Geography

Geography is the study of places and the relationships between people and their environments.

The primary role of geography at Hawthorn Tree School is to help children to develop their knowledge and appreciation of their place in our dynamic and ever-changing world. The curriculum will help the children to develop their understanding of the Earth, its interconnected human and physical landscapes, and the processes that develop and drive these interactions. It will help to prepare children for their role as citizens of a 21st century world and provide them with the essential cultural capital to become global citizens with an awareness of current world events and the passion and confidence to do something about them. We aim to inspire the children to appreciate the beauty of their locality whilst also broadening their horizons and providing them with knowledge and experiences of landmarks, lifestyles and cultures that are not always encountered in our immediate setting.

RESILIENCE:

• It is important to us that our children believe in themselves and are both confident and resilient.
• We desire our children to believe in themselves, value each other and have an enjoyment for learning.
• We ensure that our children have high aspirations on their journey through primary school and into the future.
• We want our children to develop resilience through a curriculum which embeds knowledge, skills and generates connections with the areas of study, at school, in their local area, nationally and in the world; guaranteeing our children develop a greater cultural capital.

RESPECT:

Geography involves the study of people and places in the locality and further afield.

• It inspires in pupils a curiosity and fascination about the world and its people.
• We draw upon our well-established local and school community, to enrich the curriculum and promote mutual respect and a strong moral ethos in every child
• It enables children to access and enhance their understanding of their home, their town, and the wider community, developing their cultural capital and giving them opportunities and choices about their future and their impact as they progress though their school career and beyond.
• This will help them become successful members of modern British society, preparing them for the challenges and opportunities of the future.

DIVERSITY

• We aim that our children will leave school with a sense of awe and wonder for the Earth, a solid understanding and appreciation of the diversity of our world, and the sufficient cultural capital to thrive as global citizens moving forward.
• Hawthorn Tree School embraces children as individuals. By recognising and valuing children’s particular strengths and talents, we seek to encourage their full potential.
• We work hard to celebrate all successes, whenever and wherever they occur, no matter how big or small.
• Children are encouraged to become well rounded and sociable.

COMPASSION:

• Every opportunity is taken to ensure that wellbeing indicators are referred to and promoted within geographical teaching.
• Children are encouraged to develop a sense of responsibility and respect for the world they live in and understand how geographical processes can contribute to our safety and health (e.g., pollution, climate change).
•  A growth mind-set is promoted in all lessons and children are supported and nurtured in order to develop a positive attitude towards the subject.

INNOVATION:

• Our geography curriculum aims to provide the children with the knowledge and skills to form a clear understanding of the dynamic world that we live in.
• We provide content that is real, current, and relevant to the children, in order to help them make sense of the world around them and the geographical issues and events that arise in the news each day.
• Within each ‘topic’, opportunity will be taken to integrate cross curricular links, with English, Maths and Science at the core.
• Our curriculum has been designed carefully so that the learning intent and implementation is strategically sequenced ensuring that pupils can experience a deeper level of knowledge and experience.

• Geography provides children with the opportunity to develop and apply skills across the curriculum.

• They are provided with high-level horizontal and vertical vocabulary and taught how to use and understand this accurately in a range of contexts.
• Opportunities to develop mathematical skills are included and our children are provided with a range of contexts within which to collect data, ask questions and make links between their knowledge.

National Curriculum Statements:

Key Stage 1

Pupils should develop knowledge about the world, the United Kingdom and their locality. They should understand basic subject-specific vocabulary relating to human and physical geography and begin to use geographical skills, including first-hand observation, to enhance their locational awareness.

Pupils should be taught to:

Locational knowledge

• name and locate the world’s seven continents and five oceans
• name, locate and identify characteristics of the four countries and capital cities of the United Kingdom and its surrounding seas

Place knowledge

• understand geographical similarities and differences through studying the human and physical geography of a small area of the United Kingdom, and of a small area in a contrasting non-European country

Human and physical geography

• identify seasonal and daily weather patterns in the United Kingdom and the location of hot and cold areas of the world in relation to the Equator and the North and South Poles
• use basic geographical vocabulary to refer to:
• key physical features, including: beach, cliff, coast, forest, hill, mountain, sea, ocean, river, soil, valley, vegetation, season and weather
• key human features, including: city, town, village, factory, farm, house, office, port, harbour and shop

Geographical skills and fieldwork

• use world maps, atlases and globes to identify the United Kingdom and its countries, as well as the countries, continents and oceans studied at this key stage
• use simple compass directions (North, South, East and West) and locational and directional language [for example, near and far; left and right], to describe the location of features and routes on a map
• use aerial photographs and plan perspectives to recognise landmarks and basic human and physical features; devise a simple map; and use and construct basic symbols in a key
•  use simple fieldwork and observational skills to study the geography of their school and its grounds and the key human and physical features of its surrounding environment.

Key Stage 2

Pupils should extend their knowledge and understanding beyond the local area to include the United Kingdom and Europe, North and South America. This will include the location and characteristics of a range of the world’s most significant human and physical features. They should develop their use of geographical knowledge, understanding and skills to enhance their locational and place knowledge.

Pupils should be taught to:

Locational knowledge

•  locate the world’s countries, using maps to focus on Europe (including the location of Russia) and North and South America, concentrating on their environmental regions, key physical and human characteristics, countries, and major cities
•  name and locate counties and cities of the United Kingdom, geographical regions and their identifying human and physical characteristics, key topographical features (including hills, mountains, coasts and rivers), and land-use patterns; and understand how some of these aspects have changed over time
•  identify the position and significance of latitude, longitude, Equator, Northern Hemisphere, Southern Hemisphere, the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, Arctic and Antarctic Circle, the Prime/Greenwich Meridian and time zones (including day and night)

Place knowledge

• understand geographical similarities and differences through the study of human and physical geography of a region of the United Kingdom, a region in a European country, and a region within North or South America

Human and physical geography

• describe and understand key aspects of:
• physical geography, including: climate zones, biomes and vegetation belts, rivers, mountains, volcanoes and earthquakes, and the water cycle
• human geography, including: types of settlement and land use, economic activity including trade links, and the distribution of natural resources including energy, food, minerals and water

Geographical skills and fieldwork

• use maps, atlases, globes and digital/computer mapping to locate countries and describe features studied
•  use the eight points of a compass, four and six-figure grid references, symbols and key (including the use of Ordnance Survey maps) to build their knowledge of the United Kingdom and the wider world
•  use fieldwork to observe, measure, record and present the human and physical features in the local area using a range of methods, including sketch maps, plans and graphs, and digital technologies.

We aim to develop a secure understanding and awareness of chronology and the passing of time. We want the children to understand local, national and world events from the past which have had an impact on their lives. We do this by teaching topics carefully chosen from the National Curriculum.  We want to develop the children’s geographical vocabulary and their vocabulary related to the passing of time to ensure the appropriate use of historical terms.

Geography overview

Geography coverage