The Geography Curriculum provides:

• the children with the opportunity and skills necessary to explore the physical world
• the knowledge to understand our environment and to compare it to contrasting locations
• the children to follow an approach, central to all geographical work.  The children are encouraged to ask relevant questions about how and why people, places and features are affected by environment and location, and to use a variety of sources of information to answer questions.  This question and answer approach aims to develop children's analytic skills
• the children with the opportunity to express opinions, suggest solutions to problems and generally develop a sense of responsibility and appreciation for the world around them
• the children with the opportunity to use Information Technology to explore and record findings-

Fieldwork

Geography is also about first hand experience with the outdoors and it reinforces what we have learnt in class. We aim to utilise the extensive school grounds including Forest School and around our local area. Year 5 and 6 benefit from our wonderful residential fieldtrips. The children can ask themselves enquiry questions and discover the answers. They become detectives. 

The curriculum is designed to allow children to develop a sense of place and to discover the physical and human features that give places their identity.  It enables children to feel what it would be like to live in a certain place or country and to know where the place is situated in relationship to their own home.  It also allows them to explore the similarities and differences between places.  Comparing landscapes and investigating how geographical features have formed or changed over time are an important aspect of the work. Map skills are developed progressively through the years and are a fundamental aspect of the programme. 

Work is structured at each level so that children will:

• develop skills of enquiry through observation based on field work and classroom activities;
• use a variety of sources of information, e.g. globes, maps at different scales, atlases, artefacts, IT;
• use tools and instruments for recording information e.g. thermometers, wind vanes, rain gauges, compasses, the computer;
• understand simple geographical terminology;
• gain first-hand knowledge of the local environment e.g. its weather, surface features and the human influences upon it in the form of buildings, roads, etc.;
• compare the local environment with contrasting localities, both in the UK and abroad;develop their knowledge and understanding of how people live within communities today including population, settlements, communications and economic activities;
• develop an understanding and appreciation of natural resources, the quality and vulnerability of different environments and to feel a commitment to the care and improvement of our own environment.
• use Drama and role play to reinforce what they have learnt