Geography
At St Christopher’s Primary School, we follow the Primary Knowledge Curriculum (PKC) for Geography, which is knowledge-rich, carefully specified, and taught to be remembered. Our approach ensures progression of skills and knowledge, enabling children to build a deep understanding of the UK, Europe, and the wider world through a rigorous framework that covers and extends beyond the National Curriculum.
Key Features of Our Geography Curriculum:
- Accessible & Comprehensive Design: The curriculum is explicitly designed so that key vocabulary and foundational knowledge are taught systematically in school, ensuring all children—regardless of their background or prior exposure—can access and excel in geography.
- Three Core Strands: Following broad foundations established in Key Stage 1, learning moves through three interconnected strands: Spatial Sense, The UK, and The World.
- Spatial Sense & Fieldwork: Every academic year begins with a dedicated Spatial Sense unit. Children explicitly learn mapping and data skills—such as interpreting scale, reading climate graphs, using co-ordinates, and reading relief maps—alongside local fieldwork in Key Stage 1. These skills are then applied continuously throughout the year.
- British Geography: Pupils study British geography incrementally every year. Starting with the countries and capitals of the UK, children progress to studying specific regions (such as the South West, South East, Yorkshire and Humberside, and the Midlands), exploring their defining physical features, human characteristics, landscapes, and land use.
- Conceptual Understanding & World Context: Children explore core geographical concepts—such as place, space, environment, and interconnection. Over time, pupils investigate real-world contexts, explorer studies, animal and human migration, and the impacts of colonialism, helping them understand how geographers study and interpret our planet.
Through this structured approach, we build children's geographical literacy, inspiring them to ask informed questions about environments and cultures across the globe.
