Our Geography curriculum is delivered by dedicated and experienced professionals.Year 7
In Year 7 geography is all about making sure our students have a sound understanding of some basic geographical concepts and skills. This means being able to interpret and using Ordnance Survey maps, knowing some basic geography of the British Isles, learning how to use and atlas and beginning to explore some of the weird and wonderful Geography located in some of the far-flung places in the World. The units are based on changing spatial scales to encourage students to further develop their skills locally, nationally and globally. Students will visit Sheringham as part of the first topic in order to learn fieldwork skills in investigating the enquiry question “how green is Sheringham”.
Topics studied & links to Schemes of Work
- Geography and you – our local area
- Exploring Britain
- European Tour
- Fantastic Places
- Global challenges
Year 8
In Year 8 students build upon the skills and knowledge developed in Year 7. The focus of the first topic builds on an understanding of the some of the global challenges explored at the end of the previous year, with a key focus on the emerging superpower of China as part of the International Development topic which also deals with current affairs issues. A greater focus on human geography blends into the Population and Urbanisation topic, where students turn their attention to how and why cities grow globally particularly across Africa, the continent which will experience the fastest rate of urbanisation over the next decade. This naturally allows us to explore the physical geography of Africa further as part of the ecosystems topic before comparing this ecosystem to the extraordinary polar region of Antarctica. Students complete the year by exploring the topic of weather, which incorporates another chance for fieldwork opportunities and encourage the use of GIS software as part of a microclimates enquiry.
Topics studied & links to Schemes of Work
- International Development – China
- Population and Urbanisation
- Ecosystems – Savannah
- Ecosystems – Antarctica
- Weather, GIS and fieldwork
Year 9
In Year 9 students explore topics which are contributory towards the GCSE Geography course. In the Autumn Term students develop their understanding of local weather systems on a global scale developing their understanding and subsequent impacts of climate change. They will then explore the ways in which resources need to be managed in response to various human pressures, particularly energy supplies, water resources and the food trade.
Students then will learn more about natural hazards and specifically tectonic hazards by comparing places globally affected by earthquakes and tsunamis.
This continues into the Spring Term before moving onto Physical landscapes of the UK. The final part of the year is very much to do with physical geography and builds upon work covered in Years 7 & 8. This involves the study of Coastal and River landscapes. The focus then changes towards linking classroom experience to the real world. Towards the end of the year students are engaged in fieldwork in the local area and the learning of geographical skills and techniques.
Topics studied & links to Schemes of Work
- Climate Change
- Resource Management – Food, Water and Energy
- Natural hazards
- Tectonic hazards
- UK landscapes
- Coastal landscapes – including local fieldwork
- River landscapes