Geography
Intent
Geography is the study of places and the relationships between people and their environments. Geographers are interested in Earth's physical features such as mountains, deserts, rivers and oceans. They are also interested in the ways that people affect and are affected by the natural world.
Key geographical skills including observation and recording are developed and built upon with a opportunities to conduct field work in every year group.
Implementation
Our knowledge of Geography begins in EYFS, with children exploring the nursery and school environment and maps associated with stories and the wider world.
Throughout KS1, the children begin to understand and define the meaning of Geography. They are introduced to an increasing range of maps, covering the UK to learn the four countries and their capital cities and the globe, to introduce the continents and oceans. Children are introduced to the four cardinal compass points in Year 1, and this information is consolidated and practiced in Year 2. the children are encouraged to compare contrasting environments, for example London and Kuala Lumpur. The children also begin to understand both where and why the hot and cold places in the world are found at the poles and the equator. Field work is undertaken in both the local area and at a coastal location, as the children begin to identify and name physical features of the landscape.
As the children move into KS2, they will begin to explore our planet in greater detail learning about how the Earth was made, geological timescales, volcanoes and earthquakes. In addition the children will also build on their existing mapping skills, using first 4-figure and later 6-figure grid reference, latitude and longitude and intercardinal compass points.
In Year 4, the children delve deeper into changing landscapes, considering the impact of rivers and the water cycle. In addition, they will further their knowledge of maps by understanding contour lines and how they relate to the landscape around us. Finally, the children will learn about significant mountains and mountain ranges, including their location and mountain classification.
In Year 5, the focus is on land use and agriculture in the UK. The children will develop their knowledge of climate zones, biomes and the concept of food miles.
In Year 6, the children learn about daylight hours with a focus on the Artic. They will further their understanding of physical features and continue to learn about the challenges presented by climate change. In addition, the children will continue to broaden their knowledge and understanding of people and communities around the world. Finally, they will look for, and identify , geographical patterns on a range of scales applying all their knowledge and skills that they have developed throughout their primary school career.
Throughout KS2, the children will continue to undertake fieldwork on a regular basis, building on their observational and recording skills to include data collection, presentation and interpretation.
Impact
We have seen our children grow in confidence as they progress through the school, making links with and building upon knowledge gained in previous years. Their observations and geographical thinking is challenged and built upon as fieldwork expectations are gradually expanded, and they leave with a good understanding of not only the local area, but also the country and wider world.
Updated March 2023
| Autumn 1 | Autumn 2 | Spring 1 | Spring 2 | Summer 1 | Summer 2 | |
| Nursery | Exploring the nursery and school environment - introduction to maps. | Maps in stories | Conducting simple field work | Map making | seasonal changes. Sketch maps and introduction to digital maps. | Explore world maps and globes. Use world maps and identify UK. Positional language. |
| Reception | Sketch maps Exploring physical features world maps and globes. Positional language. | Further develop positional language | Field work. Use photos to see how school has changed over time. | Collect data and create maps. | Build knowledge of world wide locations. | Locate seas and oceans. |
| Year 1 | Explore meaning of Geography. Introduced to maps, globes, online mapping tools and world maps. Positional and directional language, main compass points. Learn names and position of continents and oceans. Countries and capital cities of the UK. Human and physical features. | Revisit map of UK. Consolidate understanding of physical features. Explore how people live and work in cities. Explore characteristics of London. Significant monuments, buildings and bridges. Compare London with Kuala Lumpar. | Make maps of school grounds. | |||
| Year 2 | Use an atla and read world maps. Revisit cardinal compass points. Use a key with maps. Collect and interpret data.Learn more about the four countries of the UK and compare England to Somalia. | Revisit map of UK, seas and oceans. Revisit using keys. | Physical and human features of coastal regions across the UK. | |||
| Year 3 | Analyse maps to locate countries. Use four figure grid references. Human and physical features.Analyse data and draw conclusions. Name and describe Earth's layers. Locate and name European countries and cities. Deepen knowledge of UK. Investigate locality for land use. | Significant landmarks | Volcanoes and Earthquakes Structure and characteristics of Earth's layers. Explore rocks and tectonics. Volcanoes. Latitude and longitude.Introduced to earthquakes – causes and consequences. Revisit cardinal, intercardinal compass points. | revision | ||
| Year 4 | Interconnected world Revisit cardinal and intercardinal compass points. Revise knowledge of four figure grid reference. Use eastings and northings. Learn about the Tropic of Cancer and Capricorn. Learn names of north and south American countries. Build on understanding of climate zones. North and South American culture. Identify physical features of the UK: mountains, rivers, lakes and forests. Properties of soil. Learn about National rail network and canal networks. Renewable and non renewable energy. Develop an enquiry to prove or disprove a hypothesis. Interpret data.
| Misty Mountain, Winding River Focus on rivers and mountains. River visit – taking samples and measurements. Record observations. Aerial perspective of River Trent. Develop understanding of how landscapes can change – rivers – erosion, transportation and deposition. Locate world rivers and conduct research into one. Introduced to geographical features of water cycle. Carry out a detailed case study of a flooding. Learn about mountains and mountain types. Classify and sort. Introduced to topography and contour lines. Build on prior knowledge of UK. | Revision | |||
| Year 5 | Investigating our world Study ordnance survey maps:key, compass directions and scale. Revisit topography and contour lines. Revise knowledge of 6 figure grid reference. Introduced to Prime, Greenwich, meridian. Learn about time zones. Recap and deepen knowledge of climate zones – introduced to vegetation belts and biomes. Human geography of the continents. Locate capital cities around the world. Learn about sustainability. Deepen knowledge of location. Study UK motorway network. Develop understanding of settlements. Carry out fieldwork enquiry about settlements. | Sow, Grow and Farm Revisit land use in UK focusing on agricultural purposes. Locate allotments. Identify location of different types of farming. Find out which factors influence farming. Revisit OS maps. Detailed case study of potato farming on Jersey. Climate zones. Revisit North and South America to identify environmental regions and biomes. Learn about citrus farming in California and compare with coffee growing in Peru. Investigate food miles. Explore methods of transportation. | ||||
| Year 6 | Our Changing World Revise features of the earth. Introduced to Arctic and Antarctic circles. Consolidate knowledge of time zones and map skills. Measure distances on a map. Learn about global warming and climate change. Learn about world wide transportation, resource management and importance of sustainability. Analyse data from road traffic accident figures. Carry out field work. Study patterns of human settlements.
| Frozen Kingdoms Revisit learning about features of the earth. Learn about Arctic and Antarctic regions using geographical information texts, maps and data. Learn about daylight hours. Focus on Arctic circle. Further understanding of physical features. Continue to learn about climate change. Look at natural resources and the problems and challenges of human demands on these resources. People and communities of the region. Revisit term tourism and explore positive and negative effects of this. | Maafa Revisit Geographical understanding of Africa. Learn about its countries, resources, populations, climates and physical features.
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