Living in such a geographically unique area, we are excited at St. Michael's to have varied and rich opportunities for the children to engage with the Geography in our locale - to nurture them as Global Explorers; to help them make sense of the communities in which we live and to learn about a range of places further away - the world beyond Minehead. Geography helps to develop a range of investigation and problem-solving skills that are transferable to other curriculum areas. Through investigation, practical fieldwork and discussion, children become equipped with skills that prepare them for the challenges that lie ahead; to become informed, tolerant, included and active global citizens.
Our aim in Geography is to ensure that all pupils are competent in geographical skills and develop a sense of awe and wonder, as well as knowledge and understanding of people, places and environments around the world. Our children will understand the processes that give rise to key natural and human geographical features of the world and will start to appreciate how they are interdependent and why they may change over time. As children study Geography they gain an appreciation of life in other countries and cultures. Geography inspires children to think about their own place in the world, their values and their rights. At St. Michael's, we encourage children to respect and care for their environment to sustain its future.
At St. Michael's, Geography is taught as a discrete subject with links made to other curriculum areas where appropriate.
Our learning is structured around eight key geographical concepts: human features; human processes; natural features; natural processes; climate; interdependence; resources; maps & data.
In this way, we can support children in developing their geographical knowledge progressively each year. Children engage in learning about diverse people and places, using different geographical resources, including a range of maps, images and charts.
To support the cohesive delivery of our Geography Curriculum, and develop the pupils' substantive knowledge, we ensure that our lessons are underpinned by these recurring Key Geographical Questions:
Term 1 | Term 2 | Term 3 | Term 4 | Term 5 | Term 6 | |
| Yr.R | A Local Farm: taking the children to visit a local farm on Exmoor. Learning what farmers do and what happens on a farm (food production) and enjoy some hands-on animal experiences. There will be a focus on learning about hens. | Where Do I Live?: Learning about their lives, farmers, and farming to think more about Minehead and how Minehead compares to other places and what life is like for other people. Going on a local Welly Walk to observe seasonal changes. Teaching the children to notice what they see, feel, and hear so that we can reflect on our observations later in the year. Introducing the children to thinking more about where they live in the context of Minehead and the world. We will teach the children about maps, following a route and how to begin to use positional language to describe where things are | Going On Journeys: Learn to talk about journeys in stories and their own journeys in and around Minehead and the woods. Using stories, the children will learn to compare the landscape, bridges and woods of Minehead with the city of London (including the bridges there!!). The children will continue to observe the natural world during Forest School experiences. Forest School is running for this whole half term. | The Changing Seasons: Learning to understand the effect of the changing seasons on the natural world around them. A second visit back to Coombe Farm, focusing on Lambing. The children will observe, name and describe the effects of the changing seasons. Understanding that animals, including humans, have offspring which grow into adults. Beginning to understand the need to respect and care for the natural environment and all living things. Describing their immediate countryside environment in Minehead and Exmoor and make comparisons with the city of London. Looking at maps and use maps of the classroom to find and locate things. | ||
| Yr.1 | Where We Live: we are going to learn about the four countries that make up the UK and learn the names and location of the three main seas that surrounds it. | Our Local Environment: Looking at our local environment and describing the key features - moorland, farmland, hills, coast, sea. Using aerial photographs to recognise landmarks and basic human and physical features. Developing our fieldwork and observational skills to study the geography of our school, its grounds and the key human features of its surrounding environment. | The United Kingdom: | |||
| Yr.2 | Where We Live: Focusing on Minehead and the surrounding local areas. During this topic we will understand why some people move from one place to another and why people choose to move to our local area. Learning to read ordinance survey maps, learning how to describe a location and routes using coordinates. Local field trips , creating our own questionnaires to interview the local community about living and working here. Devising our very own maps. | Comparing Our Area: Building on our knowledge of our local area and why people move to Exmoor and Minehead, comparing this to larger cities and less rural or coastal locations in the UK. Starting to learn the names of the seas around the UK and beginning to look at continents and oceans. | Comparing Internationally: | |||
| Yr.3 | Coasts: focusing closely on coasts, comparing the coast local to Minehead, nationally and internationally. | Rivers: studying where a river starts and how it changes through its journey to the sea. Comparing a local river with both a national and an international river. Understanding how rivers have affected where people have settled and their importance to humans. | Mountains: By the end of the unit the class will produce a fact file on a chosen mountain. | |||
| Yr.4 | Where We Live: where are food comes from. Focusing on local farms in Minehead and surrounding areas, with the hope to visit a farm. Looking at how our food choices impact the environment and what trading responsibly means. Also looking at where we get our chocolate from, looking at local chocolate makers. Investigating if our school dinners are locally sourced and whether it is better to buy local or imported food. | Comparing Our Area: focusing on South America and comparing this to Minehead and the UK. We will locate the continent of South America on a map, name the countries of South America and identify the countries on a map. Finding out about the different climates in South America; finding out about the Andes and how they were formed and how they are now used. Describing the difference between human and physical geography. Looking at the differences and similarities between Minehead, a region in the UK and a region of South America throughout the topic. | The Water Cycle: |