A member of Dales Academies Trust Subject leader: Miss Bartle
‘Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of all garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.’
Matthew 13 vs.31-32
Our entire curriculum, including Geography, is underpinned by the ‘Parable of the Mustard Seed’ and summarised by our motto:
Together may we give our children: roots to grow and wings to fly.
Intent
At Eppleby Forcett and Middleton Tyas Primary School we believe that Geography helps to provoke and provide answers to questions about the natural and human aspects of the world. We pride ourselves on our creative learning environment and classroom displays. Children are encouraged to develop a greater understanding and knowledge of the world, as well as their place in it.
Through our scheme of work, created through Kapow, we aim to build an awareness of how Geography shapes our lives at multiple scales and over time. We hope to encourage pupils to become resourceful, active citizens who will have the skills to contribute to and improve the world around them.
Our Geography curriculum encourages:
- A strong focus on developing both geographical skills and knowledge.
- Critical thinking, with the ability to ask perceptive questions and explain and analyse evidence.
- The development of fieldwork skills across each year group.
- A deep interest and knowledge of pupils’ locality and how it differs from other areas of the world. • A growing understanding of geographical terms and vocabulary.
Our Geography scheme of work enables pupils to meet the end of key stage attainment targets in the National curriculum. The aims also align with those in the National curriculum.
We seek to inspire in children a curiosity and fascination about the world and its people which will remain with them for the rest of their lives; to promote the children’s interest and understanding of diverse places, people, resources and natural and human environments, together with a deep understanding of the Earth’s key physical and human processes. Our curriculum is designed to develop knowledge and skills that are progressive, as well as transferable, throughout their time at Eppleby Forcett and Middleton Tyas and also to their further education and beyond.
Implementation
Geography at Eppleby Forcett and Middleton Tyas is taught in blocks throughout the year, so that children can achieve depth in their learning.
The concept of geography is introduced through the EYFS statutory educational programme for ‘Understanding the World’ and at the end of Reception, children’s expected level of development is set out in the early learning goal ‘People, Culture and communities’. Children learn about their local family and school communities, including where they are located on maps within the wider world as well as meeting important members of their society. Children explore how life is different and similar in other countries.
In Years 1-6 The National curriculum organises the Geography attainment targets under four subheadings or strands:
- Locational knowledge
- Place knowledge
- Human and physical geography
- Geographical skills and fieldwork
Our Geography curriculum is spiral, with essential knowledge and skills revisited with increasing complexity, allowing pupils to revise and build on their previous learning. Locational knowledge, in particular, will be reviewed in each unit to coincide with our belief that this will consolidate children’s understanding of key concepts, such as scale and place, in Geography.
Cross-curricular links are included throughout each unit, allowing children to make connections and apply their Geography skills to other areas of learning. Our enquiry questions form the basis for our units, meaning that pupils gain a solid understanding of geographical knowledge and skills by applying them to answer enquiry questions.
Each unit contains elements of geographical skills and fieldwork to ensure that fieldwork skills are practised as often as possible. Each unit follows an enquiry cycle that maps out the fieldwork process of question, observe, measure, record, and present, to reflect the elements mentioned in the National curriculum. This ensures children will learn how to decide on an area of enquiry, plan to measure data using a range of methods, capture the data and present it to a range of appropriate stakeholders in various formats.
Fieldwork includes smaller opportunities on the school grounds to larger-scale visits to investigate physical and human features. Developing fieldwork skills within the school environment and revisiting them in multiple units enables pupils to consolidate their understanding of various methods. It also gives children the confidence to evaluate methodologies without always having to leave the school grounds and do so within the confines of a familiar place. This makes fieldwork regular and accessible while giving children a thorough understanding of their locality, providing a solid foundation when comparing it with other places.
Lessons incorporate various teaching strategies from independent tasks to paired and group work, including practical hands-on, computer-based and collaborative tasks. This variety means that lessons are engaging and appeal to those with a variety of learning styles. Knowledge organisers for each unit support pupils in building a foundation of factual knowledge by encouraging recall of key facts and vocabulary.
Impact
Our enquiry-based approach to learning allows teachers to assess children against the National curriculum expectations for Geography. Our curriculum can be constantly monitored through both formative and summative assessment opportunities.
Each unit has a unit quiz and knowledge catcher, which are used at the start or end of the unit to assess children’s understanding. Opportunities for children to present their findings using their geographical skills will also form part of the assessment process in each unit.
As a result of our Geography curriculum pupils should leave school equipped with a range of skills and knowledge to enable them to study Geography with confidence at Key stage 3. We hope to shape children into curious and inspired geographers with respect and appreciation for the world around them alongside an understanding of the interconnection between the human and the physical.
Additional Information
For more information regarding our Geography curriculum (including our curriculum map and key procedures), please click on the ‘Useful Documents’ links below.
Similarly, under ‘Useful Links’, you can find more information regarding supplementary resources and other useful websites.
Useful Documents
Useful Links
