It is important for teachers to have high expectations of pupils who are gifted in history and for classroom activities to provide opportunities for gifted pupils to develop and apply their particular capabilities. In order to break down some of the barriers that may constrain very able pupils, teachers should try to provide teaching and learning experiences that encourage all pupils to think creatively, explore and develop ideas, and try different approaches. All pupils should be encouraged to set their own questions, offer ideas, suggest solutions or explanations, and reflect on what they have heard, seen or done in order to clarify their thoughts.

A variety of general strategies can be used to enrich and extend curriculum provision for pupils who are gifted in history. Teachers could:

give gifted pupils a problem to solve, such as 'Would it be very different for a child growing up in Athens from one growing up in Sparta?' or 'What was it really like to live in our village in Victorian times?'. Structuring history work around an enquiry question is the model of best practice in history teaching;

provide opportunities for gifted pupils to carry out historical enquiries by drawing together information from a range of sources, and encourage them to decide which sources are most useful and why. The pupils could also be encouraged to think about whether or not a source is reliable. If it is unreliable, can it still be useful? for what purposes?;

provide pupils with opportunities to follow their own enquiry questions;

present gifted pupils with conflicting evidence about a person or event and ask them to consider why opinions differ and whether or not they can be resolved;

give them a video of a historical drama (serious or comic) to watch, or an extract from a historical novel to read, and ask them to evaluate it for historical accuracy and write a letter to the producer or author. Alternatively, pupils could be asked to prepare direction for the producer of a historical film about the period they have been studying;

link the pupils with an expert in local history or an academic or secondary school teacher with particular expertise in the topic they are studying (they could make the most of e-mail for this);

provide real-life research and presentation opportunities, for example carrying out interviews with local people and collating the results in a school publication;

take time to discuss issues with gifted pupils, in order to challenge their assumptions and develop their thinking;

avoid giving gifted pupils additional writing tasks and encourage them instead to communicate their understanding in a variety of ways, giving them responsibility for choosing and evaluating the most appropriate method;

provide opportunities within history for pupils to develop their skills in other areas, such as intrapersonal skills (for example, opportunities to use initiative), and interpersonal skills (for example, leadership and group membership). These opportunities also relate to the key skills of working with others and improving own learning and performance.

Managing provision in the general guidance

Matching teaching to pupils' needs in the general guidance

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