Geography

Our geography curriculum is designed to develop the children’s curiosity and fascination about the world and its people that will remain with the children for the rest of their lives. Children investigate a range of places, both in Britain and abroad, to help develop their knowledge and understanding of the Earth’s physical and human processes. We are committed to providing the children with opportunities to investigate and make enquires about their local area of Twyford and the Thames Valley so that they can develop a real sense of who they are, their heritage and what makes our local area unique and special. We also develop the children’s ability to apply geographical skills to enable them to confidently communicate their findings and geographical understanding to a range of audiences.

Through high quality teaching we enable the children to develop:

• An excellent knowledge of where places are and what they are like, both in Britain and the wider world;
• A comprehensive understanding of the ways in which places are interdependent and interconnected;
• An extensive base of geographical knowledge and vocabulary;
• Fluency in complex, geographical enquiry and the ability to apply questioning skills as well as effective presentation techniques;
• The ability to reach clear conclusions and explain their findings;
• Excellent fieldwork skills as well as other geographical aptitudes and techniques;
• The ability to express well-balanced opinions, rooted in very good general knowledge and understanding about current issues in society and the environment;
• A genuine interest in the subject and a real sense of curiosity about the world and the people who live there.

As part of the planning process, teachers plan a cycle of lessons of each subject area which carefully allows for progression and depth of learning that concentrate on the geographical skills suited to each age group. Our plans use key questions that challenge the children to use their knowledge and apply this in an open-ended way. We also look at developing subject specific vocabulary and embedding this through cross curricular learning opportunities. As with other areas of the curriculum, we include trips or invite visiting experts in to school to enhance the learning experience for all children if at all possible.

The impact of our geography curriculum can be seen through discussions with the children about their learning, their recorded learning that shows progression through school, and by reflecting on the achievements against the planned outcomes.