Welcome to Geography here at St Botolph’s.
Geography
Our Vision and Intent
To instil and encourage a natural curiosity and fascination about our local environment and the world to develop knowledge of places, investigate patterns and use geographical thinking to feel connected to our ever-changing world.
At St Botolph’s, we want our children to ‘strive to be the best they can’. Geography is relevant to our ever-changing world; we want our children to be inspired by this and to feel confident to question and discuss issues. In our diverse society, children need to understand other people and cultures more than ever before. Our intent is to instil and encourage a natural curiosity and fascination about the world to promote an interest of diverse places, people, resources and natural and human environments alongside a secure understanding of the Earth’s key physical and human processes. Through revisiting these areas in our spiral curriculum, children will remember more, know more and understand more. It is essential that we give the children opportunities to grow spiritually, morally, socially and culturally. Children can develop in these areas as they learn Geography through practical experiences in preparation for exploring the world.
Meet the Subject Leader and Governor Who Oversees Geography
Geography Lead: Miss Barnes
Geography Governor: Mrs West
I have taken over as Geography Lead this year and I am so excited to share my love of Geography (particularly travelling to new places) with all of the children at St Botolph’s. You may have seen my post on Dojo about my Geography display board (I’ll copy it below in case you missed it). Please feel free to get involved!
‘As part of my display board I need post cards from all over the world! If you go on holiday over the summer holidays and your child would like a postcard to be part of our display, please bring it into school in September or post it directly to the school from wherever you are!’
Our Curriculum Journey – The Overview/Medium Term Plans
Below is a copy of the Long Term Plan.
What Children Learn
Below is our Geography Roadmap, which shows how children’s geographical knowledge and skills develop throughout their time at St Botolph’s.
Subject in Action
Take a look at some of the exciting Geography learning taking place across our school!
Enrichment Opportunities
Keep your eyes peeled!
Pupil Voice
‘Do you like Geography?’ – Miss Barnes
‘I enjoyed learning about the United Kingdom.’ – Year 1 Pupil
‘Yes because I like learning about the world and the things in it.’ – Year 2 Pupil
‘Yes because it’s good to learn about different places and different countries.’ – Year 3 Pupil
‘Yes I like Geography, especially when we get to express our own opinions.’ – Year 4 Pupil
‘I like learning about new places.’ – Year 5 Pupil
‘I have enjoyed recording information in different ways, especially labelling and expressing my own opinions.’ – Year 6 Pupil
Celebrating Success
Photos of some fantastic Geography work is coming soon!
Learning at Home
Geography is all around us! There are lots of simple ways you can support your child’s geographical learning at home without it feeling like extra schoolwork. Everyday activities, conversations and adventures can help children develop their understanding of the world and encourage them to be curious about the places and people around them. Below are some suggestions.
Talk about different places – Discuss where family members live and compare these places with your local area.
Use maps together – Can you look at a map with your children and discuss the route you’re taking to get somewhere?
Explore your local area – Go for walks and look at buildings, land use, roads, rivers, parks and other features. Ask, “Why do you think this is here?”
Look at the weather – Choose a town or city, perhaps somewhere you have visited or would like to visit and keep a weather diary to compare its weather with your local area.
Watch the news – Watch the news together and discuss geographical events happening around the world and why they might be happening, for example floods, storms, earthquakes and wildfires. Discuss what could be done to help the communities affected.
Cook food from different countries – Find the country on a map and talk about where ingredients come from. This is a great opportunity for the whole family to try something new!
Look at photographs – Compare photographs of different places and ask children what they notice and what they can infer.
Make the most of holidays – Before visiting somewhere, find it on a map and look at its climate, landscape and human features.
This Term’s Geography Challenge – Can You Be a Geographer at Home? Choose a place you have never visited. Can you find out three interesting facts about it and locate it on a map? Come and find me to tell me all about it!
Recommended Reading
Children’s atlases – Pop to the library and see if there is an atlas you can borrow. Encourage your child to explore maps, countries, continents, oceans and geographical features together.
Geography-themed fiction and non-fiction – Look out for books that introduce children to different places, people, cultures and environments.
Useful Websites
GeoQuest Adventures – World — Geography Games, Quizzes & Facts | GeoQuest Adventures
National Geographic Kids – Countries | National Geographic Kids
Google Earth – earth.google.com/static/multi-threaded/versions/20260806_0400_RC01/index.html?
BBC Bitesize Geography – Geography – BBC Bitesize
Key Documents
EYFS
Year Two
Lower KS2
Upper KS2
Year Five’s Visit to Lincolnshire Showground
Year Five’s Visit to Lincolnshire Showground