Geography at St Finian's-intent implementation impact
At St Finian’s, we are passionate about geography. Our geography curriculum aims to inspire our children to become curious about the world; we want them to develop a desire to explore its wonderful landscapes, to learn how humans have influenced it over time, to begin to understand their place in the world and consider their potential influence within it.
Through geography, children develop an appreciation of the diversity of our planet; the location and identity of places, the differences in culture, economies and political systems. They begin to understand the connection between the built and the natural environment and the interaction between human and physical processes. They learn how the shape of the landscape has been exploited for human development and the impact such choices have on the planet.
At St. Finian’s, our geography curriculum links strongly with our Catholic Social Teaching (CST) curriculum; through CST, children develop an appreciation of different cultures and the concept of human dignity, they discuss the values by which we live, the rights of human beings and the responsibilities we have towards all people, their communities and the natural world.
Through the study of geography, children will develop important geographical skills including: observation, recording, drawing, map and fieldwork skills. These will be facilitated:
-through hands on practical experience in the environment, including residential visits to geographical areas of interest (Devon, Isle of Wight), whole school hikes in the surrounding woodlands and farm studies in the local village
-by exploring our own school environment, including land use patterns in the rural parish of Cold Ash
-through access to high quality learning materials and schemes of work
e.g. Geographical Association for Primary Education (GA), National Geographic
By delivering a high quality geography curriculum, children will develop a wider appreciation of the world in which we live and a desire to know more. They will build respect for people and communities past and present and start to understand the vulnerability of our precious planet.
Specifically in KS1 children will:
-learn the names of oceans, rivers, towns and cities of the world
-learn about the physical and human features of contrasting locations, both here in the UK and abroad
-learn about weather patterns and systems both here in the UK and abroad
Use geographical vocabulary to name physical features of the landscape (mountain, valley, soil, river etc.) and the built environment (port, town, village, hamlet etc.)
-conduct fieldwork and practice geographical techniques (compasses, globes, maps and photographs) to identify and describe features of the landscape in the direct locality of the school and beyond.
Specifically in KS2 children will:
-name and locate countries of the world and their features, including the UK and consider changes throughout time
-learn to identify latitude and positions of latitude and longitude, northern and southern hemisphere
-identify human and physical features of contrasting areas of study
-use atlases, globes and digital technology to locate countries
-use 8 points of a compass and learn to use grid references on a map to pinpoint location
-use fieldwork techniques to measure and record human and physical features
In EYFS, children gain an understanding of geographical concepts through Early Learning Goals (ELG) set out in the national curriculum. Specifically through ‘Understanding the World’ strand, children learn about ‘people, culture and communities’ and ‘the natural world’.
Using their own experiences and knowledge as a starting point, children will use maps, stories and books to explore different places in the world, religions, cultures and communities. They will make observations about the natural world around them, learn about contrasting physical environments around the world and talk about the weather and the changing seasons throughout the school year.