Geography

Intent

Through teaching Geography in our school, we intend to inspire pupils with a curiosity and fascination about the world and its people that will remain with them for the rest of their lives.

We believe that teaching should equip pupils with knowledge about diverse places, people, resources and both natural and human environments, together with an understanding of the Earth’s key physical and human processes. It is fundamental in a language rich curriculum, that children are introduced to, and expected to use, the correct and appropriate geographical vocabulary for their stage of development.

As pupils progress, their growing knowledge about the world should help them to deepen their understanding of the interaction between physical and human processes, and of the formation and use of landscapes and environments.

We want our children to gain confidence and practical experiences of geographical knowledge, understanding and skills that explain how the Earth’s features at different scales are shaped, interconnected and change over time, including the positive contributions that they could make as informed global citizens.

Implementation

We teach to a 2- year curriculum cycle which has been designed to ensure that children receive the breadth of learning required by the National Curriculum and that there is progression and development of their knowledge, understanding and skills over time, through each phase. Each Geography unit is linked to the over-arching curriculum concept for that term, where possible and makes cross curricular links with learning in other subjects.

• Geography is rotated with History on a half termly basis and taught weekly for all KS1 and KS2 classes. We teach under a concept-based curriculum which encourages children to make links across the subjects and finding key conceptual themes across Geography. Where possible, the Units are linked to the terms overarching curriculum concept.

Through the Geography curriculum at Soho Parish, children have the opportunity to investigate and interpret a range of geographical locations, in Britain and across the wider world, and to be able to communicate their findings geographically.

We develop children with the following essential characteristics to help them become geographers:

• Knowledge of where places are and what they are like, both in Britain and the wider world;
• Understanding of the ways in which places are interdependent and interconnected;
• An extensive base of geographical knowledge and vocabulary;
• Fluency in complex, geographical enquiry and the ability to apply questioning skills, as well as effective presentation techniques;
• The ability to reach clear conclusions and explain their findings;
• Fieldwork skills, at each Key Stage, as well as other geographical aptitudes and techniques;
• The ability to express well-balanced opinions, rooted in very good knowledge and understanding about current issues in society and the environment;
• A genuine interest in the subject and a real sense of curiosity about the world and the people who live here;
• Awareness of industries that incorporate geography in order to develop interests and passions which they can take further.

We regularly celebrate their achievements through displays in class, exhibitions, class assemblies and key stage productions.

Impact

Assessment of children's learning in Geography is achieved through the ongoing monitoring of children's understanding, knowledge and skills by the class teacher, in line with the National Curriculum expectations of attainment.

Achievement in Geography is also monitored by the subject leader throughout the year in the form of book monitoring, looking at outcomes, lesson observations and planning reviews.

Pupil Voice is used to give an opportunity to evaluate if our teaching is having/have had an impact on learning and outcomes.