Intent

Geography is essentially about understanding the world we live in. At Sedgeberrow First School we aim to help develop children’s curiosity in both their immediate surroundings and in places and environments in the wider world. Our purpose is to instil an interest, fascination and desire to investigate a variety of different places both locally and afar. We believe children need to learn about their local area and other areas around the world. This will allow them to have a greater understanding and increased knowledge of the world, as well as their place in it.

The rurality of our school enables us to design and plan the curriculum around our local area. Children learn how to draw and interpret maps and they develop the skills of research, investigation, analysis and problem-solving. Through their growing knowledge and understanding of human geography, children gain an appreciation of life in other cultures; their understanding of the diverse places, people and resources that there are. Geography teaching also motivates children to find out about the physical world and enables them to recognise the importance of sustainable development for the future of mankind.

Implementation

To promote children’s curiosity, interest, and enthusiasm about the world we live in, Geography at Sedgeberrow is taught in topics throughout each year group, so that the children can achieve a greater depth to their learning. It also allows the children to fully immerse themselves within a theme/topic.

 Teachers have autonomy on their topics; they identify the key knowledge and skills from the curriculum to ensure progression throughout each year group across the school and this knowledge is built on year by year. Teacher’s tailor the teaching and learning to meet the needs of the children in their own class.

Geography is taught in Reception as an integral part of the topic work; they follow the Early Years Foundation Stage framework, developing the children’s ‘Understanding the World’ through opportunities to explore, observe and find out about people, places and the environment.

In KS1 and KS2, we ensure coverage of the whole National curriculum for Geography through our topic-led approach. Teachers are encouraged to use the school grounds and local area for fieldwork to enable children to have first-hand experiences to enhance their learning of Geography.

In addition to this, each class, once a year, has the opportunity to use our local farm to further their learning of their topic in a hands on, practical way; often a highlight of the year for our children.

Impact

By the time the children leave Sedgeberrow School, they will have developed their geographical knowledge and skills to help them explore, navigate, and understand the world around them and their place within it.

We will have given the children an insight into how physical and human geography can both influence and be influenced by human activities on a local, national, and international scale.

We want all the children to achieve their full potential and have a clear understanding of the impact they have on their planet.