Geography
At Preston Primary School, our Geography curriculum aims to deliver a high quality education where the children are inspired to learn about the physical and human world in which they live and are prepared for the world beyond their classroom. Their curiosity about the world and the knowledge they acquire at Preston ought to remain with them for the rest of their lives. Our children will learn about, appreciate and acquire a love and respect for the beautiful area in which they live by visiting places within and learning about the North East and our immediate locality. The children will become good global citizens, gain a deeper understanding of our responsibility towards the environment, and will gain a comprehensive understanding of our wider world and the people and cultures that inhabit it.
Human and Physical Geography
| In Early Years the children will be encouraged to |
| Talks about why things happen and how things work.Can talk about some of the things they have observed such as plants, animals, natural and found objects. Developing an understanding of growth, decay and changes over time. Shows care and concern for living things and the environment. Looks closely at similarities, differences, patterns and change.They make observations of animals and plants and explain why some things occur, and talk about changes. |
| Key Stage One this then is built upon through studying |
| 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. 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. |
| In Key Stage Two this is then built upon through study of |
| 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). 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 in North or South America. 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
| In Early Years the children will be encouraged to |
| They talk about the features of their own immediate environment and how environments might vary from one another. |
| In Key Stage One this then is built upon through studying |
| 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 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 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. |
| In Key Stage Two this is then built upon through study of |
| Use maps, atlases, globes and digital/computer mapping to locate countries and describe features studied. Use the 8 points of a compass, 4- and 6-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. |
Place and Location Knowledge
| In Early Years the children will learn |
| Comments and asks questions about aspects of their familiar world such as the place where they live or the natural world.Children know about similarities and differences in relation to places, objects, materials and living things. |
| In Key Stage One this then is built upon through |
| Name and locate the world’s 7 continents and 5 oceans Name, locate and identify characteristics of the 4 countries and capital cities of the United Kingdom and its surrounding seas. |
| In Key Stage Two this is then built upon through |
| 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. 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. |
Geographical Skills
In whatever objective is taught there will be a progression of skills developed in EACH of the five areas throughout the area being studied:
- Geographical vocabulary and appropriate geographical terminology
- Developing an understanding of location – using progressively more complex map skills
- To be able to know and understand human and physical geographical features of the place of study
- To be able to compare similarities and differences and then find connections and contrasts between locations studied
- To know basic geographical facts e.g. parts of UK, continents, oceans etc.
We will base some of this around the concept of an address label – each year progressively getting wider.
The following document is our long term framework for geography which highlights the learning taking place within each year group and the key take-aways that children will learn, and take with them, onto the next step of their learning journey in this subject:
