At St. Joseph’s, our intention is that every child becomes an interested, inquisitive and knowledgeable geographer with a deep curiosity about the world and its people.

We follow the National Curriculum programmes of study and aim to develop confident geographers who are well equipped to continue their geographical learning as they progress through education. Pupils are challenged to think, act and speak like geographers, through a consistent and progressive approach across all year groups.

Both substantive knowledge and disciplinary knowledge are explicitly taught:

  • Substantive knowledge refers to the places, people, environments and geographical features pupils learn about
  • Disciplinary knowledge refers to how geographers work — including enquiry, interpretation, analysis, explanation and evaluation of geographical information and concepts such as place, space, scale, change and interdependence

High quality Geography teaching is a priority at St. Joseph’s. Our curriculum forms part of a coherent and progressive journey from EYFS to Year 6 and beyond, inspiring pupils’ curiosity and fascination about the world and equipping them with the knowledge and skills needed to understand both physical and human geography.

Through Geography, pupils will:

  • Develop locational knowledge of globally significant places
  • Explore physical and human geography throughout their learning journey
  • Experience Geography beyond the classroom through fieldwork and real world enquiry
  • Understand how geographical knowledge and skills link to future careers and real world roles
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Implementation

Geography at St. Joseph’s is taught as part of a carefully sequenced and progressive curriculum, ensuring that knowledge and skills build securely over time.

The curriculum is designed around four key threshold concepts, which are revisited and deepened across units and year groups. Content is structured as a coherent narrative, enabling pupils to make meaningful connections and retain learning.

Threshold Concepts in Geography

The Geography curriculum is led by four threshold concepts:

  • • Location and Place Knowledge
  • • Geographical Skills and Communication
  • • Physical Processes and Landscapes
  • • Human Interaction with the Environment

These concepts underpin all Geography learning and support pupils in developing a deep and transferable understanding of the subject.

Teaching, Learning and Careers

Research from cognitive science informs our teaching. Knowledge is revisited through spaced retrieval, allowing pupils to remember more over time. Teachers explicitly make links to prior learning and encourage pupils to connect new knowledge with what they already know.

Careers education is explicitly embedded within every Geography unit. Pupils learn about how geographers work in the real world and explore a range of geography related careers linked directly to each unit of study. These may include:

  • Geographers and cartographers
  • Environmental scientists and conservationists
  • Meteorologists and climatologists
  • Urban planners and transport planners
  • Geologists and hydrologists
  • GIS analysts and mapping specialists

This ensures pupils understand the purpose of their learning, raises aspirations and helps them see how geographical knowledge and skills connect to future education and employment.

Progression and Fieldwork

Geographical learning is structured so that pupils progress from:

  • Their immediate environment
  • To local geography
  • To the United Kingdom
  • And finally to the wider world

Lessons are planned in clear sequences that provide opportunities to:

  • Review and recall prior learning
  • Deepen understanding
  • Apply knowledge and skills in new contexts

Pupils are given regular opportunities to develop key geographical skills, including:

  • Fieldwork to observe, measure, record and present physical and human features of the local area
  • Using a range of geographical sources, including maps, globes, atlases, diagrams, aerial photographs and Geographical Information Systems (GIS)
  • Communicating geographical information through maps, numerical and quantitative skills, and extended writing

Impact

By the time pupils leave St. Joseph’s, they will have:

  • Developed secure locational knowledge of globally significant places
  • Gained a strong understanding of physical and human geographical processes and how they shape the world
  • Built competence in geographical enquiry and fieldwork
  • Learned to interpret and analyse a wide range of geographical information sources
  • Communicated geographical understanding confidently using subject specific vocabulary, maps, data and extended writing
  • Developed an awareness of geography related careers and future pathways

Pupil work and discussion demonstrate a high standard of Geography learning, with pupils able to talk knowledgeably about what they have learned and make meaningful links to prior knowledge.

Pupils leave St. Joseph’s with a broad and rich geographical education, strong cultural capital and the ability to think critically like geographers, fully prepared for Key Stage 3 and the wider world.