In the field of history didactics, this thesis aims to broaden and enrich the question of pupils' learning processes in elementary school. Based on a corpus of data built thanks to the non-participating observation of history lessons in a CM1 class (9 year-old children) during a school year, this research work enables to better understand the type of activity used by pupils in a learning situation. The suggested conclusions stem from the didactic analysis of linguistic productions, mostly oral, from the actors, i.e. the pupils and the teacher. This analysis is based on a methodology referring to theoretical notions developed in history didactics, scientific history epistemology, didactics of French as a native language, and social psychology. The link between language and learning is studied contingent on the constraints created by History as an academic subject. The interpretation of data highlights the configuration of knowledge formed in the classroom, and the modality of elaboration of this knowledge both at the collective and individual levels, emphasizing the particularity of the cognitive activity employed by the learning subjects. If they reflect the importance of the topic studied in the observed processes, the conclusions from this research also define the academic subject "History" by situating it in elementary school.
