Geography
"Geography underpins a lifelong 'conversation' about the Earth as the home of humankind".
Geography Association
Bristol is a truly wonderful place to live and learn in. We have an abundance of different landscapes and environments within close proximity of our school and we have designed our geography curriculum to enable our children to make sense of their surroundings as well as to develop a lifelong curiosity about the world.
At Compass Point Primary School, our aim is for all children to have access to stimulating and practical lessons which enable them to deepen understanding and extend geographical vocabulary in contexts which are purposeful and meaningful. Where possible, our local area is used as a resource for learning and fieldwork trips are used to enable children to learn by practical experience. We make good use of the interests and first hand experiences of our children and celebrate our wide cultural diversity by studying places that resonate with, and are pertinent to, our children.
Like most children growing up today, our children want to be good global citizens and they want to understand the impact we are having on our planet. We teach about the importance of being environmentally friendly and the repercussions a warming planet is having on habitats, animals and people. We are interested in the ways in which human and physical processes have shaped, and continue to shape, the Earth.
Aims:
- Inspire pupils to be curious about the world, to observe and ask questions
- To develop a lifelong love of learning about our world, to travel responsibly, and to become citizens of a worldwide community
- To recognise and dispel stereotypes about places and people
- Gain a deep understanding of the Earth’s key physical and human processes;
- Equip pupils with knowledge about diverse places, people, resources and natural and human environments
- Enable children to learn and explain how the Earth’s features are shaped, interconnected and how landscapes and environments change over time.
- Acquire geographical knowledge, vocabulary and skills
Teaching Geography:
At Compass Point Primary School, Geography topics have been aligned to the National Curriculum Programme of Study for Geography. In lessons, a variety of approaches and resources are used to incorporate children’s interests and needs, including field trips, local area studies, discrete field studies teaching, key information stored in bespoke knowledge organisers, the use of high-quality texts and access to the internet.
The majority of Geography teaching takes place in blocks throughout the year, so that children can achieve depth in their learning. Teachers have identified the key knowledge and skills of each topic and consideration has been given to ensure progression across topics throughout each year group in the school. Whenever children start a new topic the teacher considers the prior learning needed to access the new learning, this enables our children to securely gain new knowledge, skills and understanding. Relevant geographical vocabulary is explained and built upon as children move through the year groups.
Our children are passionate geographers. As part of our curriculum all our children are taught to orienteer and our school playground and field has been professionally mapped to allow our children easy access to learn these skills. We have an active forest school, beach school and children take part in outdoor learning week and welly walks, these complement and enhance children’s learning
Click to view the geography skills progression.
Great websites for learning geography skills:
Study of place and learning facts
National Geographic Kids Quizzes
“The study of geography is about more than just memorising places on a map. It’s about understanding the complexity of our world.”
Barack Obama