What is the theme about?

The main focus of this topic is History, particularly the following areas of study:

• Changes within living memory
• Events beyond living memory including World War 2
• Changes in Britain from Stone Age to Iron Age
•  The Roman Empire and its impact on Britain
• Britain's Settlement of Anglo-Saxons
• A study of an aspect in British History

The learning related to this theme is distributed across both Key Stages and EYFS. Each child will study this topic 3 times over the course of their time at the school building on their prior knowledge and skills. 

Intent

Locally, the percentage turnout (Across Mid-Bedfordshire) for the general election in 2017, was 76.7%.  This was against the national average of 68.8%.  The learners in our care are our future.  They need to recognise the importance of their vote.  The children need to understand that women fought for the right to vote and how important it is for people to use their right.  We can’t find the details of Upper Caldecote’s turnout, but at the time of voting, many of our children didn’t know anything about the elections that took place.  

Moral expectations.  Our children have a developing sense of right and wrong, but don’t necessarily understand why certain behaviours are considered right or wrong.  By examining the past, the children will be able to see that the role of different groups of people have changed significantly, and what things were like before the changes.  They will have a developing understanding of why people in the past fought for change; this will in turn, help the children to understand the direction in which their society is moving and may support them in seeing that change for the better can happen.

• The role of women in the past. 
• Social classes
• Treatment of different ethnic groups
• Crime maps for the local area.
• How our world is different now to hundreds or thousands of years ago
• What aspects from our past are still relevant today
• How significant events changed our way of life today including Romans, Great Fire of London, World War 2.