HISTORY
The Lower School History course aims to develop a cultural and historical background on the changes that occurred in Great Britain , Europe , Asia and Africa from 1500 to 1900 .
We hope to capture students ’ imaginations , enabling them to visualise a significant scene from the past , and to offer solutions to knotty historical problems by imagining the reactions of individuals and groups to an event , based on understanding of the time in which they live . The course aims to enable students to put themselves in the shoes of people from the past , to see the world as they saw it , and therefore to perceive the sometimes hard choices that seemed available to them .
This should engender a spirit of open-mindedness and an understanding of the usefulness of different perspectives and of the insights that may be offered by different historians . The course encourages critical analysis in order to formulate a clear and substantiated argument both in writing and in discussion .
Year 7 Course Unit 1 : What is History ? A study of the wider medieval world , including Native American cultures , Western Africa , the Islamic World .
Unit 2 : Who held the most power in medieval England ? A depth study of medieval England , including the Norman Conquest , Magna Carta and Peasants ’ Revolt .
Unit 3 : What changed in the Italian Renaissance ? A study of the Italian peninsula during its Renaissance , including impact on the arts , medicine and Florence .
Year 8 Course Unit 1 : How far did the British Isles change between 1500 and 1900 ? This includes examining thematic questions such as : l How far did living conditions improve , 1500-1900 ? l When did the monarch stop being in charge ?
Unit 2 : Revolutions l What were the causes , nature and consequences of the American Revolution ? l What were the causes , nature and consequences of the French Revolution ?
Unit 3 : Britain and the wider world 1500-1900 l What were the reasons for , and impact of , the growth of the British Empire , 1600-1900 ?
32 THE LOWER SCHOOL | AT SEVENOAKS