GLOBAL THINKING
WE GET THE LOWDOWN ON WHAT STUDENTS ARE LEARNING IN GEOGRAPHY
THE national geography syllabus aims to equip pupils with a knowledge and understanding of the world and its people – and inspire them to be curious about it even when they are no longer at school. We take a look at how the curriculum guides students to explore the interaction between, and the basics and specifics of, physical (landscapes and how they develop) and human (people and their impact on and interaction with the world) geography through key stages 1,2 and 3
The national curriculum helps pupils to locate globally significant places and know their defining physical and human characteristics; understand the processes that create physical and human geographical features of the world, and how they change and interact over time; and know how to collect, analyse and communicate data gathered through fieldwork, interpret geographical information including maps, diagrams, globes, aerial photographs and Geographical Information Systems (GIS), and communicate geographical facts through maps, figures and writing.
At key stage 1, pupils learn about the world, the United Kingdom and their locality, in basic subject-specific vocabulary relating to human and physical geography with rudimentary geographical skills, including first-hand observation. They will learn to name and locate the world’s 7 continents and 5 oceans, and to name, locate and identify characteristics of the 4 countries and capital cities of the United Kingdom and its surrounding seas. They study geographical similarities and differences via the human and physical geography of a small area of the United Kingdom, and of a small area in a contrasting non-European country.
Regarding human and physical geography, pupils learn about 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, and to identify key physical features, including: beach, cliff, coast, forest, hill, mountain, sea, ocean, river, soil, valley, vegetation, season and weather; and key human features, including: city, town, village, factory, farm, house, office, port, harbour and shop.
Skills learned include the introduc- tion of world maps, atlases and globes to identify the countries, continents and oceans they study, and the use of simple compass directions and locational and directional language. They will use aerial photographs to recognise landmarks and basic human and physical features and learn to devise a simple map with a key. Fieldwork is kept simple – for example studying the geography of their school campus and the human and physical features of its environs. At key stage 2 pupils should develop their use of geographical knowledge, understanding and skills to learn more about the United Kingdom, Europe, North America and South America, including a range of the world’s most significant human and physical features. Pupils will learn to locate the world’s countries, and their environmental regions, key physical and human characteristics, and major cities. They will learn to name and locate counties and cities of the United Kingdom, geographical regions, topographical features (including hills, mountains, coasts and rivers), and land-use patterns; and how they change over time. They also study latitude, longitude, Equator, Northern Hemisphere, Southern Hemisphere, the Tropics, Arctic and Antarctic Circle, the Prime/Greenwich Meridian and time zones.
They will develop and understanding of geographical similarities and differences of a region of the United Kingdom, a region in a European country, and a region in North or South America, and describe and understand key aspects of: physical geography including: climate zones, biomes and vegetation belts, rivers, mountains, volcanoes and earthquakes, and the water cycle; and human geography, including settlement sand land use, economic activity, and the distribution of natural resources including energy, food, minerals and water.
They will use maps, atlases, globes and digital/computer mapping to locate countries and describe features studied, as well as the 8 points of a compass, 4- and 6-figure grid references and Ordnance Survey maps, and use fieldwork to observe, record and present human and physical features in the local area using a range of methods.
Key stage 3 build on their awareness of how geographical processes interact to create human and physical landscapes that change over time, and develop greater geographi- cal knowledge, approaches and concepts and skills.
Pupils should be taught to: extend their locational knowledge and spatial awareness of the world’s countries, using maps of the world to focus on Africa, Russia, Asia (including China and India), and the Middle East, focusing on their environmental regions, key physical and human characteristics, countries and major cities. They will discover similarities, differences and links between places through the study of a region in Africa and a region in Asia.
With human and physical geography, they learn key processes in: geological timescales and plate tectonics; rocks, weathering and soils; weather and climate, glaciation, hydrology and coasts; population and urbanisation, international development; the primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary sectors; and the use of natural resources; and how human and physical processes interact.
As well as building on their knowledge of globes, maps and atlases, they will learn to; interpret Ordnance Survey maps in the classroom and the field; use aerial and satellite photographs; use Geographical Information Systems (GIS); and use fieldwork in contrasting locations to collect, analyse and draw conclusions from geographical data.
The curriculum helps pupils locate globally significant places and know their defining characteristics