Intent
What are our aims?
"Geography explains the past, illuminates the present and prepares us for the future. What could be more important than that?" Michael Palin.
At Crowland Primary, children are encouraged to develop a greater understanding and knowledge of the world, as well as their place in it.
We believe that Geography helps to provoke and provide answers to questions about the natural and human aspects of the world. At Crowland Primary school we build our Geography curriculum to ensure that 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, knowledge and skills; and for the children to develop a love for geography. The Geography curriculum at Crowland Primary enables children to develop knowledge and skills that are transferable to other areas of the curriculum.
"Teaching should equip pupils with knowledge about diverse places, people, resources and natural and human environments, together with a deep understanding of the Earth's key physical and human processes." (The 2014 Primary National Curriculum in England)
At Crowland Primary school we aim to instil a love for geography within the children, teaching them to enjoy learning about the world and to have a better understanding of how people live differently throughout the world.
Implementation
How will we achieve our aims?
In Geography, we implement a robust curriculum that is progressive throughout the whole school, to ensure high standards of teaching and to have maximum impact on learning. At Crowland Primary school, Geography is taught weekly, focusing on knowledge and skills stated in the National Curriculum so that children can achieve depth in their learning. 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 'real-life' experiences. For example, using the local area to follow maps in Key Stage 1, comparing the similarities and differences in environments and communities in Lower Key Stage 2, and debating world issues on pollution in Upper Key Stage 2. As in all subjects, children's interests are followed and incorporated into the plans to ensure their learning is engaging, broad and balanced.
At Crowland our school curriculum is based upon four key drivers. These key drivers are personal to our school and reflect the social and educational needs of our students. They make our school curriculum unique. The four key drivers are: Active Learning, Excellent Communication, Taking Care of Self and Others and Global Awareness and Responsibility.
Active Learning in Geography:
It is hoped that by employing active learning, students will not only have a deeper comprehension of the issues at hand but also experience an increase in motivation and excitement.
At Crowland, we are passionate about instilling a 'hands-on' approach in Geography. For example, carrying out field work locally at places like Walthamstow Wetlands or trips further afield to locations such as the River Thames. We use real places, real experiences and real issues to make Geography come alive and to enable children to make links in their learning, in order to gather a clearer understanding of the world.
Excellent Communication in Geography:
Geography develops language and communication skills by teaching children about a broad range of vocabulary which can often be used in everyday life discussions. In Geography, children develop their investigative skills and are given the opportunity to form opinions about important issues such as climate change. Children regularly express their opinions through classroom debates and are taught the importance of listening to other people's ideas and to respect and appreciate other people's opinions.
Taking Care of Self and Others
Our goal at Crowland is to instill in our students a sense of responsibility for all people across the world and the environment we share. Through Geography, we help them to respect and become interested in people from all walks of life, regardless of their culture, ethnicity, or religion. We hope this will instill in a desire to take care of the Earth, its inhabitants, and its resources and consider ways to preserve and improve it.
Global Awareness and Responsibility
"You must be the change you wish to see in the world." Mahatma Gandhi
It is important that the children understand that they are part of something much larger than themselves. We teach children to understand the different cultures, history, economy, religions, languages and resources in order to gain a clearer insight into how people live differently around the world. We also teach children how it is important to be a good citizen and we help them to understand that all of our actions have an impact on the future of our planet.
Impact
How will this impact on the children?
Children review their successes in achieving the lesson objectives at the end of every session and are actively encouraged to identify their own target areas, with these being identified, shared and verified by teachers through teacher conferences. Children also record what they have learned comparative to their starting points at the end of every topic. As children progress throughout the school, they develop a deep knowledge, understanding an appreciation of their local area and its place within the wider geographical context.