Geography
You can find out more about the taught content of our curriculum and the progression of skills in this document: Geography Curriculum Content and Progression Overview
From Brandlehow's Geography Policy:
We believe that Geography is a valued part of the curriculum for all ages, regardless of their stage of learning. It allows children to explore, appreciate and understand the world in which we live, as well as their place in it. Geography, by nature, is an investigative subject which builds an understanding of concepts, knowledge and skills. We believe it is important to deliver a geographical curriculum that encourages a curiosity for learning, endorses the importance for outdoor learning and allows children to learn through experience. Brandlehow’s Geography curriculum therefore aims to promote children’s interest and understanding of diverse places, people, resources and natural environments, alongside knowledge of the Earth’s physical and human processes.
The key strands in Geography across KS1 and KS2 are:
- Locational knowledge
- Place knowledge
- Human and physical Geography
- Geographical skills: using maps, making maps, map knowledge and fieldwork
Key Stage 1 Intent
In Key Stage 1, our intent at Brandlehow is for children to begin to carry out geographical enquiry inside and outside the classroom. Within the framework of the Primary National Curriculum for Geography, children will become familiar with their local area, and a contrasting area in the United Kingdom, learning about the environments and people who live there. They will also begin to learn about the wider world. In doing this, children will be asking geographical questions about people, places and environments, and using geographical skills and resources such as: atlases, maps and photographs.
Key Stage 2 Intent
In Key Stage 2, we aim to further inspire children’s curiosity about the wider world around them, whilst encouraging them to use the full range of geographical skills more independently. Children will investigate a variety of people, places and environments in the United Kingdom and abroad, and start to make connections between different people and places in the world. They will discover how people both affect and are affected by their environments. In doing so, pupils will develop a wide range of geographical enquiry skills, including: geographical questions, collecting and recording information and identifying different views.
Key Stage 1 and 2 Implementation
Brandlehow’s Geography curriculum is designed to build and continuously consolidate children’s geographical knowledge and skills. Where possible, Geography is taught as part of the thematic curriculum at Brandlehow. Each year group will spend a minimum of one term studying a geography focused module. In other instances, Geography will be linked into some History topics, where appropriate, as well as being integrated into other curriculum areas. Stand alone lessons may also be used to teach explicit skills. This ensures that all areas of the curriculum are covered in depth.
In order to reflect the increasing diversity of our school community and the wider world, we have recently undertaken a review of the Geography topics studied across Key Stages 1 and 2. To ensure national curriculum coverage, whilst also broadening our Geography provision, topics are now mapped out in a 1 year cycle. The new topics are informed by the National Curriculum (2014) and have been adapted in response to feedback from a working group of Years 4 - 6, as well as the context of the local area. By the time each year group has gone through Key Stage 2, they will have covered key skills and been exposed to examples of human and physical geography from the majority of continents.
In Key Stages 1 and 2, children will have the opportunity to take part in a range of activities, and will be exposed to a variety of resources. These include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Study countries from the majority of continents, their cultures and traditions;
- Gain insight into different ways of living around the world;
- Develop reading and writing skills;
- Understand the processes that give rise to key physical and geographical features of the world;
- Carry out fieldwork both inside and outside the classroom;
- Collect, analyse and communicate data through fieldwork opportunities;
- Interpret a range of sources of geographical information, including: atlases, maps, digital maps (digimaps), globes and photographs;
- Use, follow, draw and create a variety of maps (OS, aerial, digital maps).
Equal Opportunities:
We recognise that all children within our community have an entitlement to all aspects of the foundation subjects offered within the curriculum. We aim to provide suitable learning opportunities for all children by matching the challenge of the activity to the needs of the child. This can be achieved by:
- setting common tasks which explore different outcomes
- setting tasks with extensions and challenges
- providing resources to scaffold and support learning depending upon the ability of the child
- Grouping of children in a range of ways to ensure learning is continuously influenced by a differing range of thought, belief and cultures.
- Classroom assistants support children either individually or in groups to scaffold their knowledge and development of skills
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