St Aldhelm’s Geography Curriculum Intent 

• Provide children with creative and memorable classroom opportunities to create links between periods of time and contextual links to places within the world.   

• Equip children with tools, confidence and knowledge to develop an inquisitive approach towards  both places and people. 

• Provide opportunities to inspire and enhance the humanities learning journey through educational visits, interactive resources and drawing on the experiences of others.  

Most geography learning is completed throughout ‘enquiry’ projects and is completed in enquiry books where children are given the opportunity to reflect on cross-curricular learning.  

Resources for geography are sourced and resourced in a shared area of the school. Geography resources mainly promote place and locational knowledge (large maps, OS maps, local area aerial views). Teachers are aware of websites and companies that can develop learning opportunities for children and be used to create school trips. Our continued commitment to Resources for Learning subscription boxes also ensures we have a high level of literature. 

We have also recently become a Digimaps school to enhance our digital Geography provision further. 

Geography at St Aldhelm’s starts from the child’s initial environment and the effect that one child can have on their environment. Through regular visits around the community, children’s understanding of the world is broadened through their opportunities for first-hand experiences. Locally, we have access to a local church, local grounds and sites within walking distance that are used regularly to enhance children’s locational and place knowledge.

Earlier on in school in EYFS and KS1, children are exposed to events that have happened in our country and are encouraged to learn about where they are from. As children comprehend their immediate surroundings, geographical learning progresses to tackle more abstract ideas through looking at places around the world, climate, considering living in different areas, how we can look after our environment and also looking in more detail about what our environment is like. 

Characteristics to develop as an effective geographer:

• An excellent knowledge of where places are and what they are like. 

• An excellent understanding of the ways in which places are interdependent and interconnected and how much human and physical environments are interrelated. 

• An extensive base of geographical knowledge and vocabulary. 

• Fluency in complex, geographical enquiry and the ability to apply questioning skills and use effective analytical and presentational techniques. 

• The ability to reach clear conclusions and develop a reasoned argument to explain findings. 

• Significant levels of originality, imagination or creativity as shown in interpretations and representations of the subject matter. 

• Highly developed and frequently utilised fieldwork and other geographical skills and techniques. 

• A passion for and commitment to the subject, and a real sense of curiosity to find out about the world and the people who live there. 

• The ability to express well-balanced opinions, rooted in very good knowledge and understanding about current and contemporary issues in society and the environment.