Intent

At St Thomas’ we inspire young Geographers to develop their curiosity and fascination through providing regular fieldwork and enrichment opportunities. 

Our Catholic ethos develops citizens who show awe and wonder of the world; learning to love the planet Earth and think sustainably with a deep understanding of the environmental impact people have on the world and how we can be active participants in changing the future.  Our British Values further develops pupils who respect and embrace diversity of other cultures. 

Beginning with the local area of Grays, Essex, we encourage discovery through an authentic and progressive exploration of local, national and international places and how these change over time, so that children leave the school with a sense of place in the world, both culturally and physically. We will ensure that our pupils experience a wide breadth of study and have, by the end of each key stage, long-term memory of an ambitious body of Geographical knowledge and skills. 

Implementation

Geography at St Thomas’ is taught termly through the key strands of Locational Knowledge, Place Knowledge, Human and Physical Geography and Geographical Skill and Fieldwork. We provide further opportunities for children to apply their skills through cross curricular approaches, linking with The Power of Reading texts and looking at the historical and social context. We ensure high expectations of all pupils through adapted learning approaches within lessons and through displaying core Geographical vocabulary within learning environments.  

Throughout the school, pupils:

• Make use of maps, atlases, globes and Google Earth resources to support their Geographical knowledge and understanding. 
• Articulate the physical and human processes, how they impact each other and change over time.
• Recognise and appreciate diversity.
• Interpret a range of sources, communicate geographical information in a variety of ways including through maps, numerical and quantitative skills, speaking and writing at length.
• Authentically explore different countries and cultures, comparing these to their own locality. 

Develop a love of Geography through regular fieldwork opportunities, enrichment and through the Catholic ethos of awe and wonder of the world.

Impact

Our Curriculum overview ensures a wide breadth of study with a progression in both knowledge and skills; each year group benefits from outdoor learning through fieldwork activities which develop pupils’ knowledge of their local area. Enrichment activities are planned to provide children with Cultural Capital. Target Tracker data is analysed termly and used alongside learning walks and book monitoring to assess the impact of teaching and learning over time . Pupil interviews show that pupils value and love Geography; they talk with confidence about what they have learnt and make links to prior learning. Pupils leave St Thomas’ as explorers; knowing how to travel from one location to another, proficient in map use and interpreting data. Teaching equips pupils with knowledge about diverse places, people, resources and the interconnection between natural and human environments.