Geography

Our Geography Lead is Miss Cowley

Intent

At St. Peter's our geography curriculum centres around learning about the world we live in primarily through experience, investigating and learning through primary and secondary sources. Building upon knowledge and explicit geographical skills, all children will develop an understanding of what it is to be a geographer.

Implementation

Geography is taught weekly in weeks 1, 3 and 5. In EYFS children's geography journey begins through the curriculum element of Understanding the World, however explicit geography lessons are taught weekly and evidenced in the class geography big book. Through our progression of key skills document, learning is carefully sequenced and children build on their knowledge of place and location year on year.

All locational studies follow a clear structure where children will study the physical and human environments as well as the interdependence between them. Children will develop a rich and varied bank of knowledge for each study area. Elements of Catholic Social Teaching are also embedded into each area of study, ensuring our pupils see the world with compassion, respect and empathy, further instilling Catholic values.

Weekly retrieval quizzes ensure prior knowledge is used and revised weekly ensuring children remember what they have learnt. At the end of each lesson teachers use a key question prompt to ensure children are making connections between what they are learning and how this influences their attitudes and actions.

At the end of each term, teachers assess what children have learnt through end of unit assessment using key questions and vocabulary that are published on knowledge organisers. This is recorded by teachers on the school's FFT assessment system throughout the year.

We teach geography using the 'indoor and outdoor' classroom with special consideration given to the inclusion of all pupils to ensure all learners are given opportunities to put their geography skills into practice in the reading of maps, using practical equipment and having a hands on approach to acquiring geographical skills.

We do not use a bought in scheme, our curriculum has been hand-built with dedication to reflect our diverse community and the context of our school. Forging a love for themselves, others and the world we live in is our primary aim at St. Peter's and our pupils are taught within the context of our school values- respect, love and faith.

Fieldwork

All years carry out fieldwork in term 5 which is planned at dedicated fieldwork staff meetings. Teachers use the fieldwork progression document (see below) to carefully plan small steps to ensure progression and skills are being covered. Fieldwork is planned using the Geography Association's cyclical format to promote enquiry, agency and ownership of investigations. Children plan investigations with the teacher or independently depending upon their year group over the course of one or two days. Data is then analysed in age appropriate ways allowing children to draw conclusions and make judgements on their findings. We predominantly use the local area- school grounds, local high street, surrounding towns, facilities, shops and services.

Our fieldwork has been highly commended over the past two years and our school has featured in several international publications through the GA, including Primary Geography and Teaching Geography. Our dedication in providing a high quality geography curriculum was further acknowledge by being awarded a Gold Quality Mark, where our fieldwork was assessed as exceeding in all areas.

GA Gold Quality Mark

In 2025, St. Peter's was awarded the Gold Quality Mark for Primary Geography by the Geographical Association. This prestigious recognition reflects our commitment to delivering a rich, ambitious and thoughtfully designed curriculum. The GA highlighted the strength of subject leadership and the thoughtful way our geography curriculum is woven through the wider life of our school and ethos, ensuring every child develops a deep understanding of the world around them.

We were also highly commended for the inclusivity and quality of our curriculum , recognising the way we ensure all pupils can access, enjoy and succeed in geography lessons. Our work has been featured in the GA's national awards, celebrating the innovative practice at St. Peter's. This achievement is testament to our staff, the enthusiasm of our pupils and our ongoing commitment to providing an exceptional learning experience for all of our young geographers.