Geography

Theme Overview: The intention of this theme is to expand student’s awareness of what it means to be part of a community. This is explored at local, national, and international levels as well as secular and religious community structures. Students will consider the benefits of pluralism, diversity, and British Values. As the idea of community is brought into focus, students will also consider how politics is a tool for change and how MPs are an integral part of this. Students will learn about inspiring people and will contemplate the qualities of a person who is an inspiring global citizen. Finally, students will work collaboratively with their peers to complete a class agreed ‘Citizen’ project. 

Key Geographical Concepts: 

Scale – the difference between a local, national, and international area.  

Why do we teach it: 

Citizen Me provides students with an introduction to Geography in the local area which is imperative for the delivery of future themes and for the locational knowledge of the students.  

Why now: Teaching citizen me as the first theme provides the students with the opportunity to learn about the local area. This is important for those students who have lived here their whole life and also those who are new to the area. This proves students with the basic local locational knowledge that they can use throughout future themes.  

Competencies: 

SE.GE.01: Demonstrate knowledge of locations and places, environments, and different scales. 

Theme Overview: The  intent  of  the theme is  to  use  the  mystique  that  has  intrigued  mankind throughout history about what goes on beneath the Earth’s surface to   spark   students’   curiosity.   The   theme   focuses   on   a   fascinating mix between scientific explanations, religious beliefs and key literary pieces with the centre of the Earth as a common link. The theme borrows its name from Jules Verne’s classic science fiction novel of the same name.  The book introduces the students to the theme with a clear focus on inference as a literary skill when studying the text.  Students will also explore the religious and scientific ideas of how the universe came into being. As the theme progresses students will discuss the impact of important scientific figures and discoveries on how, as humans, we understand our position in the universe. 

Key Geographical Concepts: 

Plate tectonics, causes of earthquakes and volcanoes, impacts of earthquakes/volcanoes in contrasting locations around the world. The atmosphere including weather and climate 

Why do we teach it: 

Journey to the centre of the earth covers some of the most important physical geography processes that students need to understand. It enables students to become curious about the world and the tectonic hazards that occur. 

Why now: 

This theme is taught now as it gives the students the opportunity to increase their physical geography knowledge whilst acting as a hook for their geography education. 

Competencies: 

SE.GE.03: Demonstrate understanding of physical geography concepts and its interrelationships with places, environments and processes. 

Theme Overview: This intention of this theme is to   enable students to consider a range of reasons as to why people undertake journeys, and the effects that embarking on these journeys may have on them. We begin the theme by looking at the map skills that enable travellers successfully to get from one place to another. Building on these skills, students are able both to plan a journey and to write about a journey they have previously undertaken. The theme enables students to demonstrate their place knowledge of the Middle East, and the importance of this region to many of today’s major world religions. Taking Christianity, Sikhism and Islam in turn, students   explore   religious   pilgrimages   that   followers   of   these   religions   undertake, the reasons they take these journeys and what the lasting effects of these journeys may be. Students can contrast religious pilgrimages and poetry of   today   with   those   from   the   medieval   period:   have   pilgrims’   reasons   for   undertaking these journeys changed over the centuries? 

Key Geographical Concepts: 

Compass directions, four and six figure grid references and using maps to plan a route.  

Why do we teach it: 

This theme provides students with the opportunity to learn map skills that will be revisited throughout KS3 and KS4 at WBCA. These map skills enable students to create their own journey to see how map skills can be put into real life practice.  

Why now: 

This theme is taught now as it provides the students with key geographical skills early on in their geography education. It builds upon the basic map skills they already know and allows them to then further develop these skills in future themes across KS3.  

Competencies: 

SE.GE.01: Demonstrate knowledge of locations and places, environments, and different scales. 

SE.GE.04: Demonstrate map skills. 

Theme Overview:  

By the end of the theme students will be expected to answer the driving question of “does water always win”. They will be beginning to explore some of the more complex processes involving water such as river systems, glaciers and the hydrological cycle.  They will look at the processes in which operate and the landforms that are created as a result of these processes. Students will be taken to visit a river so that they are able to see these processes in operation in real life. 

Key Geographical Concepts: 

River processes, river landforms, flooding and river management, glacial processes and landforms, tsunami’s, water pollution and coral reefs.  

Why do we teach it: 

The theme of water is taught as water has shaped the landscape of the UK through rivers and glaciers. This enables the students to understand why the UK’s relief is the way it is. This theme includes topics that are not taught as part of the KS4 curriculum including coral reefs. This is important as students need a holistic geographical education that is relevant to the current global issues.  

Why now: 

This physical geography topic comes after a series of map skills within the theme of journeys. This allows students to put their map skills to use in the context of rivers and glaciers. This time of year also provides the students with the opportunity to visit a river on a fieldtrip. 

Competencies: 

SE.GE.03: Demonstrate understanding of physical geography concepts and its interrelationships with places, environments and processes. 

Theme Overview: The intention of this theme is to explore the variety of ways ‘growing’ can be applied to life. Students will study plant growth through investigating the conditions that allow growth to take place. In addition, they will study population growth and factors that contribute to this with a particular focus on comparisons o HICs and LICs. Furthermore, students will consider personal issues around ‘growing’ such as peer pressure and friendships. 

Key Geographical Concepts: 

Causes of population growth, settlements, describing population distribution, urbanisation, push and pull factors, impacts of population growth, difference between HICs and LICs and population pyramids.   

Why do we teach it: 

It is important for students to know the reasons for global population growth and the impacts that this could have as this is a current issue for many countries around the world. It is also good to introduce students to countries at different development levels. 

Why now: 

Students will be expected to understand the concept of population growth before themes such as made in China. They will also need to understand development levels of countries before they study the theme coming and going. This means it gives the students the foundational knowledge that they can build upon over the years.  

Competencies: 

SE.GE.02: Demonstrate understanding of human geography concepts and its interrelationships with places, environments and processes. 

Theme 2 – Grand Designs 

Theme 3 – Coming and Going 

Theme 4 – India 

Theme 7 – Coasts 

Theme Overview: The intention of this theme is for students to apply key design and mathematical skills to their own Grand Design. They will begin by looking at settlements, reasons for locations of settlements as well as different settlement models. They will explore changes in urban areas including urbanisation and regeneration. They will take on the role of an architect bidding for a new project in the local area, planning and building models of their designs and considering how to fund them for the future. They will conduct research, plan, build and use feedback to make improvements throughout the project. By the end of the theme, they will participate in a competition, where they will deliver their pitch in the hope of it being chosen by the local community. 

Key Geographical Concepts: 

Development of settlements including the hoyt and burgess models, urbanisation (push and pull factors), counter urbanisation and regeneration 

Why do we teach it: 

Students at WBCA live in a highly urbanised area where regeneration has and is continuing to take place. This means it is important for these students to understand the reasons why these human geography processes occur and the impacts that they have on the local area. 

Why now: 

This theme is taught here as it builds upon the urbanisation knowledge gained in the Year 7 theme of growing. This further develops the students understanding of settlements by adding challenge through settlement models.  

Competencies: 

SE.GE.02: Demonstrate understanding of human geography concepts and its interrelationships with places, environments and processes. 

Theme Overview: The intention of this theme is to allow students to probe and ask questions regarding the way our environment has been shaped by human movement and activity. Students achieve this by looking at specific case studies, investigating current global issues and the effect they have on the people living within different areas of the world. Students will also research different countries of the World including Russia, India, China and Britain using location and map skills as well as empathy to build up life skills that give them a sense of place and scale. 

Key Geographical Concepts: 

Conflict, migration/refugees and associated push and pull factors, impacts of migration, primary and secondary data, qualitative and qualitative data sources, how to write a research project, map skills. 

Why do we teach it: 

The global issues that are covered in this topic are very relevant to out students. The local area is very ethnically diverse with students having migrated from multiple places around the world. Teaching this theme outlines reasons why this takes place. Geographical skills are also covered within this topic. These provide students with some understanding of a geographical enquiry and the difference between types of data.  

Why now: 

This theme links on well to grand designs as it continues with exploring how human movement and activity can impact an urban area. Students will already have the basic knowledge of development as they looked at country classifications in the year 7 theme of growing. This means they can build upon this knowledge in this theme.  

Competencies: 

SE.GE.02: Demonstrate understanding of human geography concepts and its interrelationships with places, environments and processes. 

SE.GE.04: Demonstrate map skills. 

Theme Overview: This intention of this theme is to broaden students’ depth of knowledge of British and world history through the study of the Indian sub-continent from many different perspectives. We start by looking at the physical geography of India and then go on to discover and reflect on how modern India has developed from the sixteenth century and the rule of the Mughals to modern India today.  This includes exploring the impact of the British Raj in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and the struggle for independence.  We also look at some world religions which are practised in India, and the influence of some Indian art, film and literature.  The journey of lessons in the theme alongside the supporting resources allow students to explain what made India the country it is today with reference to the Indian sub-continent and its global context. 

Key Geographical Concepts: 

Physical geography if India including location, relief and climate zones. 

Why do we teach it: 

India is a large country that is beginning to develop. It is important that students understand where the country started from and what it is like today. Students need to understand the links India has with the rest of the world and its place within the world. 

Why now: 

India is taught as a place specific theme in year 8 to enable students to explore the links between the physical and human geography of a country. This concept will then be further developed in year 9 when students get the opportunity to look at China as a country.  

Competencies: 

SE.GE.01: Demonstrate knowledge of locations and places, environments, and different scales. 

SE.GE.03: Demonstrate understanding of physical geography concepts and its interrelationships with places, environments and processes. 

Theme Overview: The intention of this theme is to allow students to explore the physical and human processes that operate at the coast. Students will learn about how the coast can change due to physical processes and what landforms these processes create. They will look at how humans have impacted the coastline in terms of coastal management and tourism. They will study real like UK coastal examples throughout this topic such as Blackpool and Weston-Super-Mare. Students will be given the opportunity to complete either a virtual or real fieldtrip where they will be able to investigate a coastal environment and explore the impact of tourism.  

Key Geographical Concepts: Coastal processes, coastal landforms, coastal management, human impacts on the coast through tourism, coastal place studies including Weston-Super-Mare and Blackpool.  

Why do we teach it: 

As the UK has vastly changing coastlines it is important that the students at WBCA understand why this is changing and how it causes landforms. Due to our location, it is likely that a number of our students have not visited the coastline. We would like to provide them with this opportunity so that they are able to visually see what they are learning about within the classroom.  

Why now: 

The complexity of this topic lends itself nicely to year 8 geography. This will build upon the knowledge of physical landscapes that students explored in the year theme of water. In this topic the students will further develop their map skills as well as their fieldwork skills. The time of year makes this a good opportunity for coastal fieldwork.  

Competencies: 

SE.GE.02: Demonstrate understanding of human geography concepts and its interrelationships with places, environments and processes. 

SE.GE.03: Demonstrate understanding of physical geography concepts and its interrelationships with places, environments and processes. 

SE.GE.04: Demonstrate map skills. 

Theme 2 – Whose Earth Is It Anyway? 

Theme 5 – Made in China 

Theme 6 – America, Land of the Free 

Theme 7 – Britain 

Theme Overview: This is a humanities-based theme which begins with students discussing the different elements of this theme and the driving question. They then revisit religious views about creation and how people explain how the earth was made. Students investigate what the earth is like through a study of the impact of factors on ecosystems and research four of the main global ecosystems. From here students study the impact of weather on the earth and the people who live there. The next area of study involves how humans have affected the earth from drawing borders in Africa in the 19th Century, through different rates of development to the impact of different factors internationally and locally, summing up with the impact of climate change. Students then study attitudes to Whose Earth it is by investigating the impact of Fake News on climate change and ending with religious and personal views about stewardship and who should protect the Earth. 

Key Geographical Concepts: 

Ecosystems and biomes with a focus tropical rainforests, hot deserts, polar/tundra and temperate deciduous forests, Antarctica flag competition, tropical storms with case study examples, development indicators and development gap, secondary data to investigate two contrasting locations, causes and impacts of climate change.  

Why do we teach it: 
At WBCA we provide a holistic geography education. Students need to be taught about climate change in KS3 in case they do not take geography GCSE. They need to know what can be done to reduce the impacts on the world for their future. This is also a very relevant geographical concept which shapes the world the students live in. 

Why now:  

The theme of whose earth is it anyway covers a variety of global issues that are complex and relevant to the students lives. In order to understand the location of ecosystems, students need to understand the science behind plant growth which is taught in the Year 7 theme of growing, before they can understand reasons for the levels of biodiversity within ecosystems. Climate change is also a challenging topic which is better taught when the students have a good understand of other geographical concepts of human interaction with the earth.  

Competencies: 

SE.GE.01: Demonstrate knowledge of locations and places, environments, and different scales. 

SE.GE.02: Demonstrate understanding of human geography concepts and its interrelationships with places, environments and processes. 

SE.GE.03: Demonstrate understanding of physical geography concepts and its interrelationships with places, environments and processes.  

Theme Overview: The intention of this theme is to examine the nation of China and explore its worldwide significance and influence. Students will study the physical geography of China and how the climate of certain areas of China are different and some reasons why this is the case. Students then investigate the importance of physical geography in China and how humans use their environment and try to mitigate some of their impacts on it – the One Child Policy. Students then reflect on the Buddhist faith and values, comparing their own belief systems to those of other cultures. Moving onto a brief history of China and how different types of government have affected the country. Student look at China and its economic impact in the 20th and 21st Centuries, evaluating the reasons why it has become one of the modern superpowers. 

Key Geographical Concepts: 

Climate comparison of China, physical features in China, China’s growing population and the one child policy, tourism in China, China’s economy (GDP/GNI), TNC’s and China as a superpower.  

Why do we teach it: 

Made in China is taught as China’s economy and political decision have a great impact across the entire world. It is a great example to use to show how human intervention has had to take place to reduce population pressures and also how industrialisation and the development of TNCs can have a positive economic impact within the country. It is important for students to understand the processes of a newly emerging economy. 

Why now: 

This theme of Made in China draws together a lot of Geography that has already been taught to the students throughout KS3. We save this theme for Year 9 as the idea of trans-national corporations and global superpowers can be abstract for the students. It is taught after whose earth is it anyway as the students have already been exposed to the development indicators that will be required to understand China’s population crisis and its economic status.  

Competencies: 

SE.GE.02: Demonstrate understanding of human geography concepts and its interrelationships with places, environments and processes. 

Theme Overview: This unit is about the impact of 19th Century history on three different groups in America – native Americans, immigrants from Europe and the emancipated African American slaves mainly in the south. It uses Geography to build a picture of why and how Native Americans adapted to their environment, then looks at the impact of immigrants from Europe and on this group and on emancipated slaves. Finally addressing issues about these groups in America today. 

Key Geographical Concepts: 

Physical geography of America and the causes (push and pull factors) and impacts (including slavery) of migration.  

Why do we teach it: 

The UK has very good trading relationships with the USA, our students are very familiar with the USA as a country and so it is important for us to look at the key geographical concepts that made it the country it is today.  

Why now: 

Teaching this theme now enables students to revisit some of the key human geography concepts of migration, including push and pull factors. It builds on other skills that we have developed such as climate graphs and provides students with the opportunity to apply these to a new context.  

Competencies: 

SE.GE.01: Demonstrate knowledge of locations and places, environments, and different scales. 

SE.GE.02: Demonstrate understanding of human geography concepts and its interrelationships with places, environments and processes. 

SE.GE.03: Demonstrate understanding of physical geography concepts and its interrelationships with places, environments and processes. 

Theme Overview: This theme is currently in development. 

Key Geographical Concepts: 

Why do we teach it: 

Why now: 

Competencies: