Central to our ethos of Enquiry Learning lies the deep-seated belief that children can only contribute positively to the future if they have a secure sense of identity and belonging, understand the implications of human activity on the environment, and appreciate that mankind can learn from mistakes made in the past. For this reason, we deploy the Humanities - History and Geography specifically - as potent drivers for our Enquiry Curriculum.

At Tintagel School, we want our children to be curious explorers of the world around them. Our Geography curriculum helps them build the knowledge, skills, and confidence they need to understand their place in the world and make a positive difference, both now and in the future. 

 

Our Geography curriculum is built around our Enquiry approach intertwined with our ‘Value question', immersing children in rich and meaningful experiences that develop a secure knowledge of the world. Through exciting topics, visits, residentials and carefully designed practical skills and fieldwork, pupils learn about places near and far, people, resources and the ways our planet is constantly changing. This knowledge helps them to understand how physical and human processes interact, and how landscapes and environments are formed, used and changed over time. We encourage children to ask big questions, share ideas and make connections between what they already know and new discoveries. Throughout each unit of study, they engage with a wide range of maps, learning to decode, analyse and construct them with increasing confidence.

 

We are proud of our local community, and we want our pupils to feel that pride and sense of belonging too - whilst also developing a wider awareness of national and global issues. As they move through the school, children build on their learning year by year, gaining a deep understanding of how people and the environment interact.

 

 

At Tintagel, we know that learning new vocabulary is key to understanding geography, so we make sure children are taught important words clearly and have lots of opportunities to use them. We recognise that the acquisition of language is vital to children’s learning and understanding. Geography introduces words that are unfamiliar or not in everyday use, so it’s important to explicitly teach the vocabulary and revisit regularly through the use of visual representations.  Alongside the use of visual representations, we use a scaffolded approach in Geography and this may take the form of paired work, greater use of visuals, vocabulary prompts, tasks broken down into smaller steps, teacher modelling or use of templates.

All pupils are entitled to have access to a broad, balanced and relevant curriculum, which is scaffolded and differentiated to meet individual needs. 

 

Above all, our Geography lessons nurture curiosity, resilience and responsibility, encouraging children to explore the world with growing confidence, respect and a strong sense of sustainability.

 

 

The National Curriculum fo Geography aims to ensure that all pupils:

 

- Collect, analyse and communicate with a range of  data gathered through experiences of fieldwork that deepen their understanding of geographical processes

 

- Interpret a range of sources of geographical information, including maps, diagrams, globes, aerial photographs and Geographical Information Systems (GIS)  

        

- Communicate geographical information in a variety of ways, including through maps, numerical

and quantitative skills and writing at length.