Geography

Our curiosity for the world around us begins at an early age. Geography allows us to understand and explore the ‘what’, the ‘where’ and the ‘how’ of our world; giving us the knowledge we need to understand where, how and why events occur, their impacts on the environment and how they have then influenced people’s lives in the past, the present and the potential future. 

Through studying Geography, pupils make sense of the world and learn how events from both their own localities and the wider world can impact them directly and indirectly. They can understand, describe and appreciate the world whilst also being able to discuss and debate issues on a local, national and global scale. 

Throughout their journey in geographical enquiry, pupils will build their: 

1. Deep knowledge of locations, places and geographical landscapes across the world 
2. Understanding of the conditions, processes and interactions that explain features, patterns and changes over time and space 
3. Application of skills in observing, collecting, analysing, evaluating and communicating geographical information 

Pupils will learn the location of places and regions across the globe and the key features and characteristics of these places. Through an understanding of aspects of both human and physical geography, pupils will discover how places across the globe are both similar and different and how they are changing. They will identify patterns in human and physical geography and understand the links between places, people and environments. Pupils will learn that human and physical geography are intertwined through a concept known as environmental geography. Human, physical and environmental geography will be studied at all scales, from localised regions to the wider world. As pupils develop their geographical knowledge and understanding, they will also develop their geographical skills: using maps, atlases and globes as well as using directional language, a compass and understanding grid references and keys.

Through Key Stage 2, pupils develop their understanding of locations, places, processes and people. 

In Lower Key Stage 2, they use their knowledge of the UK to understand settlements and land use before exploring Europe, North and South America. The exploration of these continents includes identifying the location of and characteristics of a range of the most significant human and physical features as well as the opportunity to explore three places in more depth and compare them to their own locality. Pupils also learn about climate zones, biomes, rivers and rainforests. 

In Upper Key Stage 2, pupils explore Asia before focussing once again on the wider world. They explore the human and physical characteristics of Asia and learn about mountains and natural disasters such as volcanoes and earthquakes. A case study of a natural disaster allows pupils to see the impact on both a place and the people within it. When looking at the world, pupils consider the global challenges faced in the movement of people, growing populations, the distribution of natural resources, fair trade and the impact of climate change. They will also discover what they can learn from different maps of the world and draw their own maps based on fieldwork within their own locality.