Intent, Implementation and Impact Statement: Geography

Intent

At Northbury Primary school we believe in delivering a curriculum which is broad, balanced and exciting, and that engages pupils through linked learning experiences. We aim to deliver Geography through a cross-curricular thematic approach that hopes to inspire pupils’ curiosity and interest about the world and enables a deeper understanding of locational knowledge, place knowledge and geographical processes.

Pupils at our school come from many parts of the world and have a thirst for acquiring contextual knowledge of places. Our curriculum intends to link this knowledge with an understanding of how physical geography affects human life and also equip our pupils with the necessary geographical skills and fieldwork experiences, as described by the National Curriculum. The community our school belongs to has a rich and diverse culture which we make good use of to enhance our pupils’ experiences by embarking on multiple local trips, acknowledging various special events and celebrating ‘International Week’, when many countries and cultures are explored and valued.

Although our children join Northbury with limited geographical vocabulary and skills, we intend that they leave our school with a deep understanding of many parts of the world, which includes human and physical features of those areas, they have acquired skills that enhance this knowledge and are genuinely interested in furthering their journey in the study of our earth.

Implementation 

At Northbury, Geography curriculum is taught via the school’s main topic for each term. This is a holistic approach, which ensures that children acquire a broader understanding of the topic’s themes and implement them in every aspect of their learning. To ensure curriculum coverage, teachers from all the year groups follow our school’s Geography Progression of Skills Map when planning, which is based on the needs of each year group, and simultaneously allows for cross-curricular links. A standard list of vocabulary for Geography is applied across all classes of the same year group, to ensure accuracy, consistency and progression.

Geography lessons at Norhbury are interactive, making use of all available resources (e.g. atlases, maps). Each Geography lesson allows opportunities for independent as well as paired and group work, and this provides pupils with the opportunity to interact and share their knowledge and acquired skills with each other, as well as thrive individually and progress. Learning also takes place through questioning, that aims at the elicitation of accurate vocabulary; both targeted at specific students at times, but also by a random selection of students using random selection methods (i.e. lolly sticks). Students at Northbury have regular writing opportunities in which they use all their acquired geographical skills.

Educational visits linked to Geography’s national curriculum aim at giving opportunities to pupils to engage in-depth with their learning and to explore geographical aspects by personal experience. The visits mentioned above are always well prepared in advance by teachers, making sure that they give opportunities to pupils to achieve the aims stated at the national curriculum. After each trip, students carry out work that stems from their observations throughout the visit and provides opportunities for learning through experience.

Impact

Geography is given the value it deserves at Northbury Primary school. Our school is well resourced and children are taught Geography from Early Years till Year 6 throughout the year. Learning is assessed against the curriculum and our progression of skills document frequently to ensure the aims are being met.

Learning walks take place to ensure quality of teaching and consistency across the school. They are also a tool for reflection on our practice and to make any necessary adaptions to our way of teaching, including giving any necessary support to our new members.

Pupils are interviewed and their opinions are highly valued. Display boards showcase the learning that takes place in our classrooms and pupil’s books are evidence of individual learning. The work is proof of acquired skills and show the progression across the year groups.

Pupils leave our school having grasped the basic principles of Geography, having a respectable knowledge of location and place, understanding human and physical processes and processing the necessary geographical skills. Thanks to our cross-curricular approach, they realise the place Geography has amongst other subjects and furthermore in life.