Subject Leader: Mrs E Slinger
I am passionate about teaching and learning in geography. I developed my own love for geography working in the museum sector. Working for Durham University’s Geography department, I collaborated on the ‘Antarctica: Explored, Heroes and Scientists’ exhibition. Outside of teaching, I find joy in exploring different places, cultures and people during my travels. This personal interest feeds into my teaching approach, as i strive to develop children’s understanding of the world around them and nurture them into become global citizens.
I firmly believe that geography empowers children to develop a sense of agency. By learning about critical topics such as climate change and sustainability, children can become agents for positive change, actively contributing to the betterment of their environment and society.
Collaborating with local partners, such as the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, I added valuable opportunities for children to enhance their fieldwork skills into our geography curriculum. I was to ensure our children are inquisitive, knowledgeable and skilled geographers.
Intent
| Geography – Intent Policies & Documents | Download |
| Geography Long-Term Plan* | Download |
| Progression in Geography | Download |
| National Curriculum – Geography | Download |
Applegarth geographers develop a curiosity and fascination about the world and its people that will continue developing into adulthood. Pupils begin their exploration of geography in EYFS where they learn about their immediate locality through the people and places they experience on a daily basis. Teaching is designed to take advantage of our Forest School area, where pupils can develop their knowledge of key geographical features, such as the seasons and weather. As pupils progress through school, the curriculum ensures they develop a secure knowledge of where places are and what they are like, both in Britain and the wider world and to understand how places are often interdependent and interconnected. By the end of KS2, pupils are confident geographers who have a good understanding of place and locational knowledge and an awareness of how human and physical process have shaped, and continue to shape, the world around them.
*We are in the process of continuing our curriculum journey. Speak to our geography lead, Mrs E Slinger for the most up-to-date version of the geography long-term plan.
Implementation
At Applegarth School, we are committed to providing pupils with exciting, meaningful and relevant opportunities to investigate and make enquiries about their local area of Northallerton and the surrounding villages and towns, so that they can develop a real sense of who they are and what makes our local area unique and special. Our annual Heritage Week encourages research into the area, using resources that track changes over time, movement in population and why people move to our town. Children in Key Stage 1 develop an understanding of the transport system that links Northallerton to the rest of the country, tracing over maps and using them to build their journey from home to school. Visits to coastal locations, such as Runswick Bay, encourage them to compare and contrast physical features, such as the cliff and coastline to their urban home which is more familiar. In Key Stage 2, comparisons are made between areas of Great Britain, in terms of culture, human and physical features and changes in land use. In addition, pupils visit nearby Aysgarth Falls or the Yorkshire Moors National Park to learn about the course of local rivers. Geography is taught as a living, engaging, ever-evolving feature of our curriculum that can be accessed by everyone. Subject-specific geographical vocabulary is interwoven into lessons, building on previous knowledge so that pupils are confident in applying their own thoughtful questioning, developing skills in enquiry and research and able to present their findings in a clear way to a variety of audiences.
Impact
- The average proportion of pupils at the expected standard from Year 1 – Year 6 is 88%
Here’s what our pupils have to say about geography at Applegarth:
“I enjoyed comparing how the ancient Egyptians lived to how we live today. We also found out where Egypt was on a map and worked out how far away it was and how we’d get there!” Year 6 pupil
‘”In geography, we use maps in different ways, like Google Earth, and I’ve also learnt a lot about rivers that I didn’t know before!” Year 4 pupil
“I like maps because they can take me where I want to go.” Year 2 pupil
