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Geography explores the relationships between earth and its people.
Geography studies the location of the physical and human features of the
earth and the processes, systems and interrelationships that create and
influence them. The character of places, the subject’s central focus
derives from the interaction of people and the environment.
Broad Aims of Geography
- To stimulate pupils interest in the world around them and to foster a
sense of wonder at the beauty of the world around them.
- To help pupils develop an informed concern for the quality of the
environment.
- To enhance pupils sense of responsibility for the care of the earth
and its people.
- To develop a range of skills to interpret geographical information and
to carry out geographical enquiry.
Aims of Geography at Grendon Underwood
- To study the location of places.
- To look at physical systems.
- To explore human and physical processes and patterns.
- To develop a sense of place.
- To explore the relationships between people and their environment.
- To look at changes to places, spaces and the environment and the
consequences of these changes.
- To appreciate cultural and economic diversity.
- To investigate issues and concerns.
- To develop enquiry skills.
Teaching and Learning Objectives
The Geography National Curriculum should be taught through the QCA
programmes of study.
In Key Stage 1 children will
- Investigate and learn about the physical and human features of their
environment and appreciating how their locality is similar to or different
from other places.
- Focus on geographical questions like “What/where is it?” “What
is it like ?”, “How did it get like this ?”
- Develop and use geographical enquiry skills including fieldwork
skills, geographical terms, making and using maps and using photographs.
In Key Stage 2 children will
- Study places and themes at different scales from local to national in
the UK and overseas and investigate how people and places are linked and
how they relate to the wider world.
- Study how and why physical and human features are arranged as they are
in a place or environment and how people are influenced by and affect the
environment.
- Focus on geographical questions like “What is it like?” “How did
it get like this?” and “How and why is it changing?”
- Develop and use geographical enquiry skills including fieldwork and
ICT skills, geographical terms, making and using maps and using
photographs.
Each year group (Years 1-6) follow the QCA Geography Schemes. Reception
teaches Geography through the topics they teach in the class. Geography is
a foundation subject.
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Class |
Autumn |
Spring |
Summer |
Links to other subjects |
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Reception |
All about me Celebrations |
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Aristotle’s Travels Bears old and new |
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Year 1 |
Unit 24 Passport to the world |
Unit 1 Around our school-the local area |
Unit 2 How can we make our local area safer |
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Year 2 |
Unit 3 An Island Home |
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Unit 4 Going to the seaside |
What were seaside holidays like in the past |
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Year 3 |
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Unit 6 Investigating the local area Unit 7 Weather around the world |
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Greece World War II |
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Year 4 |
Unit 9 Village settlers |
Unit 10 A village in India |
Journeys Unit 8 Improving the environment |
Romans Life in the past |
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Year 5 |
Unit 16 What’s in the news |
Unit 11 Water Unit 13 A contrasting UK locality-Llandudno |
Unit 12 Should the High St be closed to traffic |
Explorers |
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Year 6 |
Unit 14 Investigating Rivers |
Unit 15 The Mountain environment |
Unit 23 Investigating Coasts |
Egypt |
Teaching Methods
It is up to the individual teacher how the curriculum should be
delivered in the classroom. Teaching styles and classes vary and what may
be appropriate in one situation may not necessarily work in another.
The range of teaching methods to meet the different abilities of pupils
will include,
- Knowledge/instructions given by the teacher.
- Questions and answers
- Creative activities e.g. model making
- Individual and group enquiry
- Use of books, maps, atlases, ICT, videos and audiotapes.
- Fieldwork
Pupils will work within a class group, co-operatively in small groups
or individually.
Geographical studies should be enquiry based and teachers should
facilitate this. An enquiry may include,
- Asking a question
- Collecting relevant data from primary and secondary sources
- Analysing and interpreting data
- Presenting findings
- Drawing conclusions and evaluating them.
Fieldwork in the environment is a core component of the Geography
curriculum.
Cross Curricular Links
Whenever possible and appropriate, cross curricular links should be
identified. The theme Rivers for example, lends itself to work on water
experiments in the Science curriculum. Themes may be linked with study
units in History; for example, Going to the Seaside can be linked together
with What were Seaside Holidays like in the Past. Co-ordinates, scale
drawings, plans, databases and the use of roamer can be linked with the
Maths curriculum.
ICT Links
ICT is a resource, which is planned and used in Geography for,
- Written work
- Illustrations
- Handling Information
- Directional work
- Research
Geography provides many opportunities to use ICT including programmable
robots (Roamer and Pip), e-mail, videos (using and making), CD ROMS, fax
machines, World Wide Web, digital cameras and scanners.
Through using these opportunities pupils will develop and apply their
ICT capability in the study of Geography.
Special Educational Needs
Pupils with special needs will have the same geography entitlement as
any other pupils. Teachers need to ensure that the curriculum meets the
needs of all the pupils. Differentiation is the process of planning and
teaching in ways, which give all children the opportunity to show what
they know, understand and can do. There are a number of strategies for
differentiation,
- Differentiation by task
- Differentiation by outcome or result
- Differentiation by a carefully scaffolded sequence of activities.
- Differentiation by recording
Equal Opportunities
All children will be given access to Geography irrespective of race,
gender, creed, level of ability or nationality. Mutual respect and
tolerance for all cultures will be promoted through the study of
Geography.
Assessment and Recording
Teachers will use their professional judgement to determine the most
effective method of gathering evidence of pupil’s progress and the most
appropriate way of reporting to parents. Gathering evidence of pupil’s
attainment allows teachers to identify what has been learnt and identify
ways of overcoming difficulties and establish a basis for further
planning.
Formative assessment can be made from a range of sources,
- Written work
- Spoken activities
- Maps, plans and sketches
- Group activities
- Fieldwork
- Audio and video recording
- ICT materials e.g. e-mails, desk top publishing
- Models
- Photographs
- Comments from other people e.g. helpers on fieldwork
There is no statutory teacher assessment in KS1 and 2 in Geography.
A summative assessment is made in the annual report to parents.
Resources
Each class should have relevant resources for the Geography units they
teach i.e. textbooks, atlases, globes, audio and videotapes, software.
Some resources are stored within the Year 1 classroom. Teachers who borrow
resources need to sign out the resources and return them as soon as they
are no longer required. Resources in the Year 1 classroom include atlases,
a globe, aerial photographs, maps and plans, children’s reference books,
teacher’s reference books, photographs, holiday brochures and postcards.
Local area resources can be found in the filing cabinet in the Music room
in the main block. External resources include points of the compass
painted on the playground, the school grounds including the pond and the
local area.
See Appendix A for a full resource list.
Subject Coordinators role
The Subject Coordinator will,
- Take the lead in policy development and in implementing the QCA
Geography schemes of work, which ensure progression and continuity.
- Support colleagues in this development of detailed work plans, their
implementation of the scheme of work and in assessment and record keeping
activities.
- Monitor progress in Geography and advise the Head teacher on action
needed.
- Take responsibility for the purchase and organisation of central
resources for geography.
- Keep up to date with developments in Geography Education and
disseminate information to colleagues as appropriate.
- Promote positive geographical information in a positive way.
Health and Safety
Fieldwork is particularly important in Geography be it a day trip or
residential. When planning a visit teachers need to be aware of the school
emergency procedures for trips and the school and county policies on
visits and excursions within and outside the county.
We must:
- Relate the objectives of the trip directly to the objectives of the
unit being studied.
- Observe county guidelines.
The Geography policy will be reviewed annually by the Geography
Co-ordinator.
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