Geography Curriculum

Through Geography, we aim to inspire curiosity and a lasting fascination about the world and its people. By exploring different countries, cultures, landscapes and environments — and the connections between them — our children develop the knowledge and understanding they need to make sense of the world they live in.

In line with the National Curriculum, pupils build knowledge of diverse places, people, resources, and both natural and human environments. They develop a secure understanding of the Earth’s key physical and human processes. As they progress through school, their growing knowledge enables them to deepen their understanding of how physical and human processes interact, and how landscapes and environments are formed, shaped and used.

Rooted in the principles of Catholic Social Teaching, our Geography curriculum encourages pupils to recognise their responsibility as stewards of God’s creation. In particular, we emphasise the call to care for our common home, promoting respect for the environment and thoughtful consideration of how human actions impact the world around us.

Disciplinary Knowledge in Geography

Our Geography curriculum develops pupils’ ability to think and work as geographers. This disciplinary knowledge is represented through the following key areas:

• Space – Understanding location and position on the Earth’s surface.

• Place – Exploring the physical and human characteristics of locations and the meaning people attach to them.

• Cultural Understanding and Diversity – Appreciating similarities and differences between people, places, environments and cultures.

• Interdependence – Recognising the social, economic, environmental and political connections between places.

• Sustainability – Investigating sustainable development and its impact on environmental interaction.

• Scale – Understanding geography at different levels, from local to global.

• Change – Exploring how physical and human processes shape and transform landscapes and societies over time.

Substantive Concepts

Our curriculum is built around key substantive concepts such as water, climate and impact on the environment. These concepts are context dependent and are revisited across year groups in different geographical studies. By deliberately highlighting and returning to these ideas, we ensure that children make meaningful connections in their learning, developing confidence, fluency and a deepening understanding of the world.

Through an engaging and carefully sequenced curriculum, we equip our pupils with the knowledge, skills and moral awareness to understand their world, care for it responsibly, and recognise their role within God’s creation.