Scholes (Holmfirth) Junior and Infants Geography Curriculum Statement
Staff Responsible: Mrs L. McKay
This document outlines the purpose, nature and management of the teaching and learning of geography in our school. It reflects the views of all the current teaching staff and was drawn up as part of whole-staff INSET training. It has the full agreement of all subject leaders. The implementation of the subject is the responsibility of all staff in school and will be monitored by the SLT and subject leaders An action plan is linked to this curriculum area in order to develop the subject within our changing school.
The Nature of Geography
“I wish the world was twice as big – and half of it was still unexplored”
Sir David Attenborough“Geography is a living, breathing subject, constantly adapting itself to change. It is dynamic and relevant. Geography is a great adventure with a purpose”
Michael PalinGeography is challenging, motivating, topical and fun. In our diverse society children need, more than ever before, to develop tolerance and understand of other people, cultures and environments. It makes a major contribution to children's physical, intellectual, social and emotional development. Geography is concerned with pupils learning about their own locality whilst gaining a greater understanding of the world beyond their own environment. With the subject rooted in first hand experience, we encourage pupils to be inspired to find out more about our wonderful school grounds, Scholes and its surrounding areas through practical activities and fieldwork, as well as investigating other places within the UK, Europe and the continents in the world.
Developing geographical skills is essential as children live in a world that is wide open to them. With opportunities to travel and work in different cities and countries across the world, pupils need to use efficiently maps, charts and other geographical data.
The teaching of Geography would be difficult without acknowledging the future of our planet. The geography curriculum places great importance on the interaction between the physical and the human environment. Many areas of study give opportunities to make children aware of these effects upon their surroundings, their own responsibilities and how they can contribute to improving the environment, however small that contribution might be.
Intent
The national curriculum for geography aims to ensure that all pupils:
develop geographic knowledge and conceptual understanding through the specific disciplines of mapwork, locational knowledge, place knowledge, human and physical geography.
develop understanding of the nature, processes and methods of geography through different types of geographic enquiries that help them to answer questions about the world around them
Through our CLEAR intent, we ensure that learning is planned thoroughly around the distinct needs of children at Scholes School.
Communicative
We aspire for our children to be able to articulate their Geographical thinking. In Geography, lessons are driven through the development of oracy skills and their expansion and use of Geographical vocabulary. Through this they show good knowledge and conceptual understanding.
This is demonstrated through:
Questioning by teachers and pupils
Partner and group discussions
Explaining and evaluating through verbal and written work
Vocabulary used by teachers and pupils
In Geography, we ensure that pupils reflect back on, and have a good understanding of geographical vocabulary, taught in previous year groups within every unit. This ensures that pupils have a solid vocabulary and knowledge base on which to build. Pupils can then progress by learning and applying the new vocabulary from within the unit, whilst using the previously gained knowledge also.
Local
At Scholes, we draw upon the richness of our local area. Where possible, we use the local area for Geography topics and visits.
In Reception, pupils visit a local farm to see animals and where they live.
In Year 1, our school grounds and local area are explored through the topic ‘Where is Scholes school?’
In Year 3, children recognise Scholes is part of the County of Yorkshire
In Year 4, pupils visit a stream relating to their river topic and map how it flows from Scholes to the sea.
In Year 5, pupils take part in a comparative study between Scholes and Peru.
In Year 6, pupils take part in a comparative study between Scholes and a region of Africa.
Enriched
Our Geography curriculum provides children with new and exciting opportunities and experiences that they would not necessarily have access to away from school. These opportunities allow the children to deepen and apply their geographical knowledge in real life contexts. For example, Year 2 have a walk around the local area and Year 5 walk to local residential Cliff House.
We also participate in field trips throughout school where children are able to visit their local area and areas further afield.
Ambitious
At Scholes all areas of our Geography curriculum are ambitious for all children. The Geography curriculum is adapted, designed and developed to meet the needs of pupils with SEND, developing their knowledge, skills and abilities to apply what they know and can do with increasing fluency and independence. Work is differentiated as appropriate to pupils’ needs, and is designed to be challenging for all children, but support is there for them to experience success.
We use technology to be able to transport children to places and use virtual mapping to explore all areas of the world. Topics are linked to texts to ensure they are engaging and informative.
Remembered
Geography show progression across all year groups ensuring that areas are revisited but also moving on and developing children’s knowledge further. For example, we link lesson starters to the previous lessons learning. This allowing for a recap of the knowledge and vocabulary taught previously and also allowing children to connect the learning of each block together. At the beginning and end of each unit, pupils take part in an
assessment lesson based on the knowledge of the specific geographical learning. This allows the teacher to see what has been remembered by pupils from previous units and what is new learning. It is useful to reflect back on in the planning of other units. All planning is shared in school, so that subsequent teachers can use this to inform their geography planning where necessary.
Key questions on planning are also used throughout lessons, to check what pupils have remembered. Teachers can adapt their teaching input and explanations to ensure that misconceptions are corrected throughout lessons.
Implementation
Geography coverage is developed within Key Stages with team responsible for the long term planning and individual class teachers responsible for planning and delivery of medium and short term planning each year. Geography will be taught as a focus according to curriculum themes across the year groups as both depth studies and discrete lessons.
Geography skills are threaded within and across all year groups building on last year’s learning. This includes developing locational knowledge through the use of a wide range of maps, atlases and globes across both geography and other subjects where relevant.
Geography provides the children with the opportunity to reflect and evaluate about the place they live and grasp an understanding of the importance of British values in the immediate locality and further afield.
See our EYFS policy for information on how our early years curriculum is delivered.
Continuity and Progression
Key Stage long term planning meetings ensure there is continuity, coverage and progression in geography across each key stage. These meetings have focused on progression of both skills and knowledge. The class teacher, with key stage partners, will ensure that the statutory objectives from the National Curriculum have been covered. The subject leader ensures there is clarity within the curriculum across school. This is then built into the long-term plan for school. The subject leader will ensure that all objectives have been taught by the end of each key stage as well taking an overall monitoring role to look for continuity and progression.
Cross Curricular Links
Where possible, links are made between geography and other curriculum areas to create a thematic approach. This planning is reviewed annually to accommodate local and national topical themes or events eg Olympics. In geography, the local context is linked closely with the history curriculum, in particular, local history studies. Scholes has a rich heritage, with sites around the village that provide first hand opportunity for field studies. This, along with secondary resources, such as photographs, will help develop children’s geographical and cultural understanding of the place they live.
There are strong links to Science, for example, Year 4 study the water cycle and this is incorporated into the thematic study ‘Mountains and Rivers’; In the Year 5 ‘Vikings’ history unit there are links made to geography through map work of invasions.
Recording and Assessment
Children work in topic books to record geography learning. Evidence may be in the form of written work, photos or group projects. Work may reflect more than one curriculum area, for example local maps with keys to show locations of living organisms.
Teachers are encouraged to promote exploration and discovery within geography and to steer away from ‘standard formats’ of recording maybe using drama to create a video or technology to create a podcast. Whilst covering all the statutory requirements of the curriculum, they allow encourage more freedom for pupil’s ideas.
There is no formal written summative assessment requirement for geography at Scholes School. Teachers plan their geography lessons within the objectives from the 2014 National Curriculum. Teachers then record an overall teacher assessment at the end of each term on SONAR. Teachers are encouraged to access SONAR as they see appropriate as so the task does not become too onerous.
Monitoring
As Geography forms part of the school’s new long term plan, curriculum monitoring will be based on the implementation of this through planning and book scrutiny with the intention of looking at skills as well as knowledge progression at the end of the year. Pupil voice will also be used to gain an understanding of children’s view of geography across school.
Resources
Maps, atlases, globes – all centrally located Local History photographs – on server/ History curriculum folder. Ipads/Laptops – research and google maps
Inclusion
Teachers set high expectations for all pupils. They will use appropriate assessment to plan challenging work for all groups, including:
• More able pupils
• Pupils with low prior attainment
• Pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds
• Pupils with SEN
• Pupils with English as an additional language (EAL)
Teachers will plan lessons so that pupils with SEN and/or disabilities can study geography, wherever possible, and ensure that there are no barriers to every pupil achieving.
Teachers will also take account of the needs of pupils whose first language is not English. Lessons will be planned so that teaching opportunities help pupils to develop their English, and to support pupils to take part in all subjects.
Further information can be found in our statement of equality information and objectives, and in our SEN policy and information report.
Health and Safety
Risk assessments to be completed for any field visits.