TOPIC NAME

ENQUIRY QUESTION

MAIN CURRICULUM FOCUS

BIG FINISH (suggested activity)

KEY STAGE 1

A

Memory Box

What was life like when our grandparents were children?

Local History Study: Changes within living memory – Shops and Toys

Create a toy museum

Towers, Tunnels and Turrets

What did the Normans build in Britain and why?

Events beyond living memory nationally or globally – Battle of Hastings 1066

Local History Link – St Nicholas Church

Design a commemorative flag to hang on a building

Wonderful World

What does it take to become a great British explorer?

Lives of significant individuals – (Land, Sea and Sky) Francis Drake, Robert Falcon Scott-Dwayne Fields, Helen Sharman

Design a memorial to a great explorer

B

Into the Woods

Was Dilkes Park better in the past than it is today?

Local History Study: Changes within living memory – Belhus Mansion

Create a pop-up Dilkes Park from the 1950s

Bright Lights, Big City

What happened during the Great Fire and how do we know?

Events beyond living memory nationally or globally – Great Fire of London 1666

Put on a live performance about the Great Fire of London

Go Wild

Who are the greatest British naturalists and what did they do?

Lives of significant individuals – Charles Darwin, Alfred Russel Wallace (local history), David Attenborough and Jane Goodall

Perform a wildlife documentary in the style of David Attenborough

L

KS2

A

 Archaeology – Aveley Mammoth

What was discovered in the clay pits of Aveley?

Local History Study: Changes in Britain from the Stone Age to the Iron Age –Jurassic Coast - Mary Anning

Create a display about the fossils found in the clay pits

The Stone Age

How did the lives of ancient Britons change during the Stone Age?

Changes in Britain from the Stone Age to the Iron Age – Cheddar Man

Perform a play depicting the changes in the Stone Age

The Bronze Age to the Iron Age

Which was the more impressive – the Bronze Age or the Iron Age?

Changes in Britain from the Stone Age to the Iron Age

Hold your own debate on the on the greatest development in this period

B

Ancient Egypt

How can we know so much about a civilization such as Ancient Egypt that lived so long ago?

The achievements of the earliest civilisations – Sumer, the Indus Valley and the Shang dynasty

Create an Egyptian time capsule

Roman Britain

Was the Roman invasion good or bad for Britain?

The Roman Empire and its impact on Britain – Roman -Africans –Ivory Bangle Lady

Stage a Roman army experience

Tilbury Docks – The Empire Rush

What made people go on a journey from the Caribbean to Britain in 1948?

Local History Study: A study of a theme in British history that extends knowledge beyond 1066

Hold an assembly to link migration today with events in the past

UKS 2

A

The Ancient Greeks

What did the Greeks do for us?

Ancient Greece – a study of Greek life and achievements and their influence on the western world – philosophy, science, sport and democracy

Lead a special social event about the legacies and influence of the Ancient Greeks

The Anglo-Saxons

Was the Anglo-Saxon period really a dark age?

Britain's settlement by Anglo-Saxons and Scots – Hadrian, the abbot of St Peter’s and St Paul’s at Canterbury 

Carry out an archaeological excavation

Local hero –First World War

What do the lives of Walter Tull and Kate Luard tell us about the First World War?

Local History Study: A study of a theme in British history that extends knowledge beyond 1066

Host an exhibition telling the story of Kate Luard to the local community

B

The Vikings

What did the Vikings want in Britain and how did Alfred help to stop them getting it?

The Viking and Anglo-Saxons struggle for the Kingdom of England

Write your own version of a Viking saga

Benin (West Africa)

What sort of place was Benin 500 to 1000 years ago?

The achievements of a non-European society

Create a PowerPoint of aspects of the Kingdom of Benin civilisation

Our Local Area – Tilbury Fort

How shall we remember Tilbury Fort?

Local History Study of a Heritage Site: A study of a theme in British history that extends knowledge beyond 1066 – Tudors - WWII

Create a display of the changes to Tilbury Fort over time