Stansfield Hall Church of England | Methodist Church Primary School

Let Your Light Shine - Matthew 5:14

Todmorden Road, Littleborough, Lancashire OL15 9PR

01706 378273

office@stansfieldhall.rochdale.sch.uk

Welcome to

Stansfield Hall Primary School

Church of England | Methodist Church

"Learning and Achieving in a Caring Community"

Geography

“The study of geography is about more than just memorizing places on a map. It’s about understanding the complexity of our world, appreciating the diversity of cultures that exists across continents. And in the end, it’s about using all that knowledge to help bridge divides and bring people together.”

Barack Obama 

Our carefully designed geography curriculum covers the full scope of the National Curriculum and is intended to spark our pupils’ curiosity in the world around them and help them develop skills in geography as a tool for exploration. We have personalised the geography curriculum to the children that attend Stansfield Hall Church of England / Methodist Church Primary School and created inbuilt opportunities within the curriculum to take advantage of our setting and context. By the time children leave Stansfield Hall, they should be equipped with the geographical knowledge and skills outlined in the National Curriculum, have a deep understanding of how to explore and understand their world and be able to communicate their findings confidently and accurately. 

In EYFS, strong geography foundations are built through the Understanding the World area of our EYFS curriculum. As with other learning in Reception, our children learn about their world through focused learning activities directed by a member of staff. They experience the world around them through observing the weather and the seasons, taking walks in the local area and being interested in developing their vocabulary to include basic geographical terms. Practitioners ask questions and identify resources which allow children to slowly expand their knowledge of the world and their sense of place. 

Our Year 1 children explore their immediate locality and begin to consider where they live and the physical features around them. They are introduced to simple plans and maps and look at aerial photographs. The children are introduced to world maps and begin to think about their place in the world and how the oceans and lands are spread across the Earth. In the summer term they study in more detail farming and again explore how the land is used and how housing, shops, schools, and roads connect people to their location. 

Our Year 2 and 3 children, in Milestone 2, broaden their geographical knowledge by studying the geographical features of the UK; they are introduced to concepts around physical geography and human geography. Their knowledge of the wider world is broadened by finding out about the geography of Mexico. They also study a European country and compare this to their own local experience. Children widen their locational awareness and use maps, globes and plans to increase their sense of place in the wider world. 

Milestone 3 enables our Year 4, 5 and 6 children to develop a deeper understanding of a wide range of geographical concepts. Themes explored across Y4 and Y5 include a study of North America and large cities; the journey of a river and the water cycle; how we create and store and use energy and how mountains are formed. The children also learn research skills and study Eastern Europe and consider the human impact of war on refugees. The locality they know is used as the basis for comparing geographical features across the UK and the World. They study Whitby as a coastal town using maps, data, and other tools to learn about the area and make predictions about the work available in Whitby. Key themes like transportation and settlement are revisited and the children learn how to read maps and use compass directions to locate places. 

In Year Six the children revisit the approaches to studying physical and human geography across the themes of South America and Brazil, the polar regions and water access across the globe. Research skills are refined, and children become confident interpreting data and making sensible predictions. Social and economic issues are discussed and debated (such as climate change) but always the with knowledge that change can be positive and people can make a difference. 

We adapt our lessons carefully for our children with SEND to ensure that all children can access their learning. At the end of each unit, children’s understanding of the unit is assessed to ensure that children are constantly moved forward with their learning. In all lessons, key geographical vocabulary is embedded, and children are actively encouraged to use it in their spoken language and written work. Across the phases, children will have access to either a trip or a experience directly related to their work in order to increase their understanding of geographical concepts. 

Above all, perhaps most fundamentally, we want our children to leave Stansfield Hall Church or England / Methodist Church Primary School with a passion for and enjoyment of learning about their world. 

Autumn Spring Summer
Explorers EYFS
Year 1 What will I find in my local area? Where in the world am I? How is a farm different to the city?
Discoverers Years 2/3
Cycle A
What are the geographical features of the UK? What would it be like to live in Mexico? What is it like in the rainforest?
Years 2/3
Cycle B
Volcanoes and Earthquakes Coasts and Oceans

Where would you like to live?

Pioneers Years 4/5
Cycle A
How is life different in North America? Where do rivers come from? Is there enough to go around?
Years 4/5
Cycle B
How is life Different in Eastern Europe? What is a mountain How does our local area compare with other parts of the UK?
Year 6 How is life different in Brazil? How is climate change affecting the Arctic and Antarctic? How does the world use water?