Our approach to the primary History curriculum 

This printable PDF document provides a detailed overview of Kapow Primary’s History scheme of work, designed to support teaching in EYFS, KS1 and KS2. It helps primary school teachers confidently deliver a well-structured, engaging History scheme, aligned with the National curriculum.

What does Kapow Primary’s History long-term plan contain?

The long-term plan outlines the progression of skills and knowledge in History, ensuring that pupils build upon their learning each year in a spiral curriculum.

It covers the statutory requirements of the National curriculum, details the History skills and knowledge taught, offers guidance on primary History assessment and provides information to support the implementation of Kapow Primary’s History scheme within your primary school setting.

How does Kapow Primary’s History scheme develop knowledge and skills?

This document provides a suggested long-term plan for each year group, ensuring a clear pathway for pupil learning. Progression is broken down into the following key areas:

• Topic knowledge – investigating key figures or events from historical periods; examining how aspects of life have developed over time.
• Chronological awareness – understanding how historical periods interconnect, overlap and impact each other.
• Substantive (abstract) concepts – recurring themes, key concepts and fundamental elements of historical knowledge, such as ’empire’, ‘monarchy’ or ‘invasion and settlement’.
• Disciplinary concepts – learning how historians investigate the past and how they construct historical claims.
• Historical enquiry – experiencing the process that historians use; navigating historical concepts by questioning, investigating, interpreting, evaluating, concluding and communicating.

Can I adapt the History long-term plan to my school?

All schools have different needs. As such, Kapow Primary’s History units can be taught in different orders or moved within key stages to align with your school’s specific requirements and cross-curricular links.

What other Kapow Primary resources support primary History teaching?

• For our standard History scheme, see the corresponding History: Progression of skills and knowledge.
• If you follow our Long-term plan – mixed-age, see the corresponding Progression of skills and knowledge – mixed-age version.
• See how children begin their Kapow history journey with our EYFS (Reception) units. 
• To learn how children develop skills, see our History KS1 units.
• Explore more of Kapow’s History scheme by browsing our Lower KS2, Upper KS2  and Mixed-age units.