At Christ Church CE Primary we shape our geography curriculum to ensure it is fully inclusive to every child. Our aims are to fulfil the requirements of the National Curriculum for Geography; providing a broad, balanced and differentiated curriculum; ensuring the progressive development of geographical concepts, vocabulary, knowledge and skills; and for the children to develop a love for geography. Pupils are provided with a Geography Knowledge Organiser which is also shared with parents at the beginning of each term to specify the knowledge, skills and vocabulary to be acquired and an overview of content.  

Intent

At Christ Church, we aim for a high-quality geography curriculum which should inspire in pupils a curiosity and fascination about the world and its people; giving them a sense of belonging and knowing their place in the world. We want children to develop a good understanding about where they are in the world, their local area and amenities as well as a curiosity about the wider world that surrounds them. Our teaching equips pupils with knowledge about places and people; resources in the environment; physical and human processes; formation and use of landscapes. We also want children to develop geographical skills: collecting and analysing data; using maps, globes, aerial photographs and digital mapping to name and identify countries, continents and oceans; and communicating information in a variety of ways. Our aim is for all children to enjoy and love learning about geography by gaining this knowledge and skills, not just through experiences in the classroom, but also through the use of fieldwork and educational visits.

Implementation

In ensuring high standards of teaching and learning in geography, we implement a curriculum that is progressive in terms of knowledge, skills and vocabulary throughout the whole school. Geography is taught as part of a half-termly topic, focusing on knowledge and skills stated in the National Curriculum. At Christ Church, we ensure that geography has the same importance given to it as the core subjects, as we feel this is important in enabling all children to gain and understanding of real-life. For example, using the local area to create and follow maps in Key Stage 1, to comparing the similarities and differences in environments and communities in Lower Key Stage 2, through to debating global environmental issues in Upper Key Stage 2. Each year group has three topics throughout the year, consisting of one local area topic, one wider world topic as well as an additional topic which addresses a specific geographical skill listed in the National Curriculum. These topics vary in order to ensure a clear progression of skills and knowledge taught to expose our children to a deeper understanding of a range of different countries, continents and oceans as well as human and physical features of different environments. We aim to introduce new skills and knowledge year on year whilst building on and embedding knowledge, skills and vocabulary that has been acquired in previous years. Through providing a high-quality geography curriculum we endeavour for pupils to be familiar with and use the language of a geographer within their lessons.

Cross curricular links are also made in English lessons across school, in which tier three geographical vocabulary is embedded through carefully selected texts. Our Geography Ambassadors give pupils the opportunity to work with our Geography Subject Leader to continually develop our Geography Curriculum. Our Geography Subject Leader also provides learning opportunities through our Geography Club delivered to Key Stage One and Two pupils after school. Pupils are encouraged to apply and embed their knowledge and skills to a Geography-based project each term as part of our Christ Church home-school partnership.

Impact

The impact and measure of this is to ensure that children at Christ Church are equipped with geographical skills and knowledge that will enable them to be ready for the curriculum at Key Stage 3 and for life as an adult in the wider world. We intend for our children to have thoroughly enjoyed learning about geography, therefore encouraging them to undertake new life experiences now and in the future.