Geography

WELCOME TO THE GEOGRAPHY PAGE

Miss Hayes- Geography Subject Leader

In September 2022, the Geography curriculum at St. Bede’s Catholic Junior School was awarded the Bronze Award in the Primary Geography Quality Mark, with the lively and effective learning being recognised across the school by a senior member of the Geographical Association. This will be reviewed in three years’ time as we endeavour to achieve the Silver Quality Mark with continued efforts to develop a love and curiosity for the physical and human features of the world we all share.

At St. Bede’s, we follow an approach whereby the Geography curriculum is effectively sequenced and divided into a series of enquiry questions. Children’s geographical learning in Year 3 and 4 consolidates prior learning in EYFS/ KS1 as well as provides a basis for building deeper thinking skills and knowledge when they reach Year 5 and 6 with similar content being explored and extended in much greater depth. For example, in Year 4, children answer the question ‘Why do some earthquakes cause more destruction than others?’ and develop skills such as being able to locate, describe and explain the distribution of earthquakes occurring around the world; explain why volcanoes and earthquakes often occur at the same locations around the world and; identify and locate the ‘Pacific Ring of Fire’.

Such learning is extended when children reach Year 6 and begin their geographical enquiry to answer ‘How do volcanoes affect the lives of people living on Hiemaey?’. Not only will they be able to explain why Hiemaey has an active volcano, they will be able to describe and explain the structure of a typical composite volcano as well as evaluate and reach a judgement regarding the benefits and costs or disadvantages of living in close proximity to an active volcano on Hiemaey.

Our pupils understand the importance of geography as a subject, the positive difference they can make in our world as well as how they can become a school geography ambassador. Since then, we have appointed pupils to represent their year group as Geographer Ambassadors due to their contributions to geography here at St. Bede’s. 

Below are a selection of websites that pupils can use to enhance and deepen their geographical knowledge. If you have any questions about geography at St. Bede's, please email [email protected]  Additionally, I have detailed the intentions of Geography at school below, how we implement our intentions and the impacts this will have on our pupils.

Thank you for visiting the Geography Faculty Page!

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