History
The History Department at Saint Felix School offers an exceptional learning experience that will ignite a passion for learning about the past and equip students with invaluable skills for the future. At each learning stage, trips and visits to relevant historical sites and museums supplement classroom-based learning, bringing the subject to life.
Key Stage One: Pupils begin by exploring what history is and why it matters. In Year 1, they start with their own personal past, creating a timeline of their lives before moving on to local history. They develop an understanding of events within and beyond living memory and are introduced to significant historical figures along the way. In Year 2, children deepen their sense of chronology through the study of wider historical events and themes that have shaped the modern world, such as the building of the first castles and the Great Fire of London.
Throughout both years, teachers encourage pupils to research, ask questions, and draw their own conclusions. History is taught as a cross-curricular subject, closely linked with art, geography, and English. Learning is enriched through visits to Southwold Museum, Framlingham and Orford Castles, and Southwold Lighthouse, as well as through visits from local experts.
Key Stage Two: pupils chronologically learn about ancient civilisations, such as the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans. They also uncover the secrets of the Dark Ages, including the Vikings and Anglo-Saxons, before learning about life for a Victorian child and, similarly, a child during WWII. Our KS2 pupils always enjoy time drawing, painting and making relevant historical art. Trips include Norwich Castle, Southwold Museum, Sutton Hoo, Gressenhall, a Victorian workhouse and venue for a ‘Home Front Heroes’ experience and the chance to dress as an evacuee. The topics also provide many opportunities for literature, including Stig of the Dump, Greek Myths, Beowulf, and the Street Child.
Key Stage Three: the curriculum gives students the opportunity to investigate a murder mystery, explore medieval life during the time of the Black Death, and discover the hardships of life on a plantation in the USA during the time of slavery. All these topics, and many more, enable students to develop their historical analysis skills and to learn that evidence must not be accepted at face value. Trips include Orford and Framlingham Castles, the Wool Churches at Blythburgh, Southwold, and Wenhaston (to view the magnificent Doom painting), the ruined abbeys throughout East Anglia, historic Tudor houses, the Imperial War Museum, and the World War 1 battlefields.
Key Stage Four: the work undertaken for Key Stage 3 provides an excellent foundation for the OCR GCSE History examination. Students will study People’s Health c1250 to present, and the public health of Britain; the Norman Conquest and the interplay of political, military, religious, social and cultural forces in England between 1065 and 1087; History Around Us, including Norwich Castle and its impact on the local community and Britain in general; the Viking Expansion c750 – 1050, focusing on their homeland of Scandinavia and how they expanded east and west, focusing on warfare, trade and settlement; and Living Under Nazi Rule c1933 – 1945, looking at the impact of the Nazi dictatorship within Germany and across occupied Europe, looking at the political, economic, social, racial, and cultural forces at work in these societies.
History is a fun, exciting and popular subject at Saint Felix School, with a demonstrable track record of success.