Geography

Vision for Geography at Longmoor

Our Geography curriculum aims to ensure that children gain a high-quality geography education, which inspires in pupils a curiosity and fascination about the world and its people, that will remain with them for the rest of their lives.

It does so, by equipping pupils with knowledge about diverse places, people, resources and natural and human environments, together with providing a deep understanding of the Earth’s key physical and human processes.

As pupils progress through our Geography curriculum, their growing knowledge about the world should help them to deepen their understanding of the interaction between physical and human processes, and of the formation and use of landscapes and environments. Geographical knowledge, understanding and skills provide the frameworks and approaches that explain how the Earth’s features at different scales are shaped, interconnected and change over time.

How have we designed our Geography curriculum?

Longmoor’s Geography curriculum has been designed to build pupils’ understanding of three vertical concepts which provide both a concrete lens through which to study and contextualise geography, as well as use small steps to help pupils gain a deep understanding of complex, abstract ideas.

‘Vertical’ Concepts

We have designed a curriculum that provides opportunities for concepts to be revisited vertically (ie. in different year groups), through the teaching of different geographical units.

We have defined these as:

Space and Place

• Space- this refers to the physical area around us and how we relate to it. In studying this, we delve into our locational knowledge: this includes positional and map work;
• Place- here, we focus on specific locations and their features, looking at geographical similarities and differences.

Physical Processing

• In Key Stage 1, the concept of ‘physical processing’ refers to how children understand the natural features of the environment and how they interact with these features. For example, the study of landforms, weather and climate and that physical geography is a natural occurrence;
• In Key Stage 2 the concept of ‘physical processing’ becomes more complex and detailed. Children begin to analyse natural processes, their effects, and how they shape the environment. This includes an in-depth study into the natural processes that shape the Earth’s surface and influence ecosystems, climate, and human activity.

Human Processing

• In Key Stage 1 the concept of ‘human processing’ introduces children to how people interact with their environment and each other. This understanding helps them understand the impact of human activity, such as the different types of settlements, how humans contribute to communities and how human features are man-made;
• In Key Stage 2 the concept of ‘human processing’ focuses on how humans interact with, shape, and are influenced by their environment. This includes the study of population, culture, economics, and urban development.

We have ensured that there is a grounding in core disciplinary (thinking like a geographer) and procedural (knowing how to) knowledge, and the ability to approach challenging, geographical questions, giving pupils the ability to learn how to think read and write like a geographer.

Disciplinary Knowledge

• Change (interconnections and change)
• Diversity (interaction)
• Enquiry (comparison)

Procedural Knowledge

• Geographical Skills (skills and fieldwork)
• Fieldwork (skills and fieldwork)

We have chosen two schemes of learning at our school because they discretely teach the knowledge, skills and vertical concepts that our vision for Geography calls for; these are implemented separately in the Early Years & Key Stage One (the United Curriculum), and in Key Stage Two (Opening Worlds).

When adapting these schemes of learning, we have carefully ensured that knowledge is progressive and builds upon prior learning, especially at the transition point of Year 2 into Year 3; for this reason, we have elected to teach the final Key Stage 1 unit of work in the style of the first Key Stage 2 national curriculum unit, so that the different teaching pedagogies can be aligned and so that children are ready for the next stage of learning.

How do we teach Geography at Longmoor?

Our curriculum for geography has been very carefully sequenced to ensure coverage and progression through disciplinary and procedural knowledge. The order of teaching and learning is never changed due to how intrinsically it has been planned to ensure this progression.

Each unit clearly defines the knowledge that should be taught and reviewed in the sequence of lessons. Teachers must ensure that content is taught in the order provided, filling gaps and addressing misconceptions as required.

In the Early Years and Key Stage One, teaching follows the principles of the Great Teaching Toolkit; content is broken into small steps and there are modelled, guided practice and independent practice opportunities (‘I’, ‘We’, ‘You’).

This is built upon in Key Stage Two; there are clear opportunities for modelled, guided and independent practice, but knowledge is disseminated at least three times before children are tasked with working independently. This takes the form of a ‘story’, explicit teaching and then reading from a high-quality text. Teachers expertly use the Ten Techniques to impart knowledge (pre-teaching, storytelling, hear the words, say the words, ask five not one, secure fluency, core knowledge first, pace, no to guesses, speedy quizzing).

Vocabulary is explicitly taught throughout the Geography curriculum; our children know that these geographical terms are an integral part of learning, and become versed in their meaning and use. They are displayed once taught and understood by pupils, and pupils are expected to use them in their independent practice (which may look different depending on the age and stage of the child).

What subject-specific adaptations are made in Geography?

A key goal of our Geography curriculum is to bring all pupils into the conversation of the lesson and into the knowledge that is being disseminated. We do not exclude pupils from learning and therefore there is little, if any, ‘differentiation’ by curricular input; all pupils will encounter stories, repeat the vocabulary and participate in recalling them together.

We recognise however that for some pupils, because of severely limited prior knowledge or specific barriers, extra time and help to access materials may be necessary:

• Building knowledge through oral work: our aim is for pupils to be familiar with geographical vocabulary aurally and orally;
• Spurts of punchy, pacy, whole-class work: all pupils will be able to join in choral response to help them to follow the text or story of the lesson;
• Pre-teaching of content or specific vocabulary before moving onto reading the high-quality text (applies to all children): we check that particular pupils have understood this vocabulary through small amounts of information followed by reinforcement and retrieval;
• Prioritising attention to lower-attaining pupils or pupils with SEND when teaching core geographical vocabulary: these pupils take part in choral response and are quizzed when revisiting;
• Simple adaptations to learning materials: use of cloze procedures, simple annotation of map/diagram using pictures, matching pictures to definitions, drawing/labelling a feature or event;
• Simplification of the ‘story’ element of a taught session so that the abstract concepts are given extra concrete reinforcement through talk and visuals.

How is Geography assessed?

It is recognised that assessment of pupils’ learning and understanding is only useful if it informs future practice, is used to address misconceptions or is used to address understanding of key concepts. Therefore, assessment in Geography is most useful at the point of teaching and learning, so that immediate actions can be taken.

There are specific assessment techniques that are used in Geography at our school, some of which are school-wide (rather than within the subject itself) and others that are specific to the teaching of Geography at either Key Stage One or Key Stage Two.

In brief they include (but are not limited to):

• Say the words
• Ask five not one
• No to guesses
• Speedy quizzing

The careful sequencing of the curriculum – and how concepts are gradually built over time – is our progression model (although we have set out progression in concepts and knowledge in a separate document). If pupils are ‘keeping up’ with the curriculum, they are making progress.

Examples of further formative assessment in Geography include:

• Questioning in lessons: teachers check understanding so they can fill gaps and address misconceptions as required;
• Pupil conferencing with books: the subject leader and SLT talk to pupils about what they have learned – both disciplinary and procedural – and how this connects to the vertical concepts that they have been developing in previous units and previous years. For examples pupils in Year 4 will need to draw on their ‘Rivers’ knowledge, which they learned in Year 3, to apply their geographical concept of comparisons to the ‘Rhine and Mediterranean’ unit in Year 4.
• In Key Stage One, a post-learning quiz at the end of each unit, and in Key Stage Two a synoptic task at the end of each unit; these give teachers an understanding of the knowledge that pupils can recall and can be used to identify any remaining gaps to be filled;
• Pre-learning quizzes at the beginning of a unit (in Key Stage One), and at the beginning of some lessons where appropriate (Key Stage Two).