Geography
In Geography, we learn about land, water, weather and people.
The teaching of Geography in Stranton Primary School fits in with our rationale and aims for our Whole School curriculum.
They include ensuring that the curriculum:
- Has the needs of the children at the heart of everything we do
- Is based on a strong foundation of oracy
- Meets the needs of our local community
- Is full of exciting, enriching and enjoyable learning experiences
- Provides opportunities for our children, staff and parents to all learn together.
- Positively improves academic outcomes
- Prepares our children to become positive role models in and effective contributors to Society
- Gives our pupils the chance to become the very best versions of themselves.
Or in short, a curriculum which provides only the very best education, opportunities and experiences for all of our pupils.
Vision for Geography
The aim of geography teaching here at Stranton Primary School is to stimulate the children’s interest and understanding about the world - exploring, appreciating and understanding where we live and how it has evolved. We do not simply want children to learn facts - we want children to learn Geography in such a way it will alter their long-term memory.
We aim:
- To stimulate children’s interest in their surroundings and develop a knowledge and understanding of the physical and human processes which shape places.
- To increase children’s knowledge of other cultures and, in so doing, teach a respect and understanding of what it means to be a positive citizen in a multi-cultural country.
- To provide learning opportunities that enthuse, engage, and motivate children to learn and foster a sense of curiosity and wonder at the beauty of the world around them.
- To encourage in children a commitment to sustainable development and an appreciation of what ‘global citizenship’ means.
- To make sense of their own surroundings through learning about their own locality and the interaction between people and the environment.
- To develop the geographical skills, including how to use, draw and interpret maps of different scales, and the vocabulary necessary to carry out effective geographical enquiry.
- To be able to apply map reading skills to globes and atlas maps and identify geographical features.
- To formulate appropriate questions, develop research skills and evaluate material to inform opinions.
- To enable children to work geographically in a range of appropriate contexts, using a variety of materials and equipment including other people’s experiences and knowledge.
Curriculum End Points
By the end of Key Stage 1 we want ALL children to:
Develop knowledge about the world, the United Kingdom and their locality.
They should understand basic subject-specific vocabulary relating to human and physical geography and begin to use geographical skills, including first-hand observation, to enhance their locational awareness.
Pupils should be taught to:
Locational knowledge
- Name and locate the world’s seven continents and five oceans
- Name, locate and identify characteristics of the four countries and capital cities of the United Kingdom and its surrounding sea
Place knowledge
- Understand geographical similarities and differences through studying the human and physical geography of a small area of the United Kingdom, and of a small area in a contrasting non-European country Human and physical geography.
- Identify seasonal and daily weather patterns in the United Kingdom and the location of hot and cold areas of the world in relation to the Equator and the North and South Poles.
Use basic geographical vocabulary to refer to:
- Key physical features, including: beach, cliff, coast, forest, hill, mountain, sea, ocean, river, soil, valley, vegetation, season and weather
- Key human features, including: city, town, village, factory, farm, house, office, port, harbour and shop Geographical skills and fieldwork
- Use world maps, atlases and globes to identify the United Kingdom and its countries, as well as the countries, continents and oceans studied at this key stage
- Use simple compass directions (North, South, East and West) and locational and directional language [for example, near and far; left and right], to describe the location of features and routes on a map Geography
- Use aerial photographs and plan perspectives to recognise landmarks and basic human and physical features; devise a simple map; and use and construct basic symbols in a key
- Use simple fieldwork and observational skills to study the geography of their school and its grounds and the key human and physical features of its surrounding environment.
This will ensure all pupils are ready and able to access the Key Stage 2 curriculum and beyond.
By the end of Key Stage 2 we want ALL children to:
Extend their knowledge and understanding beyond the local area to include the United Kingdom and Europe, North and South America. This will include the location and characteristics of a range of the world’s most significant human and physical features. They should develop their use of geographical knowledge, understanding and skills to enhance their locational and place knowledge.
Pupils should be taught to:
Locational knowledge
- Locate the world’s countries, using maps to focus on Europe (including the location of Russia) and North and South America, concentrating on their environmental regions, key physical and human characteristics, countries, and major cities
- Name and locate counties and cities of the United Kingdom, geographical regions and their identifying human and physical characteristics, key topographical features (including hills, mountains, coasts and rivers), and land-use patterns; and understand how some of these aspects have changed over time
- Identify the position and significance of latitude, longitude, Equator, Northern Hemisphere, Southern Hemisphere, the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, Arctic and Antarctic Circle, the Prime/Greenwich Meridian and time zones (including day and night)
Place knowledge
- Understand geographical similarities and differences through the study of human and physical geography of a region of the United Kingdom, a region in a European country, and a region within North or South America
Human and physical geography
Describe and understand key aspects of:
- Physical geography, including: climate zones, biomes and vegetation belts, rivers, mountains, volcanoes and earthquakes, and the water cycle
- Human geography, including: types of settlement and land use, economic activity including trade links, and the distribution of natural resources including energy, food, minerals and water Geography – key stages 1 and 2 4
Geographical skills and fieldwork
- Use maps, atlases, globes and digital/computer mapping to locate countries and describe features studied
- Use the eight points of a compass, four and six-figure grid references, symbols and key (including the use of Ordnance Survey maps) to build their knowledge of the United Kingdom and the wider world
- Use fieldwork to observe, measure, record and present the human and physical features in the local area using a range of methods, including sketch maps, plans and graphs, and digital technologies
This will ensure all pupils are ready and able to access the Key Stage 3 curriculum and beyond.
Teaching of Geography
Geography is taught as part of our ‘topic based’ foundation curriculum. Objectives are progressive and sequential; teaching children a vast knowledge of the world in which they live, whilst providing the children with the skills to explore, wonder and become keen geographers.
The school uses a variety of teaching and learning styles in geography lessons. Our principal aim is to develop the children’s knowledge, skills and understanding in geography. We use a variety of teaching and learning styles in our geography lessons to do this, including:
- We believe in whole-class teaching methods and combine these with enquiry-based research activities.
- We encourage children to handle artefacts and to ask as well as answer geographical questions.
- We offer them the opportunity to use a variety of data, such as maps, statistics, graphs, pictures, aerial photographs, geographical footage and we enable them to use IT in geography lessons where this serves to enhance their learning.
- Children take part in role play and discussions, and they present reports to the rest of the class.
- They engage in a wide variety of problem-solving activities.
- Wherever possible, we involve the children in ‘real’ geographical activities, e.g. research of a local environmental problem, visiting relevant sites and carrying out fieldwork.
We recognise the fact that we have children of differing ability in all our classes, and so we provide suitable learning opportunities for all children by matching the challenge of the task to the ability of the child. We achieve this through a range of strategies which are differentiated by task, expected outcome and/or support from peers or adults.
Recording of Geography
In line with Stranton Primary School’s curriculum rationale of providing hands-on experiential learning, supported by our strong oracy foundation; geography work will be recorded and evidenced in individual geography books. These books will show the individual learning journey of each child and the progress they have made within each topic and across the curriculum.
Assessment of Geography
In order to assess the children’s knowledge in Geography, children will complete an end of unit assessment which will be evidenced in children’s individual geography books. Throughout a unit, teachers will track the children’s progress against what has been taught to allow them to identify gaps in learning. This will enable misconceptions or knowledge which hasn’t been retained to be addressed in the ‘revisit’ section of future lessons. At the end of each term, teachers will give an overall judgement of each child, recording attainment on the school’s curriculum tracking sheet. This judgement will be based on evidence from children’s book, end of unit assessments and performance in class. Teachers will also conduct observational assessments of children during lessons and assess verbal responses from children in line with our oracy framework.
Monitoring of Geography
Monitoring takes place regularly through sampling children’s work, lesson observations and through talking to the children – ensuring they enjoy each subject and are able to recall key knowledge of what they have been taught.