Geography in Key Stage 1 

In Duckpuddle, we learn about the following geography topics:

• Maps, Direction and Compass Skills
• Comparative Study: London and Nairobi
• The World's 7 Continents and 5 Oceans 
• The United Kingdom
• Therfield, Royston and Cambridgeshire (village/town/county)
• Hot and Cold areas of the World

Geography topics are bought to life through carefully planned lessons that encourage children to get to know the world they are living in. Children become excited to find out more and often go home enthusiastic about their learning, wanting to know more! 

Geography-led topics, usually have a geography-inspired BIG BANG to launch the half term's learning.  Enrichment sessions and class visits are planned to help Bring Learning to Life and lessons take place in the real life setting wherever possible.  

Each year, all classes take part in an exciting orienteering workshop, led by a specialist, using the school grounds and personalised maps and plans.  

The United Kingdom

We learn the four countries that make up the UK, their capital cities and the seas surrounding it.

We locate Wales, Scotland, England and Northern Ireland on maps, and later use maps to help us find the Capital Cities. We discover some landmarks in each capital city, and enjoy drawing some of them.

We complete an orienteering workshop, where we used compass skills and maps to find locations around the school.

Therfield, Royston and Cambridge  

The children learn about villages, towns, and cities. They look at the differences between Therfield, Royston and Cambridge and some of the advantages and disadvantages of living in each. The children take part in a fieldwork walk, observing the environment. They use maps to spot landmarks in the village and complete a map of our school grounds.

Whilst using street maps, the children identify a variety of places and discuss if they are human or physical features.

The children take part in a whole school trip to Waterstones in Cambridge. Before and after the trip, they discuss what they notice about Cambridge when compared to Royston and Therfield. 

Hot and Cold Areas of the World 

The children use their prior knowledge to locate the UK and other known countries and continents on maps and atlases. They learn about the equator and locate countries near it. The children look at climates around the world, using vocabulary such as tropical, temperature, Northern and Southern Hemisphere. They go on to compare hot and cold places around the world and look at some of the animals that live in these environments. 

The children finish the unit by looking at weather changes, including dangerous and adverse conditions. They will think about how the weather can affect us.