Following on from our trip to the Old Baily, Year 6 were excited to begin their new history topic, Crime and Punishment, where they will explore how justice has changed across different periods of British history. Pupils will develop a chronological understanding of the past while investigating how and why methods of crime detection, trials and punishments have evolved. Starting with the Anglo-Saxons, children will examine early laws and ordeals, before moving through the Medieval, Tudor, Stuart, Georgian/Victorian periods and into modern Britain. They will consider themes of continuity and change, cause and consequence, and similarities and differences across time. Using a range of historical sources, pupils will also learn how our knowledge of the past is constructed, helping them to think critically about fairness, justice and how society’s values have developed over time.
