UKS2 Topic Overview: Earliest Civilisations: the Shang Dynasty of Ancient China

UKS2 Topic Overview: Earliest Civilisations: The Shang Dynasty of Ancient China

Study this fascinating topic and learn all about The Shang Dynasty of Ancient China. Discover key information about the formation of the Shang Dynasty and the kings who ruled it. Learn all about everyday life, the music, cities and settlements, and the process of worship in this early civilisation. The importance of warfare, advanced technology, and the development of writing are all studied and children will have the chance to meet a number of exciting creative outcomes!

• Develop a chronologically secure knowledge and understanding of world history, establishing clear narratives within and across the periods they study.
• Understand how our knowledge of the past is constructed from a range of sources.
• Undertake an in-depth study of The Shang Dynasty of Ancient China.
• Reading comprehension including making comparisons within and across books, distinguish between statements of fact and opinion, retrieve, record and present information from non-fiction.
• Locate the world’s countries using maps, concentrating on their environmental regions, key physical and human characteristics, countries, and major cities.
• Use maps, and digital/computer mapping to locate countries and describe features studied.
• Interpret negative numbers in context, count forwards and backwards with positive and negative whole numbers, including through zero.
• Multiply and divide numbers mentally drawing upon known facts.

• Pupils should regularly address and sometimes devise historically valid questions about change, cause, similarity and difference, and significance.
• Undertake an in-depth study of The Shang Dynasty of Ancient China.
• Improve their mastery of art and design techniques, including drawing, painting and sculpture with a range of materials.
• Describe the differences in the life cycles of a mammal, an amphibian, an insect and a bird.
• Find out and describe how plants need water, light and a suitable temperature to grow and stay healthy.
• Describe how animals obtain their food from plants and other animals.
• Know where and how a variety of ingredients are grown, reared, caught and processed.

• Pupils should continue to develop a chronologically secure knowledge and understanding of British, local and world history, establishing clear narratives within and across the periods they study.
• Undertake an in-depth study of The Shang Dynasty of Ancient China.

• Retrieve, record and present information from non-fiction.
• Extend pupils’ confidence, enjoyment and mastery of language through public speaking, performance and debate.
• Pupils divide numbers mentally drawing upon known facts; draw given angles, and measure them in degrees.

• Know and understand significant aspects of the history of the wider world: the nature of ancient civilisations; characteristic features of past non-European societies.

• Construct informed responses that involve thoughtful selection and organisation of relevant historical information.
• Address and devise historically valid questions about change, cause, similarity and difference, and significance.
• An in-depth study of The Shang Dynasty of Ancient China.
• Gain an increasing awareness of different kinds of art, craft and design.
• Improve their mastery of art and design techniques, including drawing, painting and sculpture with a range of materials.
• Use a sketchbook.
• Prepare and cook a variety of predominantly savoury dishes using a range of cooking techniques.
• Participate in discussions, presentations, performances, role play, improvisations and debates.
• Identify the audience for and purpose of writing, selecting the appropriate form and using other similar writing as models for their own.
• Demonstrate that dissolving, mixing and changes of state are reversible changes.

• Carry out an in-depth study of The Shang Dynasty of Ancient China.
• Continue to develop a chronologically secure knowledge and understanding of world history, establishing clear narratives within and across the periods they study.
• Know and understand significant aspects of the history of the wider world: the nature of ancient civilisations; the expansion and dissolution of empires; characteristic features of past non-European societies; achievements and follies of mankind.
• Understand how our knowledge of the past is constructed from a range of sources.
• Construct informed responses that involve thoughtful selection and organisation of relevant historical information.
• Develop reading comprehension including making comparisons within and across books, distinguish between statements of fact and opinion, retrieve, record and present information from non-fiction.
• Articulate and justify answers, arguments and opinions.
• Give well-structured descriptions, explanations and narratives for different purposes, including for expressing feelings.
• Maintain attention and participate actively in collaborative conversations, staying on topic and initiating and responding to comments.
• Use spoken language to develop understanding through speculating, hypothesising, imagining and exploring ideas.
• Participate in discussions, presentations, performances, role play, improvisations and debates.
• Consider and evaluate different viewpoints, attending to and building on the contributions of others.

• Pupils should regularly address and sometimes devise historically valid questions about change, cause, similarity and difference, and significance.
• An in-depth study of The Shang Dynasty of Ancient China.
• Improve their mastery of art and design techniques, including drawing, painting and sculpture with a range of materials.
• Pupils’ confidence, enjoyment and mastery of language should be extended through public speaking, performance and debate.
• Pupils should understand, through being shown, the skills and processes essential for writing: that is, thinking aloud to generate ideas, drafting, and re-reading to check that the meaning is clear.
• Pupils should consolidate their understanding of ratio when comparing quantities, sizes and scale drawings by solving a variety of problems.

• Carry out an in-depth study of The Shang Dynasty of Ancient China
• Know and understand significant aspects of the history of the wider world: the nature of ancient civilisations; the expansion and dissolution of empires; characteristic features of past non-European societies; achievements and follies of mankind.
• Gain and deploy a historically grounded understanding of abstract terms such as ‘empire’, ‘civilisation’.
• Construct informed responses that involve thoughtful selection and organisation of relevant historical information.
• Understand how our knowledge of the past is constructed from a range of sources.
• Reading comprehension including making comparisons within and across books, distinguish between statements of fact and opinion, retrieve, record and present information from non-fiction.
• Articulate and justify answers, arguments and opinions.
• Give well-structured descriptions, explanations and narratives for different purposes, including for expressing feelings.
• Maintain attention and participate actively in collaborative conversations, staying on topic and initiating and responding to comments.
• Use spoken language to develop understanding through speculating, hypothesising, imagining and exploring ideas.
• Participate in discussions, presentations, performances, role play, improvisations and debates.
• Consider and evaluate different viewpoints, attending to and building on the contributions of others.
• Use research and develop design criteria to inform the design of functional products that are fit for purpose.
• Generate, develop, model and communicate their ideas through discussion, annotated sketches and prototypes.
• Select from and use a wider range of tools and equipment to perform practical tasks accurately.
• Select from and use a wider range of materials and components.
• Evaluate their ideas and products against their own design criteria.

• Pupils should continue to develop a chronologically secure knowledge and understanding of British, local and world history, establishing clear narratives within and across the periods they study.
• A depth study of The Shang Dynasty of Ancient China.
• Play and perform in solo and ensemble contexts.
• Improvise and compose music for a range of purposes.
• Appreciate and understand a wide range of high-quality live and recorded music drawn from different traditions and from great composers and musicians.

© Hamilton Trust 2014 This activity may be adapted for use by a teacher in his/her own class. It may not be reproduced for any other purpose.

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