Geography at Chennestone

Creating a sense of ‘Here and There’  provides the fundamental basis for the Chennestone Geography curriculum overview to ensure all children have a sense of their place in the world. A sense of rigour and clear structure means that the National Curriculum is set as the minimum expectation for our children. Going beyond this, at Chennestone we maximise the diverse location of Surrey and our diverse experiences and cultures to bring about a true sense of belonging.

Our objective is to develop a clear knowledge and understanding of a wide range of geographical contexts and ideas for all children at Chennestone to use these to make links to notice how the world around us has changed. From EYFS to Year 6 children will use a range of resources to develop their field skills and understanding of map work. High quality teaching ensures this knowledge is embedded throughout the school. At the same time, a whole school focus on improving oracy skills and frequent vocabulary development is very important in the teaching of Geography. This approach provides the opportunity for language development and ensures that disadvantaged groups, as well as SEND and EAL children, can access the Geography curriculum at Chennestone. Local context is vitally important to give our children an idea of Sunbury upon Thames role in local, national and world geography. At Chennestone, our aim is to incorporate the geography of our immediate area (such as the River Thames, Sunbury common, Sunbury's Doomesday assets) to allow the children to see how important the local context is to the local community and the school. In contrast, many of our children speak English as an additional language. We believe it is vital to explore, learn about and compare the geography of different cultures around the world (for example South America), and how this have shaped the world we live in today. 

A sense of rigour and clear structure means that the National Curriculum is set as the minimum expectation for all schools. A sense of location as well as the development of key Geographical concepts were also used to create flow within the Geography curriculum. The local context is vitally important to give our children an idea of Sunbury Upon Thames and the South's role in local, national and world geography.

EYFS 

Geography within the EYFS at Chennestone is seen within the Understanding of the World where children develop an understanding of the world around them. A key part of the EYFS learning is to provide the children with many opportunities to walk around their local area allow the children to develop this practical and visual understanding of what they see. The knowledge they acquire within the EYFS supports their readiness for KS1 and KS2. As part of their learning, they explore a range of books (both fiction and non-fiction) which provide wide opportunities to compare and contrast locations. They use maps, atlases and technology to discover the local area as well as the world beyond Sunbury. Children within the EYFS learn key geographical vocabulary linking with concepts and ideas needed to develop their geographical knowledge.

Key Stage One

Children at KS1 develop an idea of their own local environment and then go on explore the physical and human geography of their locality in a regional, national and global context. Key ideas are introduced; settlement, land use and the impact of the local environment on man’s activity.  At Chennestone we begin by focusing on the local area in which we live by taking walks around the local areas (the meadow, the River Thames), to understand the geographical features of where they live. Within KS1, children identify countries when using maps and atlases to build an understanding of different cultures.

Key Stage Two

As they move into KS2, the content and development of key ideas expand to look at Human and Physical Geography within Europe and the world. The concepts of settlement, land use, trade and the distribution of natural resources are explored within the physical and natural environment and the potential conflicts this creates. We compare and contrast places in our wider local area to other places around the world.