each - including how Britain became an island around 6,000BC. Children will also study the impact that the introduction of farming had on communities and will complete a study on the Neolithic settlement of Skara Brae.

Children will learn how the introduction of metal improved life and will discover how our ancestors smelt bronze by heating copper and tin. They will consider what benefits bronze brought in the production of weapons and tools.

Finally, pupils will learn of the further advances made through the production of iron - a new metal - and how this enabled stronger, tougher tools to be produced. Children will recognise that at the time of the Iron Age, the people who lived in Britain were known as Celts - this will form a basis for their learning when studying the Romans in Class 3.

Throughout this unit of study, timelines will be used to secure pupils’ understanding of when events and periods occurred. Children will also recognise that these periods are known as ‘pre-historic’, referring to a time before written records were not produced.

This Year 2 / Year 3 unit of study introduces pupils to what is meant by civilisations and the features and achievements of the four early civilisations outlined in the National Curriculum:

‣ Ancient Sumer
‣ Indus Valley
‣ Shang Dynasty of China ‣ Ancient Egyptians

The unit covers the time periods of each of these civilisations and the similarities in geographical features which enabled them to thrive.

Children explore the basic humans needs required for settlement and how these were addressed by the proximity of a significant river. Children will name the rivers associated with each of these civilisations.

Children learn of the most significant achievements of each of Ancient Sumer, Indus Valley and Shang Dynasty civilisations. They subsequently complete a more detailed look at the Ancient Egyptian civilisation directly following the completion of this unit of study.

In this unit of learning, children will gain an understanding of the Ancient Maya civilisation including how Spanish conquistadors came to discover evidence of its existence (around 1519) and how historians have uncovered a range of artefacts to help them to develop an understanding of how the Maya lived.

It is widely considered that the Maya first appeared in Mesoamerica around 2000BC and flourished until around 900AD. Whilst the Maya remain in some areas around the world to this day, their numbers are significantly fewer than that of the Classic Period (200AD - 900AD). Many historians share the view that the Maya civilisation suffered a sharp decline around 900AD, although a common consensus on how and why this happened is not yet known - this is explored in lesson 7 of this unit of study.

Over the course of this unit, pupils will develop an understanding of Maya culture and traditions, including the importance of religion. They will learn about the sacrifices that the Maya made to their Gods and investigate how the temples that remain today can help us to understand the significance of their belief systems. Pupils will also discover how advanced the Maya were through their use of early writing (hieroglyphs and codices) and the development of the Maya calendar, which was based on their knowledge of astronomy.

Pupils will explore how Maya society was structured and compare this to other ancient civilisations studied previously - such as the Egyptians and Greeks.

This unit of work is designed for children in Years 4, 5 and 6 and is planned over two half-terms. The first half term will investigate the factors leading to the WWII conflict and provides an overview of the main details and key events such as key dates; names of significant allies and axis countries, both within and beyond Europe; the names and contributions of significant world leaders; how the war was fought and the circumstances which led to the end of the war and formation of the United Nations.

The second half term will focus predominately on what life was like in Great Britain during and immediately after the conflict. Pupils will evaluate sources to gain an increase understanding of life on the home front. They will learn about the evacuation of children from major cities; the introduction of rationing; the use of government propaganda; the Blitzkreig bombing raids and how Britons attempted to keep safe and of key milestones such as the Dunkirk evacuation and D-Day landings.

As part of this study, children will also be given the opportunity to visit the Stockport Air Raid Shelters / Tatton Park Living History / Imperial War Museum North and will explore cross-curricular links in other subjects such as English, design and technology and art and design.

This unit of work is designed for children in Years 4, 5 and 6 and is planned over a half-term of 8 lessons. The unit aims to explore the historical fight for equality led by inspiring figures; to celebrate their contribution to the world and to heed lessons from history so that pupils learn the virtues of tolerance, inclusion, acceptance and equality.

The title of this topic is inspired by Isaac Newton, who wrote in 1675, “if I have seen further [than others], it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” Our aspiration is that our pupils learn about the work, legacies and sacrifices of some of the ‘giants’ to have fought against discrimination and prejudice including: Emmeline Pankhurst, Emily Davis, Alan Turing, Nelson Mandela, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King and Ruby Bridges amongst others.