The aim of our Geography curriculum at Baden Powell is to support each and every child’s understanding of their place in the diverse world in which they live; to learn about the mutual link between physical geography and human geography; and, as a result, the impact that this does or could have on their everyday lives. They are also encouraged to see the importance of our school values of Respect, Friendship, Compassion, Aspiration and Resilience within different, real-life geographical contexts.

The knowledge and skills that we have chosen to include in our Geography curriculum derive directly from the objectives set out in the National Curriculum (2014) and are in line with CLP guidance for Geography.

To make our Geography curriculum as relevant and meaningful as possible, we have sequenced our Geography topics to start within the children’s experience of their local area, (Poole, Dorset and The United Kingdom), moving to the wider context of Europe before studying other continents in the wider world. The only exceptions to this are the Rocks topic in Year 3, which links with their Science learning.

This sequence allows us to revisit, recap and consolidate previous knowledge in a relevant context so this knowledge can be committed to a child’s long-term memory; make links with and build upon previous learning to deepen understanding about their place in the world and how physical geography can impact on human geography and vice versa; and create a familiar and meaningful, familiar context for new learning.

Lastly, we aim to highlight three substantive concepts which we consider to be integral to the subject of Geography – Change Over Time, Sustainability and Environment and The Natural World.  We weave these ideas throughout our topics to further increase the relevance and real-world application of the learning the children encounter.