We are Geographers

We are learning. We are growing. We are Falkland.

At Falkland, we believe that geography should provoke and provide answers to questions about the different aspects of the human and natural world. We aim to promote an interest and understanding of diverse places, people, resources and natural and human environments, together with a deep understanding of the Earth’s key physical and human processes.

Children leave Year 6 having studied a knowledge-based curriculum looking at their local area as well as a range of distant localities. We believe that for children to understand distant localities, they have to first understand their local area. This is why we have created a focus on fieldwork throughout each year group. Leaving Year 6, they will also be equipped with a number of skills, including: the ability to collect and analyse data, and interpret a range of sources of geographical information (for example maps, diagrams and aerial photographs).

To ensure that our children have the greatest understanding of Geography, throughout their primary journey, our pupils are taught the four skills strands:

Locational Knowledge - in which pupils are given the opportunity to explore and locate the countries of the United Kingdom and the wider world. They also explore the seven continents and several regions of the world, looking carefully at human and physical characteristics and topographical features (including mountains, hills, coasts and rivers).

Place Knowledge – in which children are encouraged to identify and explore the similarities and differences between a region of the United Kingdom and another country in the world.

Human and Physical Geography – in which our pupils are taught to describe and understand key aspects of weather, climate zones, biomes, rivers, mountains, volcanoes and earthquakes and the water cycle. They are also taught to explore and understand some key aspects of human geography such as settlements, economic activity and trade links, and natural resources.

Geographical skills and Fieldwork – in which children are taught the important skills of using maps, atlases, and digital computer mapping to describe the features of regions and places they have studied. Our pupils are also taught to use compass points, grid references and map keys. At Falkland we aim to teach these skills with hands on experiences in our locality, with fieldwork embedded into every year group.

Substantive concepts in Geography

Throughout the children’s time at Falkland, we have carefully designed our curriculum to ensure that substantive concepts are taught and revisited every year and in applicable topics, allowing pupils to make links across the curriculum, making connections to previous learning and building foundations for future units of study. These substantive concepts are:

Climate and Weather
Settlement and Land Use
Urban and Rural

Each unit of study is carefully planned to ensure these concepts are included and prior knowledge and vocabulary are considered.