Geography

Intent

The national curriculum for geography aims to ensure that all pupils:

• develop contextual knowledge of the location of globally significant places – both terrestrial and marine – including their defining physical and human characteristics and how these provide a geographical context for understanding the actions of processes
• understand the processes that give rise to key physical and human geographical features of the world, how these are interdependent and how they bring about spatial variation and change over time
• are competent in the geographical skills needed to:
• collect, analyse and communicate with a range of data gathered through experiences of fieldwork that deepen their understanding of geographical processes
• interpret a range of sources of geographical information, including maps, diagrams, globes, aerial photographs and Geographical Information Systems (GIS)
• communicate geographical information in a variety of ways, including through maps, numerical and quantitative skills and writing at length.

At Sowe Valley we seek to inspire in our children a curiosity and fascination about the world and its people. To promote the children’s interest and understanding of diverse places, people, resources and natural and human environments, together with an understanding of the Earth’s key physical and human processes. Geography is, by nature, an investigative subject and we want our children to enjoy a range of fieldwork experiences to gain a deep rooted understanding. 

We are committed to providing children with opportunities to investigate and make enquiries about their local area of Sowe Valley and Coventry, so that they can develop of real sense of who they are, their heritage and what makes our local area unique. Our curriculum is sequenced to enable pupils to gradually widen their sense of scale from their immediate geography of our local area to the global world.  The curriculum is designed to develop knowledge and skills that are progressive, as well as transferable, throughout their time at Sowe Valley Primary and also to their further education and beyond.

Immersion

• Every child will participate in a visit to a farm.
• Every Child will gain the opportunity to visit Coventry and another city.
• Every Child will visit the River Sowe to explore the natural feature the school is named after.
• Every child will go on a visit to the seaside and enjoy real life experience such as riding on a donkey, building sandcastle and eating ice-cream!
• Every child will have the opportunity to write and post a letter and a postcard.
• Each class will have then enjoyment of raising funds to adopting a pet through a charity such as WWF.
• Every child will work as a team to build a den with natural materials.
• Every child will explore habitats by pond-dipping to discover wildlife hiding under the surface!
• Every child will have the opportunity to take park in litter picks in the local area to help to improve our local environment.
• Every child will visit the River Avon.
• Every child will have the opportunity to build and fly a kite.
• Every child will have the opportunity to take part in a residential trip to explore a new location.
• Every child will be given the opportunity to join a club.
• Every child will have the experience of visiting a mountainous locality and climbing a mountain