Geography
Introduction
“Without Geography- you’re nowhere.” –Author Unknown
Elveden C of E Primary Academy is committed to providing all children with high quality educational experiences and learning opportunities to engage in Geography. Our curriculum is determined and underpinned by the school’s Christian vision, mission statement, physical and mental wellbeing and Building Learning Power.
Intent
Geography is an essential part of the curriculum, it provides a means of exploring, appreciating and understanding the world in which we live and how it has evolved. Geography explores the relationship between the Earth and its people through the study of place, space and environment. It contributes to the cultural, social, spiritual and moral life of children as they acquire knowledge of a range of different cultures and traditions, and learn tolerance and understanding of other people and environments. Geography at Elveden C of E Primary Academy extends far beyond the walls of the classroom. Our aim is to provide the children with a breadth of memorable experiences, to shape our pupils into curious and considerate global citizens. We also intend for the children to develop an in depth knowledge of our community and locality. We want the children to appreciate and respect the wonderful world that the Lord has made us and encourage stewardship of their surroundings. By the time our students leave us, they will be well equipped with the skills and the knowledge to explore the world around them and have a greater understanding of their planet. We intend to promote children’s interest and understanding about diverse places, people, resources and natural and human environments, together with a deep understanding of the Earth’s key physical and human processes.
The aims of Geography are;
~ Developing a sense of place.
~ Developing skills in investigating the physical and human features of the pupils’ surroundings.
~ Increasing pupils’ knowledge and understanding of the different communities and cultures within Elveden C of E Academy, their locality and the world and understanding how these all relate to one another.
~ Developing pupils’ competence in specific geographical skills (such as use of maps, secondary sources, ICT, aerial photographs, data logging equipment and considering evidence from a range of sources).
~Develop a sense of responsibility and respect for our school grounds, earth, its people and its resources.
~ Developing an awareness that the world extends beyond the pupil’s own environment.
Wherever possible we aim to link these to our school values, respect, trust, forgiveness and hope.
Implementation
At Elveden C of E Primary Academy, our geography curriculum follows the National Curriculum and provides children with an array of enriching opportunities, with a strong focus on outdoor learning. Our children experience a wide range of school trips, including our popular residential trip to Kingswood and a number of local area visits to develop the children’s awareness of their locality. In lessons, children develop their geographical enquiry skills though exploring physical environments, human interactions and how the two areas intertwine with each other. Geography curriculum planning at Elveden C of E Academy is taught through a topic approach and is integrated within English and Maths. Our curriculum is carefully planned over a two year cycle in KS1 and KS2, to engage and excite all our learners. Our Knowledge and Skills progression mapping sets out the skills and themes covered each term for each key stage. These plans define what we will teach and ensure an appropriate balance and distribution of work across each term. The school uses a variety of teaching and learning styles in geography lessons. Our principal aim is to develop the children’s knowledge, skills and understanding in geography and we use a variety of teaching and learning styles in our geography lessons. We believe in whole-class teaching methods and combine these with enquiry-based research activities. We believe children learn best when:
- They explore our local area, through walks, visits and fieldwork, including places of interest and the use of using digi maps.
- They visit a variety of different physical environments, including the seaside (Southwold), forests and rivers.
- They have opportunities to compare life in local village (Elveden) and life in London
- They see nationally recognised landmarks in real life (eg. Buckingham Palace, Westminster or the Tower of London)
- They talk to people who have lived and grown-up in different parts of the world (guest speakers, zoom)
- They explore the culture of different countries through in-school themed days, including tasting food from around the world
We recognise the fact that we have children of differing ability in all our classes, and so we provide suitable learning opportunities for all children by matching the challenge of the task to the ability of the child. We achieve this through a range of strategies which are differentiated by task, expected outcome and/or support from peers or adults.
Impact
We use a range of strategies to assess what skills and knowledge the children have attained each term including the following:
- Book looks
- Pupil voice
- Regular feedback each lesson
- Staff CPD
At Elveden C of E Academy assessment is an integral part of the teaching process. Assessment is used to inform planning and to facilitate differentiation. The assessment of children’s work is on-going to ensure that understanding is being achieved and that progress is being made. Feedback is given to the children as soon as possible, and marking work will be guided by the school’s Marking Policy. Attainment is assessed summatively at the end of each unit of work against the requirements of the National Curriculum. This is reported to the next teacher. Pupil’s achievements in the subject are reported to parents on the end of year report.