Geography

Key Stage 2 Geography

The geography curriculum at KS1 and 2 aims to inspire pupils’ curiosity about the world, its diversity and the people who live in it.

In KS1 and 2 Geography forms a key part of our cross curricular approach to learning. The teaching of geography aims to give pupils an understanding of our world, through experience, investigation and learning from a range of resources. We aim for pupils to develop knowledge about diverse places, people, resources and natural and human environments and to understand physical and human processes. Pupils study their local area and contrasting places in the United Kingdom and other parts of the world.

Pupils in KS1 and 2 will investigate the following areas:

• Locational knowledge
• Place knowledge
• Human and physical geography
• Geographical skills and fieldwork

Geography contributes significantly to the teaching of a range of subjects. In English pupils develop their speaking and listening skills and writing. Pupils learn to use Maths when developing an awareness of grid references through looking at and creating maps. Pupils develop their computing skills when using the internet to undertake research as well as looking at maps. Geography links to the LOTC curriculum for example when pupils draw maps of their local area.

Key Stage 3 Geography

Curriculum statement linking Key Stages:

At KS3, learners have the opportunity to build on the investigative, analysing and evaluation skills they learnt at KS2 during their learning journeys. Learners are able to consolidate previous knowledge and learning within the subject whilst gaining great depth of a number of topics to support transition to Geography GCSE.

The Geography curriculum is custom designed to engage our students through the use of interesting and relevant topics covering all areas of the National Curriculum directives.

A combination of Human, Physical and Environmental Geography is used to build on prior learning whilst introducing the idea of cause and effect. Learners develop application and evaluation skills to demonstrate their geographical knowledge within the curriculum topics.

Learners are assessed throughout the year and are encouraged to take responsibility for their learning and development through the use of clear assessment focuses. Assessment covers a range of skills and knowledge which is used to help pupils in the transition between KS3 & KS4 at the end of Year 9 if they choose to take Geography at GCSE.

Students are assessed at the end of each topic in order to track progression and understanding, there are no formal qualifications until KS4.

Assessments are recorded on trackers to identify areas of strength but also gaps in learning that can be revisited in a timely fashion.

Topics include-

Year 7 – Maps, Rivers, Climates, Plate Tectonics and Coasts

Year 8- Global Warming, MEDCs/LEDCs, Australia, Rainforests and developing map skills from the year 7 curriculum.

Year 9 – Ordinance Surveys, Tourism, Natural Resources, India, Renewable Energy and Eco friendly living and the Blue Planet.

Long term plan –

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Alongside this course there are opportunities within the Science, Citizenship and PSHRE curriculums to think about wider contexts, their consequences and to analyse their effects.

KS4 Geography GCSE

Studying Geography equips pupils with knowledge about diverse places and people, natural and human environments. It encourages understanding of human development and processes, and both the formation and use of landscapes and environments. 

Geography GCSE covers a good mix of topics such as urban issues, world development, extreme environments, rivers and hazards – to name but a few. The course will give you the chance to get to grips with some of the big questions which affect our world, and understand the social, economic and physical forces and processes which shape and change it.  Geography is also about developing a wide range of skills. It builds on pupil’s numeracy, providing an opportunity for pupils to apply mathematics to real life data and situations. It also improves literacy in pupils - expanding their vocabulary whilst helping them learn to produce well-structured written responses supported with factual evidence.

At New Horizons we follow the AQA GCSE programme where students are assessed in a range of areas consisting of three terminal examinations that requires students to answer questions at length, choose from multiple choice and explore their essay writing skills.

The course divides into three areas:

1. Living with the Physical Environment: including Tectonics, Weather Hazards, The Living World including ecosystems and finally River and Coastal features of the UK.
2. Challenges in the Human Environment: which looks at the pressures of urban development and, Energy and Water Issues around the world. It also includes development issues.
3. Geographical Applications: which focuses on developing students` field work skills.

You can find the long term plan by clicking on the following link:

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Geography is a great opportunity for trips and visits, especially to study interesting local landforms.