Geography

Curriculum timetable:

Curriculum overview:

The aims of the Geography Department at Yewlands are to stimulate a sense of awe and wonder about places, to help students make sense of the rapidly changing world and their place in it, as well as inspiring students to become local participators and global citizens. 

The department will support pupils in their ambition to achieve these aims through a broad and exciting Geographical curriculum. 

KS3 information:

At Key Stage 3, Geography at Yewlands covers a number of different topics to explore links between the physical and human world in which we live. The Geography staff work hard to ensure lessons are engaging and relevant to the students. They aim to promote curios and inspired minds.

There is a strong focus on three key areas: Geographical knowledge, Geographical Skills and written communication. By the end of Key Stage 3, students will have an understanding of key Geographical concepts that will help support their transition to GCSE. Pupils will also be confident to explain their ideas through extended writing and verbal communication.

 At Key Stage 3, topics include:

• The Geography of the UK
• Fascinating Places - including Tanzania, Vietnam and Alpine France
• Natural Hazards
• Climate Change
• Rivers
• Migration
• Development
• Weather and Climate
• Ecosystems
• Prisoners of Geography
• Tourism and Coastal Environments
• Issues in the Middle East

GCSE information:

Why Study Geography GCSE? 

Studying Geography GCSE enables a variety of teaching and learning approaches. This exciting and relevant course studies geography in a balanced framework of physical and human themes and investigates the link between them. Students will travel the world from their classroom, exploring case studies in the United Kingdom (UK), higher income countries (HICs), newly industrialising countries (NICs) and lower income countries (LICs). 

Upon completion of this two-year course, students will have the skills and experience to progress onto A-level and beyond. 

Eduqas Geography B

The exams format

The qualification is linear and assessed through exams only. There are three exams: 

1. a) Exam 1: 1 hr 45 mins (40%)

This has three sections: 

Theme 1 - Changing Places – Changing Economies 

Theme 2 - Changing Environments 

Theme 3 - Environmental Challenges. 

Questions will be asked from these three themes. 

1. b) Exam 2: 1 hr 30 mins (30%)

This is a decision-making paper that is synoptic across all themes 

1. c) Exam 3: 1 hr 30 mins: (30%)

This has three sections that all test fieldwork enquiry skills.

Knowledge in Geography: 

The Geography curriculum’s core elements are: Geographical Knowledge, Skills and Communication. Students develop these three core elements throughout their lessons from Year 7 to Year 11. As these underpin student’s learning, they are able to develop their knowledge, skills and writing communication skills as they navigate through the Key Stages.

How to prepare for GCSE:

By the time students have made their option choice to study Geography at GCSE, they will have already encountered information about Human and Physical Geographic concepts. The content will feel similar to the design of the KS3 curriculum. In order to prepare students for GCSE, there will be a focus on retrieval; both within the classroom and an expectation on completing home learning tasks using their Knowledge Organiser.

It is also critical that we build on the communication skills that students have learnt at KS3 to explain their ideas, to know be able to evaluate and critically examine issues within the content of the course.

In addition to the work that students complete in lessons, students should also be interested in the news as issues discussed at GCSE Geography, for example, the state of the economy, global economics, the housing crisis and natural disasters, occur frequently and students can gain further knowledge from different sources.

A-level and Beyond: 

As a department, we consciously prepare our students for Geography at A-Level.  In class, we promote a scholarly approach to the subject. We dedicate ample time to explore and link concepts together and present these ideas through extended writing, which we believe equips students well for further education.  The development of key skills as well as detailed knowledge of the subject will allow students to achieve in further education.