Geography

Intent – What is the purpose of our Geography curriculum?

At Tranmere Park Primary, we believe that Geography is a fundamental part of our curriculum and opens the children’s minds to a world that extends far beyond our school; we are global citizens. We aim to foster travel aspirations as well as a moral obligation to make a positive contribution to the world as a life-long geographer. We intend to:   –          Ignite a curiosity and a fascination about the world. –          Develop the children’s understanding of the differences between cultures, diverse places, natural/human environments, people, socio-economic backgrounds and the Earth’s key physical and human processes. –          Know and understand the key concepts of ‘place’, ‘environment (impact)’, ‘space and scale.’ –          Equip pupils with the skills of critical thinking. They will understand the disciplinary knowledge of a geographer (identify, explain and extrapolate patterns; collect, observe, analyse and communicate; construct spatial representations and interpret maps, aerial photographs, globes, satellite images and Geographical Information Systems.)

In summary, our curriculum supports pupils understanding that Geography is intrinsic to our daily lives. The underlying imperative is to ensure that our children have access to a full curriculum which enables them to achieve confidence and competence in Geography.

Our Children will:

Our Teachers will:

• Largely progress through the curriculum at the same pace and differentiation will be achieved by emphasising a deep knowledge through individual support and intervention. • Be intrinsically motivated – they are eager to build on their existing knowledge, skills and understanding. • Ask questions and listen to their peers when sharing ideas. • Be resilient to mistakes and persevere when faced with a challenge. • Achieve standards in Geography that meet the national expectations at each key developmental phase. • Possess highly positive attitudes towards the subject and will be aspirational in their goals. • Use their moral compass to form their own view of the world and, as the curriculum develops, understand that the distribution of natural resources such as energy, food, minerals and water affects where and how people live.

• Provide a progressive and challenging curriculum which is sequenced to ensure that new and personalised knowledge is taught in each session. • Identify gaps in understanding and swiftly overcome these with precise teaching. • Provide the children with a rich curriculum of carefully crafted lessons that ensures time for practise and consolidation. • Utilise precise questioning to test conceptual and procedural knowledge and assess pupils regularly to identify gaps in the understanding of those in their care. • Provide opportunities for our children to: think logically, develop quick recall, structure their work in a systematic way, pursue a line of enquiry and to work collaboratively thus fostering an awareness of and an enthusiasm for Geography beyond the classroom. • Weave Geography through our curriculum so that purposeful links are made across all subjects.

 

Implementation – How do we do it?

The Learning Journey

Geography is taught through topic so that the children can achieve depth in their learning and so that we meet the needs of the individual learner. Our lessons include: practical situations and first-hand experiences, are often enhanced by educational visits and visitors from the local community; they use the school grounds and the outside classroom where appropriate; optimise ICT; a variety of grouping structures; and varying levels of adult support and intervention. Existing knowledge is checked at the beginning of each topic, ensuring that teaching is informed by the children’s starting points. At the end of each topic, key knowledge is reviewed by the children and the teacher ensures time for consolidation.

Our curriculum covers: 

Locational Knowledge: In Key Stage 1, they are introduction to the world’s 7 continents and 5 oceans. This continues in Key Stage 2 with a more detailed analysis of the British Isles, Europe and the wider world including North and South America, Africa, Asia and Oceania.

Place Knowledge: Pupils in Key Stage 1 compare the 4 countries of the UK, compare hot and cold places in relation to the North and South Pole and the Equator. In Key Stage 2 pupils compare a region in the UK to a region in Europe, North or South America, Africa or Asia.

Human & Physical Geography: Key Stage 1 pupils identify patterns and changes within the seasons. They identify the hot and cold areas of the world and the differences between cities, towns and villages.
In Key Stage 2, pupils begin to understand why and how early settlements were formed in Britain. Pupils will describe and understand the key aspects of coasts and rivers, with links to Science and the water cycle. Pupils will also look at plate tectonics in relation to earthquakes and volcanoes. There will also be a study into eco power, exploring the use of energy and the distribution of resources such as Fair Trade.

Geographical Skills and Fieldwork: Throughout KS1 and KS2 pupils continuously revisit map reading, building from simple maps with a key in KS1 through to reading up to a 6 figure grid references by the end of KS2. Pupils in KS1 are introduced to the 4 compass points and they use these to navigate around the local area. In Key Stage 2 pupils use fieldwork to observe, measure and record human and physical features using sketch maps, graphs and digital technologies.

Assessment

• Short-term assessments aim to assess the children’s learning informally on a lesson by lesson basis and are key to our curriculum. These could include observations of groups, analysis of whole class feedback, the marking of work or short tests, either in written or oral form.
• Medium- term assessments are completed at the end of a term and the class teacher keeps a highlighted grid, to show progress within the age bands (EYFS do this utilising ‘Development Matters.’) These grids are kept in the assessment folders within classrooms.
• Long-term assessments assess our children against national expectations. These are also used to provide extra information about individual children’s attainment and progress so that the teacher can report to the next teacher and the child’s parent. Furthermore, data will be used by SLT to brief the governing body, the staff and the LEA on overall progress towards the school’s end of year targets.

Monitoring

At Tranmere Park Primary School, there is an ongoing system of monitoring which takes place throughout the academic year. Monitoring focuses specifically on the teaching and learning of geography and includes: classroom observations, discussions with staff and pupils, looking at planning and examples of children’s work (books). The results of monitoring inform next steps and subsequent action planning, and are noted on the subject leader audit completed at the end of the academic year.

Impact – What knowledge and skills are obtained?

At Tranmere Park, every pupil will:
• Make progress and will meet national expectations, irrespective of background and entry points.
• Produce work that demonstrates the acquisition of the powerful knowledge relating to each subject area: locational and place knowledge, human and physical geography.
• Be curious about the world around them and will feel a moral obligation to make a positive impact upon the world.
• Believe that they are good at geography and will have the resilience required to undertake even the most challenging problem.
• Complete a pre-test which identifies gaps in their understanding so that we are certain about the individual goals of each child. This way, we will endeavour to achieve good, if not outstanding, progress for all.
• Have opportunities to experience outdoor learning and make use of concrete resources to support their learning.
• Be exposed to meaningful, high-quality experiences and lessons that promote choice and independent thinking.

Further to the above, our Curriculum, at Tranmere Park, is designed to ensure that each and every child achieves or demonstrates the following:

The Team Tranmere Way
Be Yourself		Be Your Best		Be Team Tranmere
Our children will learn to like who they are; they respect themselves and live their lives in their own way, regardless of the opinions of others.		Our children ‘give it everything they have got’ to achieve their full potential across the curriculum.		Our children are a part of a community and have respect for the resources and people in it and that surround it.
Our Learning Values and Behaviours
Self-Manager	Effective Participator	Independent Enquirer	Team Worker	Resourceful Thinker	Reflective Learner
Our children set their own goals and manage their own time, motivation and concentration.	Our children participate in lessons and persuade and encourage others to do so.	Our children set goals for their research with clear success criteria.	Our children understand that we are stronger together and implement this.	Our children are problem-solvers who can adapt to new or difficult situations.	Our children critically analyse their work ensuring future improvements.