“The study of geography is about more than just memorizing places on a map. It’s about understanding the complexity of our world, appreciating the diversity of cultures that exists across continents. And in the end, it’s about using all that knowledge to help bridge divides and bring people together.” — Barack Obama
At Abingdon, Geography helps children understand where they are, where others are, how places are connected and how people shape the world they share.
Our geography curriculum is bespoke and deliberately shaped around the children and communities we serve, while meeting the expectations of the National Curriculum. We want every child to develop a secure geographical understanding and the curiosity to keep asking questions about the world around them.
Understanding our world
Children develop knowledge of diverse places, people, environments and resources, building an increasingly sophisticated understanding of both the physical and human world.
Our curriculum is carefully sequenced so that children revisit and deepen key geographical concepts, vocabulary and skills. They learn to locate places, recognise geographical patterns, understand physical and human processes and explain how the Earth’s features have shaped the environments in which people live.
Children develop the ability to:
- use maps, atlases, globes and digital mapping;
- collect, record and interpret geographical data;
- undertake fieldwork and geographical enquiry;
- use increasingly precise geographical vocabulary;
- identify patterns and relationships;
- understand physical and human processes;
- compare places at local, national and global scales; and
- explain how people and environments are interconnected.
We want children to be able to think geographically, not simply remember geographical facts.
A curriculum that reflects our community
Our children live in a richly diverse community, with families connected to many different countries, cultures, languages and traditions. We see this as an extraordinary asset for Geography.
Our curriculum deliberately represents the diversity of the world and ensures that children can see themselves within what they learn. Children’s experiences, family knowledge and connections to different places can enrich classroom learning and help us recognise that geography is lived by real people.
At the same time, children encounter places and communities beyond their own experience. They develop both mirrors and windows: opportunities to recognise aspects of their own lives and opportunities to understand places, cultures and experiences that may initially be unfamiliar.
We want children to develop curiosity rather than assumptions and understanding rather than stereotypes.
From local to global
We begin with children’s immediate experiences and progressively broaden their geographical horizons.
The local environment provides a meaningful starting point for understanding place, settlement, land use, weather, physical features and human activity. From there, children make connections with the wider region, the United Kingdom and the wider world.
This helps children understand that places are not isolated. What happens in one part of the world can affect people and environments elsewhere.
Children explore questions about resources, climate, migration, sustainability, development and human impact, developing the knowledge they need to understand some of the complex challenges facing our world.
Fieldwork: geography beyond the classroom
We believe that geographical understanding is strengthened when children experience places for themselves.
“Learning outside the classroom is important for all young people if they are to connect with their local place, find a relevance for the classroom-based learning and develop a meaningful understanding of what environment really means.” — Turney, 2009
Fieldwork gives children opportunities to observe, question, measure, record and interpret the world around them. It enables classroom knowledge to become something children can experience, test and apply.
Our fieldwork is purposeful rather than simply an opportunity to go outside. Children use geographical skills to investigate real places and answer real questions, developing independence, curiosity and confidence.
Geography, inclusion and belonging
Inclusion is woven through our geography curriculum.
We recognise that children’s experiences of the world are different. Some children may have travelled widely; others may have had very limited opportunities to explore beyond their immediate surroundings. Our curriculum therefore seeks to widen horizons for every child.
We remove barriers to participation through explicit vocabulary teaching, visual representations, practical experiences, scaffolding, adaptive teaching and carefully selected resources. The ambition remains high; the route to achieving it may be different.
We also recognise the importance of teaching about people and places accurately and respectfully. Geography provides opportunities to challenge misconceptions and stereotypes and to develop children’s understanding of cultural diversity and the ways in which people live.
Geography, SMSC and protected characteristics
Geography makes a significant contribution to spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.
Spiritually, children develop a sense of wonder about the natural world and reflect on humanity’s relationship with the planet.
Morally, they consider questions of sustainability, resource use, environmental responsibility, inequality and the impact of human choices.
Socially, they develop an understanding of communities, migration, settlement and the ways people depend upon one another.
Culturally, they encounter diverse communities, traditions, languages and ways of life, developing respect for difference and a stronger understanding of our interconnected world.
This also supports our work around protected characteristics, particularly by helping children understand diversity, challenge stereotypes and recognise that people and communities should be treated with dignity and respect.
Geography and the ARCH
Geography provides rich opportunities to live our Abingdon ARCH:
- Aspirations – developing curiosity about the wider world and confidence to explore beyond what is familiar.
- Resilience – tackling complex geographical problems and recognising that understanding often develops through investigation and questioning.
- Harmony – appreciating diverse people, cultures and environments and understanding our shared responsibility for the world we inhabit.
- Commitment – developing the knowledge and responsibility needed to care for places, communities and the environment.
From understanding place to understanding our place
Ultimately, Geography helps children understand that they are both individuals and citizens of a connected world.
They learn where places are, but also why they matter. They learn about differences between communities, but also the connections that bring people together. They learn about the natural world and the responsibility humans have to protect it.
Our ambition is for every child to leave Abingdon with the knowledge, vocabulary, skills and confidence to make sense of the world and participate within it.
Know your place. Understand your world. Value difference. Recognise connection.
Through Geography, children belong, flourish, thrive and achieve — developing the understanding and agency to
Geography Progression Document
Please find the link for the Geography programme of study https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-curriculum-in-england-geography-programmes-of-study/national-curriculum-in-england-geography-programmes-of-study
