Geography
Welcome Geography lovers! On this page you will find links and activities to engage in more Geography fun when you fancy.
Mrs Bass
The geography element of our school curriculum is intended to inspire our children to be curious and fascinated about the world around them, helping to enable these enquiring qualities to become intrinsic to their lives, beyond school.
The National Curriculum states:
A high-quality geography education should inspire in pupils a curiosity and fascination about the world and its people that will remain with them for the rest of their lives. Teaching should equip pupils with knowledge about diverse places, people, resources and natural and human environments, together with a deep understanding of the Earth’s key physical and human processes. As pupils progress, their growing knowledge about the world should help them to deepen their understanding of the interaction between physical and human processes, and of the formation and use of landscapes and environments. Geographical knowledge, understanding and skills provide the frameworks and approaches that explain how the Earth’s features at different scales are shaped, interconnected and change over time.
Through a focus on developing disciplinary skills (learning how to be a geographer) and substantive skills (learning about geography) underpinned by our core pedagogy, we aim to create confident ‘Geographers’ who are equipped with knowledge about diverse places, people and natural and human environments, together with a deep understanding of the Earth’s key physical and human processes and the interactions between them. We will do this through careful, comprehensive, sequential planning, enjoying opportunities to use our site and local area to give children first hand, practical experiences, which will be etched in their memories
Pupils will:
- collect, analyse and communicate with a range of data gathered through experiences of fieldwork that deepen their understanding of geographical processes
- interpret a range of sources of geographical information, including maps, diagrams, globes, aerial photographs and Geographical Information Systems (GIS)
- communicate geographical information in a variety of ways, including through maps, numerical and quantitative skills, diagrams and report writing
Our work towards developing children’s natural geographical curiosity begins in our Foundation Stage, as our practitioners follow the EYFS curriculum, encouraging children to recognise similarities and differences in relation to places and talk about features of their own immediate environment and how environments might vary from one another; first hand experiences are frequently drawn upon – for example when exploring the school grounds together. These high-quality conversations and experiences help prepare our young children for their next programme of study at they begin their transition to Key Stage 1.
The programme of study at Key Stage 1 enables children to develop knowledge about the world, the United Kingdom and their locality. Children learn subject-specific vocabulary relating to human and physical geography and begin to use geographical skills, including first-hand observations, to enhance their locational awareness.
In Key Stage 2, the programme of study enables children to extend their knowledge and understanding beyond the local area to include the United Kingdom and Europe,Asia, North and South America. This will include the location and characteristics of a range of the world’s most significant human and physical features. Children develop their use of geographical knowledge, understanding and skills to enhance their locational and place knowledge.
Using the school grounds and local area
Year 3 Pollution walk
Football fans!
Norwich football club have an educational section on their website. Week 1 is linked to Geography and has activities for KS1 and KS2. Click on the link below to find out more.
Junior Canaries -Geography Activities
Digimaps
We have a subscription to Digimaps for schools and it is really useful when looking at the U.K and the local area.
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Use this link to open - Digimaps for Schools The login details are: Username: ME75DQ Password: smoths0750 |
Here is a video link to show how to use it: How to navigate Digimaps
Below are some ideas of what you can use the website for:
1. Hide an object in your local area, use the map to put a sticker where you have hidden the object and see if someone can find it.
2. Find 2 rivers in the UK and see which is the longest.
3. Look at the map of BWPS and fade the map to see how it has changed since 1950 (see image below)
Where do I live?
Consider the area where you live. How well do you know it? Next time you take a walk make a note of some of the things you see on the way.
Take a street survey
- How many trees do you see?
- How big are the houses? How many windows do they have?
- How many people or cars do you see?
- What do you like or dislike in this street?
- Can you list some human and physical features in the street?
- You might want to create your own list of data collection for your street survey depending on what you have in your road. (post-boxes, bus stops, shops).
Repeat the survey in a different road. What is the same? What is different? How is the land/space used? What are the different features you have seen? Describe the different houses.
Create a visual journey
Tell a story using pictures of the walk/journey you have recently been on. Make a note of key features, landuses the different types of buildings you have seen.
Make a map
This could be a traditional map with a key to represent the different landuses and features. Alternatively, you may wish to create a map using paints, collage or recycled materials. Get creative, it’s up to you!
Where am I?
Reading skills are essential but have you ever had a go at reading a map? Take a look, see if you can locate where you are, locate roads, footpaths, houses and parks. Where are you going? How will you get there.
Why are jungles wet and deserts dry?
Let your investigation lead your learning for this one. Here are some ideas on where to start your research.
- Find out where jungles and deserts are located.
- Research different climate zones. https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/clips/zr7hyrd
- What is the weather like? Is the weather seasonal? What sort of vegetation will you find there? How many species of plants/animals live there? How do they survive in these conditions?
- Would you want to live there and why?
- What do we mean when we talk about longitude, latitude and hemispheres?
Covid and Climate Change
Can we flatten the curve on climate change?
During lockdown there has been restrictions on car travel, flights have been cancelled, factories and businesses closed. This has resulted in a drop in carbon emissions. Visually, air pollution levels have dramatically improved, rivers/canals in urban areas are clearer and animals are appearing in cities, while birds are heard where there were none.
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200422-how-has-coronavirus-helped-the-environment
What can we learn from this and how can we continue to have a positive impact on the environment in the future.
I would love you read your thoughts on the impact you think the lockdown is having on our environment. How do you think we might change our behaviours in the future?
Is there an impact on wildlife and biodiversity?
We know that wildlife is starting to appear in urban areas where the number of humans have reduced, but has there been an increase in populations of butterflies or other insects because of a cleaner environment?
Useful websites
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/subjects/zcdqxnb KS1
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/subjects/zbkw2hv KS2
https://www.natgeokids.com/uk/ National Geographic
https://www.kids-world-travel-guide.com/geography-facts.html
And of course ‘Google Earth’.
