Geography
Geography
From September 2023, we have adopted the Opening Worlds humanities curriculum for History, Geography and RE.
Opening Worlds curriculum and its associated teaching approaches will secure the highest possible quality of education for pupils. This is because the curriculum ensures that the subjects reflect the wide reference and academic practices, outside of school, to which they refer. In addition, the material is organised so that pupils use earlier material to access to later material and so that pupils start to see how everything connects within a subject.
Opening Worlds has strongly recommended that the material is taught in sequence because each part makes the next part much more understandable. Numerous words that are explicitly taught and practised in Year 3 are then taken for granted in lessons in Year 4-6. If children do not have the secure knowledge of the content and vocabulary of the Year 3 curriculum this is likely to slow progress and limit enjoyment.
All key stage 2 children have, therefore, started with the Year 3 Opening Worlds curriculum. As a result of moving from the school’s previous curriculum to Opening Worlds, the school has identified a small number of content gaps. These have been noted and will be addressed through our choice of books that are used in English and read to children.
Our rationale and curriculum intent
At Oldmixon Primary School, we are committed to ensuring that knowledge is learned carefully, methodically and in a well sequenced manner in order for children to develop Geographical knowledge and skills.
In KS1, the focus for our Geography curriculum is for children to begin their journey as a Geographer by learning about their locality. Following this, children will learn about their country and the world in which they live in, their place within it and their impact on it. In year 1 and year 2, the focus will be on children developing their map skills and exploring the concepts of human and physical Geography.
In KS2, as part of our Opening World curriculum, our coherent and well-sequenced curriculum ensures that material is organised so that children use earlier material to access later material so that children see connections within and between subjects. The curriculum is ambitiously broad in scope, meticulous in rigour, highly coherent and carefully sequenced so that children are able to understand new content, arrive with curiosity and recognise a wide range of technical vocabulary. Through powerful storytelling, explicit vocabulary teaching and retrieval, children will engage in geographical reasoning about change, diversity across space and interaction between places, phenomena and processes around the world, they will collect, analyse, record and interpret geographical data and learn skills of geographical enquiry including fieldwork, they will interpret a range of sources of geographical information including maps, diagrams, globes and photographs and they will communicate geographical information in a variety of ways including through maps, numerical and quantitative skills and writing at length.
Progression grid
History and Geography curriculum coverage
Check out these virtual tours! Famous Places, Landmarks and Buildings |
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Angkor Wat |
Travel to Angkor Wat in Cambodia through 3D simulations of temples and 360o videos. |
The Acropolis |
Visit the ancient citadel of Athens, Greece: The Acropolis, with a virtual tour offering 360o views and explanations of some of the fascinating history. |
Barcelona’s Camp Nou Stadium |
Barcelona’s Camp Nou Stadium: visit the entrance, the pitch, the boxes, the locker room and more. |
Canterbury Cathedral |
Get a sneak peek of Canterbury Cathedral's incredible architecture and beautiful artefacts in this extensive tour which offers a floor plan, where you can select the rooms you're interested in for 360o camera views. |
Cities and countries by You Visit |
Use YouVisit to explore cities and countries from all over the world. |
CyArk |
CyArk are a non-profit organisation who record and share the most significant cultural heritage sites. Find recordings and virtual tours of famous sites including Mount Rushmore National Memorial, Ancient Corinth in Greece, Brandenburg Gate in Germany, Tower of London in England and Rosslyn Chapel in Scotland to name a few. |
Take a virtual tour of the Eiffel Tower, the tallest structure in Paris. Here you can see a 360o panoramic view of Paris from the Eiffel Tower. |
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Explore the rugged landscape around the Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland. |
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This Virtual Tour of the Great Wall of China is beautiful and makes history come to life. Airpano provides a virtual journey of the Great Wall of China (as well as many other places around the world) through photos and videos. |
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Take a virtual tour of Peru’s 15th century Incan citadel: Machu Picchu, one of the New Seven Wonders of the World and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. |
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Neuschwanstein Castle |
Visit Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany’s fairy tale castle. The fairy tale look of the castle is rumoured to be Walt Disney’s inspiration for the castle in the Disney classic, Cinderella. It is also the inspiration for Sleeping Beauty’s castle in Disneyland. You can also have a look inside each room of the castle. |
New Orleans |
Go on a completely immersive and interactive tour of New Orleans. Ride in a streetcar down St. Charles Avenue. Visit Cafe du Monde and Commander's Palace or take a plantation or swamp tour. Stroll through the Convention Center or some of the major hotels. |
Petra in Jordan |
Petra in Jordan is an ancient city and World Heritage Site with jaw-dropping architecture and amazing views. Watch these live streams to see the spectacular site. |
A virtual tour of the Palace of Versailles in France including stories, artwork, rooms and gardens. Tour the city of Versaille, starting at the palace. |
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Pyramids of Egypt |
Take a virtual tour of the world-famous Pyramids of Egypt. You can even see the Sphinx and inside the Mastaba Tombs. |
Take a virtual walk through the iconic Roman baths, in Bath, England. Explore the Great Bath, heated rooms, plunge pools and the terrace. You can even take a virtual tour of some of the museum exhibitions. |
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Royal Residences Tours |
Explore some of the rooms of Buckingham Palace: an iconic building and official residence of The Queen; the Queen's official residence in Scotland, the Palace of Holyroodhouse; or Windsor Castle: a royal home and fortress for over 900 years. |
Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre can be enjoyed with an interactive 360o virtual tour, with photos, videos and audible wonder to guide you. |
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Son Doong Cave |
Explore the world’s largest cave: Son Doong Cave in Vietnam. |
Take an interactive tour of Stonehenge with 360o views from inside the monument. Select the hotspots to find out more. |
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Taj Mahal |
Stroll along the iconic gardens of the Taj Mahal in India or view some great aerial shots of the monument and the surrounding city of Agra. |
Yellowstone National Park |
Mud Volcano, Mammoth Hot Springs, and so much more. Tour Yellowstone National Park! |
Children in year 3 recreated river systems in their Geography lesson.
Here are some pictures of our children enjoying their Geography lessons!