Geography

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“Geography is a living, breathing subject, constantly adapting itself to change. It is dynamic and relevant. For me geography is a great adventure with a purpose.  So many of the world's current issues – at a global scale and locally - boil down to geography, and need the geographers of the future to help us understand them.”

Micheal Palin

 

Overview

Our vision for Geography at King’s is to inspire a lifelong interest in Geography and a curiosity about our world which will stay with pupils through their lives. We aim to help to create informed and successful citizens. Through studying geography, students begin to appreciate how places and landscapes are formed, how people and environments interact, what consequences arise from our everyday decisions, and what a diverse range of cultures and societies exist and interconnect. 

To achieve this, we like to get the students to ask and formulate questions, develop their intellectual skills and find answers to issues affecting their lives. It introduces them to distinctive investigative tools such as maps, fieldwork and the use of powerful digital communication technologies such a geographic information system (GIS). It opens their eyes to the beauty and wonder around them and acts as a source of inspiration and creativity. More than this, it ensures that they appreciate the complexity of attitudes and values which shape the way we use and misuse the environment. Through geography, Kings students learn to value and care for the planet and all its inhabitants.

Knowledge Rich

The Geography curriculum at King’s is knowledge rich, introducing the essential knowledge pupils need to be successful citizens.  A knowledge-rich curriculum in geography builds up students' geographical knowledge through mastery of geographical concepts. Skills is taught both separately and in conjunction with the knowledge to enable them to be embedded and able to be applied. Core knowledge and skills are specified in detail and laid out in knowledge organisers, including vocabulary.

The Geography curriculum seeks to introduce children to the location of globally significant places, their physical and human characteristics and their interdependence, as well as the skills which will enable them to collect, analyse, communicate information through fieldwork.  Units are chosen specifically to stretch children’s knowledge and skills development, with a key focus on core technical vocabulary and understanding.

Vocabulary Rich

One focus of the Geography curriculum is to develop and encourage fluency in subject specific terminology. It is important that students are able to understand the meaning, application and etymology of words that they would not encounter outside of Geography. At King’s each Geography lesson has focus of a subject specific word, designed to increase pupils’ language proficiency and grammatical knowledge. Terminology is embedded through subject specialist teaching, using and applying vocabulary repeatedly throughout teaching and learning.

Fieldwork and Academic Skills

Geography helps us investigate and to think critically and creatively about the complexities of places, and different views and feelings relating to places. Fieldwork helps bridge the gap between the classroom and the real world. By giving pupils first-hand experience, it promotes the development of a wide range of different skills, many of which are transferable. These can include enquiry skills such as observational skills, data collection, data analysis, map work and investigative skills.

To build these qualities in our students here at King’s we run as many field trips as possible both in KS3 and KS4, either as a whole year group or as small groups.

Intellectual Habits

The curriculum allows and plans for an extended, teacher assessed piece of work every fourth lesson. Students must then apply feedback to improve their original piece. One hour every fortnight is dedicated to students applying accuracy, reflection and strategic thinking to their work with guided, personalised tasks in place by the class teacher. 

Inclusive

High expectations have been set through the Geography curriculum for each and every student, including stretching work for those whose attainment is significantly above the expected standard and providing pupils with support, who have low levels of prior attainment or who come from disadvantaged backgrounds. SEN, is a weekly focus in departmental meetings to ensure all students are receiving the best, tailored teaching as possible.  The curriculum has been designed to give all learners, particularly the most disadvantaged and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) or high needs, the knowledge and cultural capital they need to succeed in life.

The King’s Leadership Academy Bolton Geography curriculum has been developed to ensure that all pupils:

  • develop contextual knowledge of the location of globally significant places, including their defining physical and human characteristics and how these provide a geographical context for understanding the actions of processes 

  • understand the processes that give rise to key physical and human geographical features of the world, how these are interdependent and how they bring about spatial variation and change over time 

  • are competent in the geographical skills needed to:  collect, analyse and communicate with a range of data gathered through experiences of fieldwork that deepen their understanding of geographical processes 

  • interpret a range of sources of geographical information, including maps, diagrams, globes, aerial photographs and Geographical Information Systems (GIS) 

  •  communicate geographical information in a variety of ways, including through maps, numerical and quantitative skills and writing at length

​2023 - 24 Geography Subject Narrative