Geography
Intent
At Burghill Community Academy, we utilize the Kapow Primary Geography scheme of work to deliver a curriculum that aligns with our school's ethos, vision, and values. Our Geography curriculum is designed to inspire pupils to become curious, explorative thinkers who view the world through the lens of a geographer. This means developing a strong understanding of locational knowledge, place knowledge, human and physical geography, and geographical skills and fieldwork.
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Our intent is to foster an environment where children are confident in questioning, observing, and interpreting the world around them. They will develop critical thinking skills, fieldwork abilities, and a deep appreciation for both their locality and the wider world. By embedding Kapow’s Geography scheme within our curriculum, we aim to build a foundation that allows pupils to explore geographical concepts with increasing depth and complexity as they progress through the school.
We also ensure our Geography curriculum supports Burghill Community Academy’s vision of the 6 Rs:
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Reflectiveness: Encouraging pupils to reflect on their learning and geographical enquiries, considering what they have discovered and how they can build on it.
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Relationships: Promoting effective teamwork and collaboration in fieldwork and research activities, fostering positive relationships with peers, teachers, and the local community.
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Resilience: Developing resilience through challenging enquiries, complex geographical concepts, and fieldwork that takes children out of their comfort zones.
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Resourcefulness: Utilising a range of tools, resources, and methods for geographical investigation, encouraging independent problem-solving.
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Respect: Instilling respect for different cultures, environments, and the diversity of places and people studied in Geography.
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Risk-Taking: Encouraging pupils to take intellectual risks by asking challenging questions, exploring new ideas, and presenting their findings confidently.
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Our Geography curriculum is designed around the latest learning theories, such as the memory curve, ensuring that key geographical knowledge and skills are revisited frequently to promote long-term retention and understanding. The scheme also incorporates findings from the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) to ensure that learning is impactful, engaging, and accessible to all.
Implementation
Geography at Burghill Community Academy is delivered using the Kapow Primary scheme, which provides a clear progression of skills and knowledge across each year group. The curriculum is designed as a spiral model where essential knowledge and skills are revisited and built upon with increasing complexity. This approach helps to consolidate learning over time, in alignment with the memory curve, ensuring that pupils retain and build upon their understanding of key geographical concepts such as scale, place, and the interconnections between human and physical environments.
Our curriculum is timetabled to provide regular Geography lessons that are structured around Kapow’s four strands:
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Locational Knowledge: Understanding where places are and their spatial relationships.
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Place Knowledge: Comparing and contrasting different locations.
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Human and Physical Geography: Exploring both natural and human processes and their effects on the world.
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Geographical Skills and Fieldwork: Developing skills in using maps, data collection, and conducting fieldwork.
Fieldwork is a core component of our Geography curriculum, and opportunities for fieldwork are embedded in each unit, from small-scale explorations within the school grounds to larger field visits. This hands-on approach allows pupils to apply what they have learned in the classroom to real-world contexts, building confidence and competence in geographical methods. Tools and resources such as maps, compasses, digital mapping technologies, and various data collection equipment are readily available to support this aspect of the curriculum.
To raise the profile of Geography within the school, we integrate Geography into cross-curricular activities, run Geography-themed assemblies, and offer enrichment opportunities such as Geography club, local area studies, and collaborative projects with the community. We also celebrate pupils' achievements in Geography during our end-of-year awards assembly, aligned with our 6 Rs.
Teachers are supported with high-quality resources and continuous professional development, including subject knowledge videos and lesson guides provided by Kapow Primary. Each lesson is designed with adaptability in mind to ensure inclusivity and challenge for all pupils.
Impact
The impact of the Geography curriculum is measured through both formative and summative assessments. Each lesson includes guidance for assessing pupils against specific learning objectives, ensuring ongoing feedback and the opportunity to identify gaps in understanding. Summative assessments, such as unit quizzes and knowledge catchers, are used to evaluate pupils’ knowledge at the end of each unit.
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Our assessment for learning (AfL) model includes regular check-ins, self and peer assessments, and teacher observations. This approach enables teachers to track progress, identify areas for development, and provide targeted interventions where needed. Pupils' work, projects, and presentations provide evidence of their understanding and progression in Geography.
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By the end of their time at Burghill Community Academy, pupils will have developed:
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A strong understanding of both the physical and human aspects of Geography, including processes, interactions, and their effects over time.
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The ability to compare and contrast different places and understand their similarities and differences.
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Competence in using geographical tools, conducting fieldwork, and presenting findings.
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The capacity to think critically, ask perceptive questions, and communicate their geographical understanding effectively.
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A sense of global citizenship, with an appreciation for the diversity and complexity of the world around them.
We expect that pupils will meet the relevant Early Learning Goals in the EYFS and achieve the end-of-key-stage expectations outlined in the National Curriculum for Geography by the end of Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2. Through their learning, they will be equipped with the knowledge and skills to confidently progress to Key Stage 3 and beyond, with a lasting interest in and appreciation for Geography.
This policy is a reflection of our commitment to delivering a high-quality Geography education that supports our pupils’ development as reflective, resourceful, and resilient learners, in line with the vision and ethos of Burghill Community Academy.
