The Importance of teaching History from an early age

“Why do we need to learn about something that happened so long ago?” That is something that I have overheard many times in a History lesson during my teaching career, and my own school journey. The answer to that is something which I believe Rafiki in Disney’s The Lion King sums up perfectly - "The past can hurt. But the way I see it, you can either run from it or learn from it." That doesn’t mean that we need to be teaching children about all of the ‘worst’ parts of History from a young age, but we certainly shouldn’t shy away from it either. After all, knowing about the past can help us to shape our future in a positive way and ultimately, that is what we want for all our children.

How can History be taught?

Discovering the past doesn’t have to be reading extracts from dusty, old books like History lessons perhaps used to be at school. It can be through analyzing different sources from photographs and artists’ impressions to YouTube clips and AI-generated videos. Children have the opportunities to feel like true Historians, separating fact from fiction and deciding for themselves the accuracy and reliability of the information in front of them.

How does this help our children?

By discovering the past children are able to understand the present, understand the world that they are currently living in and why it is the way that it is. It is also important for children to understand not only their role and position in local and world history but also that every single day they are creating their own history. They are their own past, present and future.

History at BISC-LP

In school this year, History has been taught in abundance. Children have explored the past to understand the present and have analyzed the impact of historical events on the world today. Children in Year 2 and Year 5 have looked at significant people in History through their History Makers, Record Breakers and Champions for Change units respectively. Whilst learning about people such as Martin Luther King Jr and Florence Nightingale children have seen the effect that people can have on World History and the legacies they leave. They understand why we celebrate Martin Luther King Day as a national holiday or why hospitals have such strict hygiene regulations. In other year groups where children have learned about historical events such as the Conflicts unit in Year 6 and the Chicago History unit in Year 3, children have discovered on a broader scale how and why their city and country look the way they do in the present-day.

The ‘Why’

By seeing the impact that History has had on the present, children understand their role in shaping their future and the future for the generations that follow them. They have a strong understanding of the world they want to be a part of and the world that they want to leave, making History an important and future-shaping aspect of the school curriculum.

Emily Wright

Year 2 Leader & Teacher