Humanities

Geography 

‘The study of geography is about more than just memorising places on a map. It’s about understanding the complexity of our world, appreciating the diversity of cultures that exist across continents. And in the end, it’s about using all that knowledge to help bridge divides and bring people together.’ - Barack Obama 

We grow in Geography because:  

The study of geography involves pupils exploring the relationship and interactions between people and the environments in which they live and upon which they depend.  Many of the pupils who now attend our school will live to see the next century and inhabit a world of 11 billion people.  The many opportunities and challenges that will arise during their lifetime will be very much about geography – personal, local, national and global therefore our pupils will need to know about geography and be able to think like geographers. In our approach to Geography, we want our children to be prepared for life in the modern world and be able to think reflectively and consciously about how they choose to engage with it. Through learning about the lives of ordinary people, children will come to understand the importance of tolerance towards different groups of people including those with different ethnicities or religious beliefs – a British value that lies at the heart of our curriculum. They will develop a greater respect for the natural world and the people living within it along with a strong appreciation of the diversity of the world in which they live.   

We grow in Geography by:  

At Irthlingborough Junior school, we aim to inspire pupils to become curious and explorative thinkers with a diverse knowledge of the world; in other words, to think like a geographer. We want pupils to develop the confidence to question and observe places, measure and record necessary data in various ways, and analyse and present their findings. Our curriculum aims to build an awareness of how Geography shapes our lives at different scales such as local and national level and over periods of time. We hope to encourage pupils to become resourceful, active citizens who will have the skills to contribute to and improve the world around them. Our curriculum aims to help pupils grow by: 

• Developing geographical skills and knowledge.  

• Thinking critically, with the ability to ask perceptive questions and analyse evidence.  

• Developing fieldwork skills across each year group.  

• Developing a deep interest and knowledge of their own locality and how it differs from other areas of the world.  

• Developing an increasingly sophisticated understanding of geographical terms and vocabulary.   

• Developing contextual knowledge of the location of globally significant places – both terrestrial and marine – including their defining physical and human characteristics and how these provide a geographical context for understanding the actions of processes.  

• Understanding the processes that give rise to key physical and human geographical features of the world, how these are interdependent and how they bring about spatial variation and change over time.  

• Becoming increasingly competent in the geographical skills needed to collect, analyse and communicate with a range of data gathered through experiences of fieldwork that deepen their understanding of geographical processes.  

• Becoming increasingly competent in the geographical skills needed to interpret a range of sources of geographical information, including maps, diagrams, globes, aerial photographs and Geographical Information Systems (GIS)  

• Become increasingly competent in the geographical skills needed to communicate geographical information in a variety of ways, including through maps, numerical and quantitative skills and writing at length.  

We grow in Geography when:  

We teach Geography in alternate half-terms, opposite our History curriculum. Geography units are taught weekly during the half-term for one hour. We encourage pupils to learn their geography through six-week question-led enquiries developed around key geographical locations, process or physical features which allows children sufficient scope and time to really engage in higher-order subject skills. Each unit begins with a key question that drives the learning and study, which they then unpick in small steps over the duration of their topic. In attempting to answer them, children learn how to collect, interpret and represent data using geographical methodologies and make informed decisions by applying their geographical knowledge.  

The curriculum develops pupils’ understanding of how geographers study our planet and develop the skills to carry out their own geographical enquiries and fieldwork investigations. They are taught the disciplinary skills that are needed to become a successful geographer which follow the enquiry cycle. Children’s learning continuously revisits key concepts within the broader headings of locational knowledge, place knowledge, human and physical geography, and fieldwork/geographical skills. These concepts include environment, location, scale, distribution, processes, change, interaction, interdependence, sustainability, and diversity. These ideas are revisited at various points of the children’s learning across their time in KS2.  Our curriculum is organised in a spiral curriculum so that prior learning and knowledge of substantive and disciplinary concepts is continuously revisited as children move through the school.  

Fieldwork is prioritised as a key element of our geography curriculum at Irthlingborough Junior school to allow the children hands-on opportunities to engage with their local area and to think like a geographer. Fieldwork includes smaller opportunities on the school grounds to larger-scale visits to investigate physical and human features. Developing fieldwork skills within the school environment and revisiting them in multiple units enables pupils to consolidate their understanding of various methods. It also gives children the confidence to evaluate methodologies without always having to leave the school grounds and do so within the confines of a familiar place. This makes fieldwork regular and accessible while giving children a thorough understanding of their locality, providing a solid foundation when comparing it with other places.  

Irthlingborough Junior School works closely with local organisations such as Rushden Lakes, Stanick Lakes, businesses within Irthlingborough itself, and Northamptonshire Country Parks to develop pupils’ sense of respect and responsibility for their world on a local, national and international level beyond the classroom. We ensure that visitors and trips are carefully planned in to enrich the children’s learning. Cross-curricular links are made across a range of subjects including art, maths, history, science, writing and reading lessons. We promote geography as a strand within themed weeks such as Community Week and Eco Week. Children are also able to take part in Eco Club which aims to support the local environment.   

History 

‘If you don’t know history then you don’t know anything. You are a leaf that doesn’t know it’s part of a tree’ – Michael Chrichton  

We grow in History because:  

At Irthlingborough Junior School, we aim to engage pupils with a relevant, exciting, and challenging History curriculum which inspires curiosity. We aim for our pupils to develop the confidence to think critically, ask questions, and be able to analyse and explain new information in a variety of contexts that can be applied beyond their history lessons.  History teaches our children to recognise and understand the complexity of people’s lives, the process of change, the diversity of societies and relationships between different groups, as well as the challenges of their time. We aim to support children to develop their sense of identity and belonging on a personal, cultural, national and global level as learners come to appreciate the diversity of human experience and consequently understand more about themselves and as members of society. Through study, children learn the value of the democratic process and what happens during periods of history when democracy comes under threat. Through learning about the lives of ordinary people, children understand the importance of tolerance towards other groups of people with different ethnicity or religious beliefs.   

We grow in History by:  

In History, the acquirement of knowledge is facilitated through pupils pursuing a key-question led enquiry approach, which encourages them to take responsibility for their learning, think independently and achieve challenging subject outcomes. Whilst knowing more subject information as the pupils’ progress through the school is important, we are careful in our planning to ensure that there is always a balance between new content and the development of important subject skills and the ability of children to think critically about what they are learning and why.  We are very careful to be selective about the subject content we use to ensure that a balance is achieved between knowing more and the development of key subject skills and outcomes.   

This History curriculum aims to develop pupils’ topic knowledge, chronological awareness, substantive concepts, historical enquiry skills and disciplinary knowledge in order to grow their historical understanding as a whole.   

Children will grow as individuals through History by: 

• Knowing and understanding the history of Britain, how people’s lives have shaped this nation and how Britain has influenced and been influenced by the wider world.  

• Developing an understanding of the history of the wider world, including ancient civilisations, empires, non-European societies and the achievements of mankind.  

• Developing a historically-grounded understanding of substantive concepts.  

• Forming historical arguments based on cause and effect, consequence, continuity and change, similarity and differences.  

• Having an appreciation for significant individuals, inventions and events that impact our world both in history and from the present day.  

• Understanding how historians learn about the past and construct accounts.  

• Asking historically-valid questions through an enquiry-based approach to learning to create structured accounts.  

• Explaining how and why interpretations of the past have been constructed using evidence.  

• Making connections between historical concepts and timescales.  

We grow in History when:  

We teach History in alternate half-terms opposite our Geography curriculum. History units are taught weekly during the half-term for one hour. We encourage pupils to learn their History through six-week question led enquiries about significant events, people and changes which allows them sufficient scope and time to really engage in high order subject skills. Each unit begins with a key question that drives the learning and study. For example, in Year 6 children study the post 1066 period with a focus on war-time Britain. This is driven by the enquiry question, ‘What was the impact of World War Two on the People of Britain?’   

The curriculum develops pupils’ understanding of how historians study the past and construct the skills to carry out their own historical enquiries. They are taught the disciplinary skills that are needed to become a successful historian: cause and consequence, change and continuity, similarity and difference, significance, evidence and interpretations. As part of their history learning, children’s learning revisits key substantive concepts: power, invasion, culture, settlement and society, trade and industry, migration, diversity and local history. These concepts are revisited at various points of the children’s learning across their time in KS2.  Our curriculum is organised as a spiral curriculum so that prior learning and knowledge of substantive and disciplinary concepts is continuously revisited as children move through the school.  

Irthlingborough Junior School works closely with local organisations such as Irthlingborough Historical Society, the University of Northampton, and Northampton Museums to enhance our learning and understanding of the history of their local area. We also ensure that visitors and trips are planned in to enrich the children’s learning beyond the classroom. Cross-curricular links are made across a range of subjects including art, maths, geography, writing and reading lessons. We also promote history within themed weeks. During Community Week and Eco Week, the children had the opportunity to learn about this historical development of their local community and surrounding area.   

Religion and Worldviews (R.E) 

Opening Minds - Broadening Perspectives - Celebrating Difference  

“We may have different religions, different languages, different coloured skin, but we all belong to one human race.” - Kofi Annan 

We grow through Religion and Worldview Education because: 

Religions and worldviews seek to address some of the most profound and complex questions of existence. It is the intention of Irthlingborough Junior School to enable children to begin to investigate and reflect upon some of these fundamental questions through enquiry and exploration. We hope that in doing this, pupils are encouraged to not only learn about the religions and worldviews that surround them in the world today but also learn something much more personal and meaningful from them too. We want our pupils to know more, remember more and understand more about the beliefs and practices of major faiths and those of non-faith too because we recognise the richness and beauty of the diversity that exists within and beyond our town - but also the challenges and conflict that are tied to it too. We believe that Religion and Worldviews Education (RE) has an important contribution to make towards breaking down the religious and cultural barriers that are entrenched in our society, promoting tolerance, respect and understanding amongst a new generation - something that is at the heart of our school values.  

In other words, we agree with the RE council that the ability to understand the faiths and beliefs that are intwined in the foundations of individuals, families, and communities - and how these shape their culture and behaviour - is ‘an invaluable asset for children in modern day Britain’. That explaining these different views in an academic way allows pupils to ‘engage with the complexities of belief, avoid stereotyping and contribute to an informed debate’. This is why it is important that we provide pupils with opportunities to explore all major world religions, as well as a number of non-religious worldviews, and to ask the questions that arise from this, by the time they leave our school and enter the next phase of their lives.  

Furthermore, within the classroom, we hope to empower our pupils to reflect on what it means to have a faith and develop their own spiritual knowledge and understanding. Our RE lessons help to create a classroom community in which pupils are encouraged to share and value their own opinions, while still showing respect and sensitivity for others’. As pupils progress through our school, RE should support them in forming and adapting their own views and values - in response to an expanding variety of life experiences and a deepening understanding of religious and non-religious wisdoms - as well as provide opportunities for them to express these creatively. RE can certainly play a leading role in pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Because of the value we see in the subject regardless of an individual’s beliefs, we intend to be sensitive to the home background of all and work to ensure that the religion and worldview education at our school is accessible to all pupils and teachers of any religious persuasion or none. We embrace the legal frameworks, rights and responsibilities that exist regarding RE and recognise the vital role these play in our provision of a broad and balanced curriculum.  

Overall, our aim for religion and worldviews education is that it may enable our children to open their minds, broaden their perspectives and celebrate difference. 

We grow in Religion and Worldview Education by: 

• Building religious literacy 

• Acquiring a deepening knowledge and understanding of the principal religions and worldviews representing in the United Kingdom 

• Developing an understanding of the influence of the beliefs, values and traditions on individuals, communities, societies, and cultures 

• Engaging with our own knowledge, challenging ourselves to think and reason 

• Making links between our own learning and lives and those in the communities around us 

• Promoting attitudes of respect towards other people who hold views and beliefs different from our own 

• Developing the ability to make reasoned and informed judgements about religious issues, with reference to the principal religions and worldviews represented locally, nationally and globally 

• Asking and answering difficult but important questions 

We grow in Religion and Worldview Education when: 

We learn about beliefs in the classroom – In order to ensure we provide our children with adequate time to dive into important ideas, each year at our school, every child receives 1 hour of dedicated ‘Religion and Worldviews’ teaching per week. In Lower Key Stage 2, the focus of these lessons is to provide our pupils with a strong foundation of knowledge surrounding each of the major religions and worldviews. Through questioning, discussion and exploration, our pupils are enabled to discover, understand and reflect upon the main beliefs and practices of these religions and consider the impact of these in contrast to their own lives. In Upper Key Stage 2, our lessons provide opportunities for pupils to apply, build upon and make comparisons between their understanding of religions and worldviews in order to answer philosophical questions. Our pupils are encouraged to challenge, debate and justify their own views with reference to others who hold opinions which are both similar and different to their own. All units and key questions from Year 3 to Year 6 are designed to ensure good coverage of both attainment targets for RE: learning about religion and learning from religion. 

We explore beliefs out in the community – At Irthlingborough Junior School, we recognise the positive impact that relationships with members of local communities and faith communities can have on pupils’ and we strive to cultivate and maintain these relationships. Our promotion of community cohesion reflects the value we place on preparing our children to face the world beyond our school. Each year, we seek to enrich pupils’ experiences of RE by taking them out into the community, to visit places of worship and interact with people of faith, to give context and meaning to what we teach in the classroom. In Years 3 and 4, pupils are taken to individual places of worship within their unit on a particular religion. Whereas in Year 5 and 6, we encourage the comparison of different religions and places of worship by taking pupils on a faith tour as well as inviting an interfaith group in for a workshop in school. It is in this way that we encourage children to not only identify the key differences between religions but – more importantly – to find what it is that unites all people of faith as well as the common threads that run through all of humankind. We hope they can see for themselves that there is more that unites us than there is that divides us.  

We reflect on our views daily – At all primary schools, pupils have the right to access a daily act of collective worship where they are given the opportunity to participate in experiences which lead to a greater sense of spiritual awareness. At our school, we see the value and enrichment that collective worship gives to our pupils, whether they are of faith or not. To ensure that this practice is inclusive and meaningful for all pupils, this takes the form of ‘daily reflections’: ten-minute of reflection and discussion within the classroom to promote a sense of spirituality, morality and philosophy. We make sure these are age appropriate, basing them around our school character values of teamwork, resilience, ambition, creativity, kindness and self-discipline, to help us grow as individuals and as a community. Each day has a difference lens through which to explore an element of the value: Monday Mindfulness, Tuesday Teachings, Wednesday Worship, Thursday Thankfulness and Friday Philosophy. Children also have the opportunity to join their voices together in song, as well as further explore important themes, events and figures, through a weekly year-group assembly. We continuously seek to ensure that all children – regardless of ability, beliefs or background feel involved and included in this approach.  

We have the right to withdraw - Our education around religions and worldviews does not seek to urge religious or non-religious beliefs on children or staff, or to compromise the integrity of their own beliefs by promoting one religion over another. Nevertheless, we respect the right that parents have to withdraw their child from RE lessons, provided they give written notification to the Headteacher. We do hope, however, that all our parents and pupils will feel comfortable with the RE being taught at our school and - where questions, concerns or anxieties arise - we hope that these can be discussed openly with the class teacher, subject lead or headteacher prior to any decision being made to withdraw a pupil from these lessons. We hope to remain transparent at all times regarding the education of our pupils, and always seek to reassure parents and pupils of the intentions and outcomes of particular lessons or topics, to ensure all children can access our curriculum.