Grade 5 History (CAPS): every topic summarised, Terms 1 to 4

Course guides › Grade 5 › History

Grade 5 History is the History half of Social Sciences. It starts with how historians know about the past, then travels from the hunter-gatherers and herders of southern Africa to the first farmers, ancient Egypt and finally South Africa’s heritage.

Learners practise the skills of a young historian: reading sources, putting events in order on a timeline, comparing ways of life and explaining why things changed. The Geography half has its own page, linked below.

Below, all 28 topics of our Grade 5 History (CAPS) course are summarised term by term, in the order schools teach them: what each topic covers, how to approach it, and the mistake learners make most often. The summaries are based on the course’s term Parent Memos, written in our own words, so nothing here gives away the answers to course questions.

On this page

• Term 1: Hunter-gatherers and herders in southern Africa
• Term 2: The first farmers in southern Africa
• Term 3: Ancient Egypt
• Term 4: Heritage
• How marks are given
• Common mistakes
• Tips for parents
• Frequently asked questions

The course at a glance

• One course for the whole year: 28 topics across Terms 1 to 4 (7, 7, 7, 7 per term).
• Every topic has a lesson, worked examples, a 15-question quiz with hints on wrong answers, and extra practice. Quizzes can be retaken, and there is no pass mark to fail.
• Printables for every term: a Learner Coursebook to write in and a Parent Memo with the answers and explanations.
• Listen mode reads each page aloud.

How marks are given in Grade 5 History

• 1-mark questions check one fact, term or place: a definition, a name on a map, a date.
• 2-mark questions usually want an explanation: a fact plus a reason (“because…”).
• Source and map questions give a picture, map, table or short text. Learners earn marks by using what the source shows, not only what they remember.
• Longer answers (paragraphs or 4-mark questions) earn a mark per relevant, correct point, so several clear points beat one long sentence.

Term 1: Hunter-gatherers and herders in southern Africa

Term 1 introduces sources and evidence, then explores the earliest ways of life in southern Africa: the hunter-gatherers, their tools and rock art, and the Khoikhoi herders.

Term 1 topics:

1. How we know about the past
2. Hunter-gatherers of southern Africa
3. Tools, shelter and daily life
4. Rock art – paintings from the past
5. Herders of southern Africa
6. Khoikhoi herders – way of life
7. Hunter-gatherers and herders – comparing ways of life

Read the Term 1 topic summaries (7 topics)

1.1 How we know about the past

Historians learn about the past from sources: objects and artefacts, written records, pictures, oral history (stories passed down by word of mouth) and the remains of buildings. Learners sort sources into types and ask what each can tell us.

Watch out for: Thinking the past can only be known from books.

1.2 Hunter-gatherers of southern Africa

The hunter-gatherers (the San) lived in small groups and moved with the seasons. Men usually hunted wild animals and women gathered plants, roots and fruit. They took only what they needed.

Watch out for: Describing them as farmers; they did not plant crops or keep animals.

1.3 Tools, shelter and daily life

Hunter-gatherers made tools from stone, bone, wood and plant fibre, such as bows and poisoned arrows, digging sticks and ostrich-eggshell water containers. Shelters were light and easy to move or rebuild.

Watch out for: Listing tools without saying what each was used for.

1.4 Rock art – paintings from the past

Rock paintings and engravings across southern Africa show animals, hunting, dancing and beliefs. They are a valuable source because the artists left no written records.

Watch out for: Saying rock art is “just decoration” rather than evidence of beliefs and daily life.

1.5 Herders of southern Africa

About 2,000 years ago herders arrived in southern Africa with sheep, and later cattle. They moved to find grazing and water, so their animals were their wealth.

Watch out for: Mixing up the herders with the later farmers who grew crops.

1.6 Khoikhoi herders – way of life

The Khoikhoi lived in groups led by a chief, built portable mat huts, drank milk and used animal skins. Cattle were rarely slaughtered except for special occasions.

Watch out for: Thinking herders ate their cattle every day; milk was the daily food.

1.7 Hunter-gatherers and herders – comparing ways of life

Learners compare the two ways of life: food, shelter, movement, wealth and how the groups interacted, traded and sometimes clashed over land and water.

Watch out for: Giving only differences and forgetting the similarities.

Try at home in Term 1:

• Look at a photo of San rock art online together and talk about what the painting might tell us about daily life.
• Make a two-column list comparing a hunter-gatherer’s day with your child’s day.

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Term 2: The first farmers in southern Africa

Term 2 looks at the African farmers who settled in southern Africa: their homesteads, iron tools, crops, chiefdoms and the trade and contact between farmers, herders and hunter-gatherers.

Term 2 topics:

1. The first farmers in southern Africa
2. Homesteads and family life
3. Iron tools and farming work
4. Crops of the first farmers
5. Chiefdoms – leaders and communities
6. Trade and contact between groups
7. Farmers, herders and hunter-gatherers – meeting ways of life

Read the Term 2 topic summaries (7 topics)

2.1 The first farmers in southern Africa

Farming communities settled in southern Africa about 1,700 years ago. They grew crops, kept cattle, sheep and goats and lived in one place, which let villages grow.

Watch out for: Confusing settled farmers with the herders who moved with their animals.

2.2 Homesteads and family life

A homestead was a family settlement of huts arranged around a central cattle kraal. Men and women had different roles, and the kraal was the centre of family life and status.

Watch out for: Forgetting why the kraal was placed in the middle.

2.3 Iron tools and farming work

Farmers smelted iron to make hoes, axes and spears. Iron tools made it easier to clear land and grow more food.

Watch out for: Thinking iron was simply found ready to use; it had to be smelted from ore.

2.4 Crops of the first farmers

The first farmers grew sorghum, millet, beans, pumpkins and melons, and later maize. Planting and harvesting followed the seasons and the rains.

Watch out for: Saying maize was always grown here; it arrived later from the Americas.

2.5 Chiefdoms – leaders and communities

Several homesteads formed a chiefdom led by a chief and advisors who settled disputes, shared land and organised the community.

Watch out for: Describing a chief as a king of a large country.

2.6 Trade and contact between groups

Groups traded cattle, iron goods, pots, salt, beads and skins. Trade spread goods and ideas across the region.

Watch out for: Listing items without saying who traded what with whom.

2.7 Farmers, herders and hunter-gatherers – meeting ways of life

Farmers, herders and hunter-gatherers sometimes lived side by side, traded and married, and sometimes competed for land. Learners explain both cooperation and conflict.

Watch out for: Telling only a story of conflict.

Try at home in Term 2:

• Draw a plan of a homestead with the cattle kraal in the centre.
• Talk about which foods in your kitchen today were also grown by the first farmers, such as sorghum or pumpkins.

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Term 3: Ancient Egypt

Term 3 travels north along the Nile to one of the world’s earliest civilisations: how the river made Egypt possible, the pyramids and beliefs, Egyptian society, writing, and what spread from Egypt to the world.

Term 3 topics:

1. Ancient Egypt and the Nile River
2. Gifts of the Nile
3. Floods and farming in Egypt
4. Pyramids and beliefs
5. Egyptian society – who did what
6. Hieroglyphs and papyrus
7. What spread from Egypt – ideas and goods

Read the Term 3 topic summaries (7 topics)

3.1 Ancient Egypt and the Nile River

Ancient Egypt grew up along the Nile River, the longest river in Africa, in the middle of a desert. The river gave water, food, transport and fertile land.

Watch out for: Forgetting that Egypt is in Africa.

3.2 Gifts of the Nile

The Nile gave Egypt fertile soil, fish, papyrus reeds, mud for bricks and a highway for boats. Without it, the land would have been desert.

Watch out for: Listing gifts without linking each to how people used it.

3.3 Floods and farming in Egypt

Each year the Nile flooded and left rich black silt on its banks. Farmers planted after the flood and used canals and the shaduf to move water to their fields.

Watch out for: Thinking the floods were a disaster; they made farming possible.

3.4 Pyramids and beliefs

Egyptians believed in many gods and in life after death. Pyramids were tombs for pharaohs, built to protect the body and the goods needed in the afterlife.

Watch out for: Saying slaves alone built the pyramids; most were paid workers and farmers.

3.5 Egyptian society – who did what

Egyptian society was a pyramid: the pharaoh at the top, then nobles and priests, scribes, craftsmen, and most people as farmers. Learners describe each group’s role.

Watch out for: Mixing up the roles of priests and scribes.

3.6 Hieroglyphs and papyrus

Hieroglyphs were a writing system of pictures and symbols. Scribes wrote on papyrus, an early paper made from reeds. The Rosetta Stone helped people read hieroglyphs again.

Watch out for: Thinking every hieroglyph is a whole word; many stand for sounds.

3.7 What spread from Egypt – ideas and goods

Egypt passed on ideas and goods: a 365-day calendar, paper, early medicine, mathematics and building skills, through trade and contact with other peoples.

Watch out for: Listing inventions without saying how they spread.

Try at home in Term 3:

• Write your child’s name in a made-up picture alphabet, the way hieroglyphs used pictures for sounds.
• Find the Nile on a map of Africa and trace it from its sources to the sea.

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Term 4: Heritage

Term 4 asks what heritage is and why it matters: heritage sites, languages, customs across the provinces, local heritage and how we protect it, ending with a heritage trail project.

Term 4 topics:

1. What is heritage?
2. Heritage sites in South Africa
3. Languages as heritage
4. Heritage across the provinces
5. Local heritage around us
6. Respecting and protecting heritage
7. Our heritage trail – putting it together

Read the Term 4 topic summaries (7 topics)

4.1 What is heritage?

Heritage is what we inherit from the past and pass on: natural heritage (landscapes, wildlife) and cultural heritage (buildings, languages, songs, customs). It can be tangible or intangible.

Watch out for: Thinking heritage only means old buildings.

4.2 Heritage sites in South Africa

South Africa has World Heritage Sites such as Robben Island, the Cradle of Humankind and Mapungubwe. Learners explain why each is important.

Watch out for: Naming a site without saying why it matters.

4.3 Languages as heritage

South Africa has 12 official languages (including South African Sign Language since 2023). A language carries stories, songs and ways of seeing the world.

Watch out for: Saying there are 11 official languages; the count changed in 2023.

4.4 Heritage across the provinces

Each province has its own heritage of foods, crafts, music, dress and celebrations. Learners compare examples and respect differences.

Watch out for: Treating one culture’s customs as everyone’s.

4.5 Local heritage around us

Local heritage is found close to home: a street name, a memorial, an old building or a community tradition. Learners investigate one near them.

Watch out for: Choosing a site without finding out its story.

4.6 Respecting and protecting heritage

Heritage can be damaged by neglect, vandalism and development. People protect it through laws, museums, heritage agencies and by passing on traditions.

Watch out for: Saying protecting heritage is only the government’s job.

4.7 Our heritage trail – putting it together

Learners plan a heritage trail: choose sites, mark them on a map, write a short caption for each and explain why each place matters.

Watch out for: A trail with no map or no explanation of each stop.

Try at home in Term 4:

• Ask a grandparent or older relative to tell a story, song or recipe that has been passed down in your family.
• Visit or look up a monument or heritage site near you and read its information board together.

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Common mistakes in Grade 5 History (and how to fix them)

• Retelling instead of explaining. Questions that ask “why” or “how” need a reason, not just a list of facts. Encourage the word “because”.
• Mixing up hunter-gatherers and herders. Hunter-gatherers hunted wild animals and gathered plants and moved often; herders kept cattle and sheep and moved to find grazing.
• Treating a source as the whole truth. Learners should ask who made a source, when and why, and what it can’t tell us.
• Timeline errors. Dates “BCE” count backwards: 3000 BCE is earlier than 1000 BCE.

Tips for parents

• Ask “how do we know?” Whenever your child states a fact about the past, ask what evidence tells us so. It builds source skills naturally.
• Use your own family as a source. Old photos, stories from grandparents and family objects show how historians use evidence.
• Make a fridge timeline. Add each new period to a strip of paper so your child sees how the topics fit together over time.

Frequently asked questions

How much does the Grade 5 History course cost?

R100 per subject for the year. It is one course for the whole year, with Terms 1 to 4 inside it, so there is nothing extra to pay per term.

How does access work?

Tap Open course on this page or on the Grade 5 course card. It takes you to the course page on Coursebox, our learning platform, in a new tab, where you’ll see the price and how to join (R100 per subject per year, as listed on our site). A parent or guardian signs up there with their own name and email address, and the learner then signs in with that account. Please use a nickname for your child, not their full name or school.

Does it follow CAPS and what my child does at school?

Yes. The topics on this page follow the CAPS curriculum for Grade 5 History and the DBE’s Annual Teaching Plan order, so Term 1 topics are taught in Term 1, and so on. Schools can move a topic by a week or two, so check your child’s term plan.

Are the answers to the course quizzes on this page?

No. This page explains each topic in our own words so you can help at home. The worked answers to every course question are in the Parent Memo for each term, which comes with the course.

Is History a separate subject from Geography in Grade 5?

In CAPS, History and Geography are the two halves of Social Sciences and share one report mark, but they are taught and assessed as separate parts. AI Buddies offers them as separate courses so learners can focus on one at a time.

Ready to start?

The whole year of Grade 5 History is in one course for R100, with printable coursebooks and memos for every term.

Grade 5 Geography · All Grade 5 guides · All course guides

Sources and review

This summary is based on our own Grade 5 History (CAPS) course and its four term Parent Memos, the DBE’s CAPS document for History Grades 4–6 (Intermediate Phase), and the DBE’s Annual Teaching Plan for Grade 5. Past national and provincial papers were used only to see which topics are tested and how. All explanations and examples on this page are our own. Last reviewed: 1 November 2026. AI Buddies is an independent project and is not endorsed by the Department of Basic Education.