Geography

Curriculum Leader: Katie Monckton

Mrs Monckton is our Geography Leader and is responsible for this curriculum area. This means ensuring we teach an ambitious curriculum, supporting our teachers to implement our curriculum through high-quality lessons and checking that lessons are helping our children to know more, remember more and do more.

Mission Statement and Tagline:
At Chiltern Primary School, our mission is to make learning irresistible. We believe that through a positive and engaging educational experience, we can empower our students to reach their full potential and become lifelong learners. Our tagline, "Making Learning Irresistible," encapsulates our commitment to providing a stimulating and enriching environment where every child can thrive.
 

Priority on Positive Relationships:
At Chiltern Primary School, we prioritize the development of positive relationships between our students, teachers, and the wider school community. By fostering an atmosphere of mutual respect, trust, and understanding, we create a harmonious learning environment where students feel safe, supported, and motivated to actively participate in their education. We believe that a positive and inclusive classroom culture is essential for effective teaching and learning to take place.
 

Championing Each and Every Child:
We firmly believe that every child at Chiltern Primary School is unique and possesses their own talents, strengths, and abilities. We are committed to providing a personalized approach to education that recognises and celebrates the individuality of each student. By implementing differentiated instruction and targeted support, we ensure that every child receives the necessary guidance and encouragement to reach their full potential in Geography, as well as all other areas of the curriculum.
 

Using Curriculum Maestro by Cornerstones:
At Chiltern Primary School, we utilize 'Curriculum Maestro,' a comprehensive program developed by Cornerstones, to deliver high-quality Geography lessons that cover the breadth of the national curriculum. Designed to engage and inspire students, Curriculum Maestro provides a wealth of resources, including lesson plans, worksheets, and interactive activities, ensuring that our teaching and learning in Geography are informative, stimulating, and enjoyable.
 

Our Approach to Geography Education:
Geography at Chiltern Primary School aims to ignite curiosity about the world and develop a deep understanding of diverse cultures, environments, and global issues. We strive to equip our students with the knowledge, skills, and values necessary to become responsible global citizens. Our approach to teaching and learning in Geography revolves around the following principles:

1. Active and Practical Learning: We believe that Geography is best learned through active exploration and hands-on experiences. Our students engage in fieldwork, map reading, data analysis, and critical thinking activities, enabling them to develop a sense of place and spatial awareness.

2. Cross-Curricular Connections: We recognize the interconnectedness of subjects within the curriculum and actively seek opportunities to integrate Geography with other disciplines. By making links to History, Science, Mathematics, and English, we enable our students to develop a holistic understanding of the world around them.

3. Use of Technology: Technology plays a significant role in our Geography lessons. We employ a range of digital resources, including interactive maps, online research tools, and Geographic Information Systems (GIS), to enhance students' geographical investigations and expand their knowledge beyond the classroom.

4. Global Perspective: In a rapidly changing world, it is essential for our students to develop a global perspective. We explore sustainability, climate change, cultural diversity, and social justice issues, encouraging our students to think critically and make informed decisions as responsible global citizens.

5. Assessment and Progress Tracking: Assessments in Geography inform our teaching and help monitor students' progress. We use a range of assessment strategies including peer assessments, self-reflection, quizzes, and projects to evaluate student understanding and provide targeted feedback that supports future growth and development.
    

In conclusion, at Chiltern Primary School, our approach to teaching and learning Geography is rooted in creating an engaging and inclusive environment that fosters a love for learning. By nurturing positive relationships, championing each and every child, and utilising the comprehensive resources provided by Curriculum Maestro, we strive to develop students' geographical knowledge, skills, and understanding, enabling them to navigate the world with confidence and curiosity.

Purpose of study

A high-quality geography education should inspire in pupils a curiosity and fascination about the world and its people that will remain with them for the rest of their lives. Teaching should equip pupils with knowledge about diverse places, people, resources and natural and human environments, together with a deep understanding of the Earth’s key physical and human processes. 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. Geographical knowledge, understanding and skills provide the frameworks and approaches that explain how the Earth’s features at different scales are shaped, interconnected and change over time.

Aims

The national curriculum for geography aims to ensure that all pupils:

• develop contextual knowledge of the location of globally significant places – both terrestrial and marine – including their defining physical and human characteristics and how these provide a geographical context for understanding the actions of processes
• understand the processes that give rise to key physical and human geographical features of the world, how these are interdependent and how they bring about spatial variation and change over time
• 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.

Units of work

Year 1 Autumn

Our Wonderful World

This essential skills and knowledge project teaches children about physical and human features, maps, cardinal compass points, and positional and directional language. They learn about the equator, hemispheres and continents and are introduced to the countries, capital cities and settlements of the United Kingdom. The children carry out simple fieldwork to find out about local physical and human features.

Year 1 Spring

Bright Lights, Big City

This project teaches children about the physical and human characteristics of the United Kingdom, including a detailed exploration of the characteristics and features of the capital city, London.

Year 2 Autumn

Let's Explore the World

This essential skills and knowledge project teaches children about atlases, maps and cardinal compass points. They learn about the characteristics of the four countries of the United Kingdom and find out why there are hot, temperate and cold places around the world. They also compare England to Somalia. Children carry out fieldwork, collecting primary data in their locality to answer geographical questions.

Year 2 Spring

Coastline

This project teaches children about the physical and human features of coastal regions across the United Kingdom, including a detailed exploration of the coastal town of Whitby, in Yorkshire.

Year 3 Autumn

One Planet, Our World

This essential skills and knowledge project teaches children to locate countries and cities, and use grid references, compass points and latitude and longitude. They learn about the layers of the Earth and plate tectonics and discover the five major climate zones. They learn about significant places in the United Kingdom and carry out fieldwork to discover how land is used in the locality.

Year 3 Spring

Rocks, Relics and Rumbles

This project teaches children about the features and characteristics of Earth's layers, including a detailed exploration of volcanic, tectonic and seismic activity.

Year 4 Autumn

Interconnected World

This essential skills and knowledge project teaches children about compass points and four and six-figure grid references. They learn about the tropics and the countries, climates and culture of North and South America. Children identify physical features in the United Kingdom and learn about the National Rail and canal networks. They conduct an enquiry to prove a hypothesis, gathering data from maps and surveys before drawing conclusions.

Year 4 Spring

Misty Mountain, Winding River

This project teaches children about the characteristics and features of rivers and mountain ranges around the world, including a detailed exploration of the ecosystems and processes that shape them and the land around them.

Year 5 Autumn

Investigating Our World

This essential skills and knowledge project teaches children about locating map features using a range of methods. They learn about the Prime Meridian, Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), and worldwide time zones and study interconnected climate zones, vegetation belts and biomes. Children learn about human geography and capital cities worldwide before looking at the UK motorway network and settlements. They carry out an enquiry to identify local settlement types.

Year 5 Spring

Sow, Grow and Farm

This project teaches children about the features and characteristics of land use in agricultural regions across the world, including a detailed exploration of significant environmental areas.

Year 6 Autumn

Our Changing World

This essential skills and knowledge project revises the features of Earth, time zones and lines of latitude and longitude to pinpoint places on a map. Children find out more about map scales, grid references, contour lines and map symbols. They learn about climate change and the importance of global trade. Children analyse data and carry out fieldwork to find out about local road safety. They study patterns of human settlements and carry out an enquiry to describe local settlement patterns.

Year 6 Spring

Frozen Kingdoms

This project teaches children about the characteristics and features of polar regions, including the North and South Poles, and includes a detailed exploration of the environmental factors that shape and influence them.