“Geography is the subject which holds the key to our future.” – Michael Palin
Intent
Our vision is to give every pupil a rich and meaningful understanding of the world around them, developing knowledgeable, curious and responsible geographers. We intend for children to build a secure understanding of places, environments and geographical processes, from their local area to the wider world. Through a carefully sequenced curriculum, pupils develop their locational knowledge, understand the physical and human features of places, and learn how these interact to shape the world in which we live.
Implementation
In EYFS, children:
- explore and talk about their immediate environment
- notice similarities and differences between places
- begin to develop an understanding of their local area and the wider world
- explore natural and human features through play and first-hand experiences
- begin to use geographical vocabulary to describe places and environments
In KS1 and KS2, we deliver geography lessons in a structured, progressive way, building knowledge and skills through the following interconnected strands:
- Locational knowledge: Knowing where places are and understanding their geographical relationships, including continents, countries, cities, oceans and geographical features.
- Place knowledge: Understanding the physical and human characteristics of places and making comparisons between locations.
- Physical geography: Understanding natural processes and features such as rivers, mountains, climate, weather and biomes.
- Human geography: Understanding how people live, work and interact with their environments, including settlements, land use, resources and economic activity.
- Geographical skills and fieldwork: Using maps, atlases, globes, data and fieldwork to investigate places and geographical patterns.
Our geography curriculum enables pupils to move between different scales of geographical understanding, from their local area to the United Kingdom and the wider world. Children revisit places and geographical concepts so that they can build increasingly sophisticated connections between location, physical processes and human activity.
- In local and UK studies, pupils develop knowledge of their immediate surroundings and the countries, cities and geographical features of the United Kingdom.
- Through world studies, pupils develop a broader understanding of continents, countries, regions and contrasting environments.
- Through physical geography, children investigate the processes that shape our planet and explore how physical features develop and change.
- Through human geography, pupils explore how people use, adapt to and influence different environments.
- Through place comparisons, pupils identify similarities and differences between locations and develop an understanding that places are interconnected.
We explicitly teach pupils to think and work like geographers.
- Children learn to use maps, atlases and globes to locate and describe places and geographical features.
- Pupils develop an understanding of scale and increasingly use geographical information at local, national and global levels.
- Children collect, present and interpret geographical data using appropriate graphs, charts, maps and tables.
- Pupils investigate geographical patterns and processes, asking questions and using evidence to explain their findings.
- Children undertake fieldwork and first-hand investigations, applying their geographical knowledge to real environments.
- Pupils consider how physical and human processes interact and develop an increasing awareness of environmental issues and their own place within the wider world.
Skills & Vocabulary Progression
- We use a progressive geography skills framework to ensure that knowledge and geographical skills are systematically developed and reinforced across year groups.
- Children are taught geographical vocabulary explicitly, enabling them to describe locations, environments, processes and patterns with increasing accuracy.
- Key terminology is revisited frequently so that pupils can communicate geographical understanding clearly and confidently.
- Pupils increasingly combine their knowledge of places, processes and geographical skills to explain patterns, make comparisons and reach conclusions.
Impact
As a result of our geography curriculum, pupils become knowledgeable, curious and confident geographers. They develop a secure understanding of where places are and can describe and compare their physical and human characteristics. Our pupils can explain geographical processes, recognise patterns and understand how physical and human geography interact. They can use maps, atlases, data and fieldwork to investigate geographical questions and communicate their findings effectively. Through studying their local area, the UK and the wider world, pupils develop a strong sense of place and an appreciation of the diversity and interconnectedness of our planet. They become increasingly aware of their responsibility towards the environments and communities in which they live and the wider world.
