Geography

Links to school development plan

• To further develop our school curriculum, following blocking approach, including a focus on subject leadership in preparation for deep dive inspection.

Geography will be taught in 6 weeks of the school calendar when Geography becomes ‘Subject of the Week’.  These weeks have been implemented into our curriculum to provide children with quality time to spend of each of the foundation subjects.  Whilst this also is designed to help with teacher workload, it gives each class teacher time to concentrate on the ‘Subject of the Week’ thus improving their own subject knowledge in a specific year group. During these weeks, 5 hours of teaching will be dedicated to Geography as a subject. 

• To continue to refine and embed our approach to the teaching of reading and writing in the Early Years, Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2.

Opportunities for writing to showcase their learning in Geography as well as case studies. Online research also helps children to develop reading skills and regular use of non-fiction texts.

• To sustain a teaching for mastery in Maths approach in the Early Years, Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 enabling all to flourish.

Significant opportunities to study and draw maps. Locating and describing the position of a particular place on the world map and understanding scale. Understanding and calculating the local, standard, and international time zones. Apply mathematical vocabulary to describe position, direction, and movement.

• To develop and support new-to-role teacher in EYFS.

Staff will be supported to ensure effective teaching and learning of geography occurs across the school.

• To re-establish clear expectations regarding behaviour and attitudes ensuring that all in school grow and succeed.

Through effective teaching of Geography pupils will learn to develop skills and enjoy themselves as they do so.  Pupils have opportunities to support each other and act safely whilst conducting fieldwork.

Geography at St John Fisher

Intent

Place, space, location, and scale are concepts which stand at the heart of geography, and which provide fundamental organising principles. At St John Fisher, we have structured our curriculum by linking these key concepts to enquiry questions that aim to engage children in thinking like geographers.

Our curriculum is also ‘knowledge rich’ and has been carefully mapped out from the Early Years Foundation stage to Year 6 with concepts revisited and built upon. Only in this way will knowledge become embedded and ‘sticky’ and ensure that our pupils can build on what they know and understand from one year to the next.

At St John Fisher, we also ensure that children are competent in the geographical skills needed to:
- collect, analyse and communicate with a range of data gathered through experiences of fieldwork that deepen their understanding of geographical processes
- interpret a range of sources of geographical information, including maps, diagrams, globes, aerial photographs and Geographical Information Systems (GIS)
- communicate geographical information in a variety of ways, including through maps, numerical and quantitative skills and writing at length.

At St John Fisher, our principal aim is to allow our pupils to have a thorough knowledge of their own local environment and show curiosity about the wider world; enabling them to become global citizens who show a keen interest in the geography around them. 

Implementation

Our curriculum is designed around enquiry questions that set up issues which can be unpacked, researched, and discussed. An example being 'Should people be allowed to destroy the Amazon rainforest?’. Children are given opportunities to reflect on their own learning through debates, discussions and writing around these questions at the end of each unit.

Geography learning begins in the Foundation Stage where pupils are taught about their personal geography. They develop observational skills and join in with discussions about their immediate environment. Children are introduced to key geographical vocabulary that is built upon as they progress though the school

In KS1, children develop knowledge about the world, the United Kingdom, and their locality. They understand basic subject-specific vocabulary relating to human and physical geography such as the weather and begin to use geographical skills and fieldwork, including first-hand observation, to enhance their locational awareness. We follow up work on weather and discuss scale, by locating hot and cold places in the world in relation to the Poles and Equator.

In KS2, children develop a deeper understanding of the components of Geography such global patterns of climate and vegetation, as well as patterns of settlement and land.  Children also focus on the main characteristics of a range of the world’s most significant human and physical features. Children in upper KS2 are challenged to think about the environment and sustainability. Learning is linked to global citizen ship and children are encouraged to think about their own impact on the planet.

Geography in Year 3 

All children have access to a variety of data such as digimaps, statistics, graphs, pictures and aerial photographs and atlases. 

Children are given the oportunity to work together to problem solve, such as using resources to match the physical features to the correct country.

Children are given the opportunity to reflect on their own learning at the end of a unit

Impact

By revisiting geographical concepts children will deepen their understanding of the world and be able to compare their local, immediate environment with places around the world.

By building pupils’ knowledge of locations, or ‘where’s where’, children will build their own identity and sense of place. Pupils will develop an appreciation of distance and scale.

Children will gain an appreciation of the human and physical environment and how as responsible citizens; we all need to preserve and care for the planet for future generations.  

Our enquiry-based learning in geography will support the development of pupils’ disciplinary knowledge and increases pupils’ capacity to recognise and ask geographical questions, to critique sources and reflect on what they have learned, as well as the methods used.

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