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Geography
Aims of the Department
In Geography, the intent of our curriculum is to promote curiosity and fascination about the world, whilst developing an understanding of cultural capital. The curriculum will enable our learners to understand and ask questions about the world around them, developing their ability to ‘think like a geographer’.
The curriculum enables learners to acquire knowledge about the physical characteristics of our natural and human-made landscapes. Learners acquire knowledge on geographical issues and challenges in a range of contexts; from natural disasters and their impact on humans, to the economic development of the world’s nations and the impact of humans on our climate and ecosystems.
It is our intent for Geography to be learned inside and outside of the classroom. The curriculum inspires students to take a responsible and sustainable attitude towards the world, whilst enabling them to develop skills that are transferable across all subjects and into future employment.
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Year 7
‘Links between the human and physical world'
What skills are needed to make a great geographer?
- Continents and oceans
- 4 and 6 figure grid references,
- Longitude and latitude and other points of reference
- Scale, sketching and compass directions
- Human and physical features of a place
- Writing description of locations
- Geographical enquiry of the local area
Why are biomes so different and how are they under threat?
- Location of major world biomes
- Human and physical characteristics of hot and cold deserts, and tropical rainforests.
- Threats and conservation measures of hot and cold deserts and tropical rainforests.
Is the continent of Africa all the same?
- Location of Africa.
- Addressing misconceptions about Africa.
- Biomes in Africa
- Population density and links to physical characteristics of places.
- Development indicators.
- Urban challenges in Kibera.
- Closing the development gap.
Can impossible places be fantastic?
- Why is Las Vegas so thirsty? Climate graph
- What’s so special about the Masai Mara?
- Amazing Dubai.
- Crisis in Chernobyl.
- Russia; fantastic or impossible?
- Is life in Svalbard easy?
- Incredible India.
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Year 8
‘Sustainability’
How and why are we destroying our world?
- Identification of plastic issues
- Explaining if climate change
- Discussing issues around sustainable global tourism
- Identification of wilderness areas
- Explaining conflict zones
- Application of skills knowledge through the study of Antarctica
How do rivers change the landscape?
- Drainage basin
- Course of a river
- Waterfalls and gorges
- Meanders and ox-bow lakes
- Flooding
- Storm Desmond
- Hard and soft engineering
How is urbanisation changing our world?
- Explaining urbanisation
- Discussing migration
- Challenges of megacities
- Identifying squatter settlements
- Can Sustainable living be achieved?
- Curitiba - example of sustainable living
Why is the UK’s weather so changeable?
- Forecasting weather
- Why weather changes?
- Why does it rain?
- Urban microclimates
- Extreme Weather
- Climate change
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Year 9
‘Opportunities and challenges’
Why do the impacts of natural hazards vary around the world?
- Explaining what tectonic hazards are
- Plate tectonics theory
- Plate margins
- Chile v Nepal
- Management of earthquakes
- Types of volcanoes
- Effects of volcanoes
- Tsunamis
How can we be a more sustainable world?
- Poverty in the UK
- Sustainable water supplies
- Waste disposal
- Air pollution in the UK
- Renewable energy
- Sustainable resources - bamboo
Does a glacial environment bring more challenges than opportunities?
- What are glaciers?
- How glaciers are formed
- How erosion shapes the land
- How are glacial environments used?
- Why are glacial environments changing?
- Challenges in conflict area
How is the UK changing over time?
- UK job sector
- Tourism and employment
- Communication and transport
- What do people do in their free time?
- Sport around the world
- Expansion of Heathrow runway
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Year 10
GCSE AQA Geography
(Human/Physical/Skills)
A - Challenge of natural hazards
Natural hazards
- Definition and types of hazards
- Factors affecting hazards risks
Tectonic hazards
- Plate tectonic theory and global distribution
- Physical processes at plate margins
- Primary and secondary effects
- Immediate and long term responses
- Nepal v New Zealand
- Reducing impacts from tectonic hazards
Weather hazards
- Global atmospheric circulation
- Distribution of tropical storms.
- Formation and structure of storms
- Climate change impacts of storms
- Typhoon Haiyan -effects, responses
- Monitoring, prediction, protection and planning
- Extreme weather events
Climate change
- Natural and human factors of cc
- Managing cc - mitigation and adaptation
B - Resource management
- Significance of food water and energy
- Overview of global inequalities
- Changing demand for food, water and energy
- Meeting supplies of food, water and energy
- Water
- Global patterns of surplus and deficit
- Increasing water consumption
- Factors affecting availability
- Lesotho - large scale water transfer
- Wakel - sustainable water supplies
C - Urban issues and challenges
- Global pattern of urban change
- Factors affecting the rate of urbanisation
- Megacities
Rio De Janeiro
- Location and importance
- Causes of growth - natural increase and migration
- Opportunities because of urban growth
- Challenges because of urban growth
- Urban planning to improve favelas
Newcastle
- Distribution of population and major UK cities.
- Location and importance
- Causes of growth - natural increase and migration
- Opportunities because of urban growth
- Challenges because of urban growth
- Urban regeneration
Sustainable urban living
- Features of sustainable urban living and transport
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Year 11
GCSE AQA Geography
(Human/Physical/Skills/Pre-release 12 weeks before exam)
A - Physical landscapes in the UK
- The location of major upland/lowland areas and river systems.
River landscapes in the UK
- The long profile and cross profile of a river
- Processes -erosion, transportation and deposition
- Characteristics and formation of landforms caused by erosion and deposition
- River Tees case study of a river valley
- How physical and human factors affect flooding
- Hydrographs
- Hard and soft engineering strategies
- Banbury management strategy case study
Coastal landscapes
- Wave types and characteristics
- Coastal processes: weathering, mass movement, erosion, transportation and deposition
- How geological can influence the coast
- Characteristics and formation of landforms caused by erosion and deposition
- Swanage - example of coastline in the UK
- Costs and benefits of hard and soft engineering
- Lyme Regis coastal management case study
B - The Changing economic world
Classifying countries because of development
- Economic and social measures of measuring development and their limitations
- DTM
- Causes and consequences of uneven development
- Strategies to reduce the development gap - Jamaica example
Nigeria
- rapid economic development
UK
- changes in the UK economy
C - Living World
Ecosystems
- Small scale ecosystems
- Components of an ecosystem
- Distribution of ecosystems
Tropical Rainforests
- Physical characteristics and interdependence
- Adaptations - plants and animals
- Biodiversity
- Malaysia - causes of deforestation and impacts
- Sustainable management
Hot deserts
- Physical characteristics and interdependence
- Adaptations - plants and animals
- Biodiversity
- Thar Desert - causes of desertification and impacts
- Strategies to reduce desertification
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Homework
KS3 Homework
Homework is set every two weeks for KS3 students and is usually based on retrieval and consolidation of knowledge from the Geography curriculum, as well as current global events..
KS4 Homework
Homework is set weekly for KS4 and is usually based on knowledge retrieval and skills practise, as well as revision and exam technique.
