Intent

We aim to provide a comprehensive, creative curriculum to enable all our learners to understand the diversity of the world we live in. With nurture and guidance, they will ask questions, seek answers and explore their immediate locality - aspiring to develop an awareness of both natural and human aspects of the wider world beyond. This will inspire a fascination and curiosity of different countries and cultures and give them the knowledge, skills and understanding to be respectful and responsible citizens. We aim to equip Herne Geographers with the skills they need to interact with this complex and ever-changing world with care, tolerance and an informed sense of responsibility of their impact on the future.

We have a bespoke, ambitious curriculum, which follows a four year cycle. This provides an essential contribution towards our Herne Junior curriculum intent and school community ethos, through equipping our pupils for lifelong learning, rooted in God’s love. We aim to keep our curriculum broad and balanced, to weave Geography through other subjects, enabling the children to make secure links with their learning across a spectrum of areas and opening the doors to future success. We enrich children’s time in our school with memorable, unforgettable experiences and provide opportunities which are normally out of reach. We have a clear progression of skills that maps our Herne Geographer’s end points each year, underpinned by those required from the National Curriculum at the end of KS2. In addition to this, our ‘Areas to Cover’ documents further detail a clear progression of knowledge and vocabulary for each learning unit. We firmly believe that it is not solely about what happens in the classroom, it is about the added value we offer to really inspire our children.

Implementation

Our bespoke curriculum follows a four year cycle. All learning units are evenly balanced, ensuring sufficient time is allocated to teach Geography. Although taught discretely, we work hard to make meaningful links across subjects and work cohesively when it is appropriate. Following whole school units, means that all children can share their experiences, knowledge and understanding, giving a community feel to their learning, as we actively encourage families across all year groups to become involved and contribute to bringing our learning to life. This fits perfectly with the ethos and intent of our school. We believe that by crafting our curriculum this way, we improve the potential for our children to retain what they have been taught, to alter their long-term memory and thus improve the rates of progress they make. We have ensured that the units in each year end with a more challenging learning experience so that we can reach the deeper thinking elements needed.

We understand that learning involves a change to the long-term memory. With this in mind, we annually review our curriculum to ensure that the way we implement our overviews involves repetitive and progressive teaching of the key skills in Geography. All year groups teach core skills lessons in Geography during the first term of the academic year and, through careful planning, these skills are then revised, consolidated, embedded and brought to life as we work through our learning units. This is essential, as we are guaranteeing a firm foundation on which the children will build year on year, ensuring learning sticks in the long-term memory. To assist this further, we teach Geography in meaningful and creative contexts and in a connected way - making links to the wider curriculum and life at Herne. Lessons cover the learning intentions set out in the ‘Areas to Cover’ documents, have a wide range of engaging activities and resources which are used to enable our Herne Geographers to flourish and thrive. Staff consistently use AFL to move the learning of our children forwards and ensure that they are receiving current and accurate knowledge of our world. This continually informs planning and the need for any interventions.

We have developed comprehensive coverage documents for Geography which map the skills covered throughout the learning units in all four years. Each cohort has been individually mapped and gaps are tracked and filled. In addition, we have identified a ‘Geographical Enquiry’ section to clarify our meaning of the skills required.

Impact

We use assessment carefully to provide the best possible support for our pupils, including the more able. Assessment end points are clearly provided in our ‘Areas to Cover’ documents and our progression maps. Any data submitted is thoughtfully analysed and provides crucial feedback to year teams in terms of children who might have further needs. This can then be addressed as a cohort, grouping relevant children for additional support or challenge. Assessment informs our future planning, enables us to make critical tweaks to our curriculum and ensures a high level of achievement and progress across the school. Our comprehensive monitoring system in Geography includes book scrutinies, lesson observations, learning visits, pupil and staff voice, HUB meetings, staff CPD and Governor meetings. All of this information is gathered and reviewed; it is always used to inform further curriculum developments and provision is adapted accordingly. Our monitoring also ensures that we are able to have vital discussions to see the bigger picture and recognise that great outcomes are not just measured in quantifiable results, but in how successfully our pupils are developing as well-rounded citizens ready to shine in the world.