The teaching of Humanities at Upton House is creative, hands-on and fun which consequently enables rich, deep learning for our children who become keen and knowledgeable historians and geographers.
Humanities in the Early Years is wholly focussed on strengthening the children’s understanding of their world around them and encompasses their sense of identity and belonging within the positive, warm setting that is Acorns, Oaks and Transition. Learning is rich as we encourage our children to explore and ask questions about our world and consequently, they have a strong sense of both the past and the present. Stories are instrumental in our teaching of the past and it is always a highlight of our day to have story time with our classes. The children actively learn through touch and play using a variety of different tactile resources which result in deep learning and beautiful creations which the children are incredibly proud of. Key skills such as awareness are developed through the creation of the children’s own maps and cultural awareness is fostered by the children exploring different cultures and communities. In the Early Years, we recognise the importance of our children being outside regularly and as a result, our children grow strong observational skills as they view the natural phenomena and appreciate nature’s beauty firsthand.
As the children progress into Pre-Prep, the History and Geography subjects are encompassed in our topic lessons
which are always eagerly anticipated by the children! Learning is tailored to be fun whilst delivering a meaningful education. Children sing educational songs illustrating the seven continents of the world, dance to the music outlining the world’s five oceans and use their directional language to create exciting treasure maps. They learn about significant figures in history such as Florence Nightingale, Mary Seacole, Samuel Pepys and Alexander Graham Bell to name but a few, and their impact they have had on our lives today. Every cross-curricular opportunity is taken to enrich learning with children using their mathematical knowledge to plot coordinates, their artistic efforts are strengthened as they sketch well researched landmarks, and their knowledge of WWII is grown using English comprehension tasks.
In Prep, children have standalone History and Geography lessons in which they thrive. Units are in depth, encourage the children to be reflective and ask ample questions to facilitate a child-led approach to their own education. Children are encouraged to pursue areas of the humanities which motivate them through independent research and collaborate on projects which inspire. Units of history work are organised chronologically, so knowledge builds logically. Form 3 begin learning about early history with the fascinating Stone Age, Iron, Age and Bronze Age with the Form 6 start their studies with more modern history such as World War II. Other exciting areas of study include: the Ancient Mayans, Ancient Egyptians, Ancient Greece, Romans, Anglo-Saxons, Vikings, Rivers, The Alps and The Amazon Rainforest and many more fascinating topics!
Throughout every learning stage, mapping skills are carefully honed, and children use hands-on resources such as.jpg)
atlases, globes, and compasses to bring their learning to life. Technology is instrumental to enhance our teaching and instantly hook the children’s interest. They are confident with using programs such as ‘Google Earth’ to become familiar with their local area as well as the wider world. They learn how to research accurately with use of iPads, use interactive maps to identify the biomes of the world and use advanced programs to create films and presentations to illustrate their learning.
Here at Upton, we are firm believers that learning experiences are crucial to a child's development and therefore our offering of humanities-based trips is excellent. Our children have travelled to Stone Henge, The Battle of hastings, Roman Baths, Eton Museum, The Living Rainforest, Woburn Safari Park, Kew Gardens, Wisley, and of course visited the famous landmark on our doorstep, Windsor Castle, which have all been experiences which truly do enrich their learning. Even out littlest children in Oaks, take part in a conker walk on which they admire the world!
Children adore learning about the humanities, and it is easy to see why with our fun-filled, active, knowledge-rich approach!