Year 7 begins with a cycle focusing on Global Biomes providing an immediate opportunity to reflect on the way in which humans and nature interact, and re-visits many of the geography skills taught at KS2 to ensure all students have solid foundations upon which knowledge and skills can be built. Human and physical topics are interspersed regularly to encourage student engagement and the ability to make synoptic links which are vital for future study. Students receive a broad curriculum at KS3 providing them with a solid foundation for future study. Cycle 2 explores population and migration, and considers some of the key issues discussed within the media today. Cycle 3 looks at the tectonic processes that result in powerful natural hazards such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, along with their impacts on people and the way in which humans can mitigate and adapt to minimise impacts.

In Year 8 students learn about weather and climate change within Cycle 1, and consider the natural and human causes of climate change. Lessons recognise a range of impacts linked to climate change for both the UK and the Wider World. Cycle 2 looks at development and resource management, and builds on prior learning about the factors driving migration. Students learn about the increasing challenges of managing essential resources, particularly in light of pressures resulting from climate change, geopolitics and finite energy resources. In Cycle 3 students learn about Rivers, their key features and management. Links are made with locality of Plymouth, and its proximity to Dartmoor, the River Plym and River Tamar.

Year 9 focuses on sustainability as a core Geographical concept which lies at the heart of the discipline. Cycle 1 focuses on superpowers and globalisation, considering the challenges that superpowers pose to humans. Cycle 2 considers what Sustainable Living looks like in the 21stCentury, and looks at extreme environments and the sustainable management of the Rainforest Biome. In Cycle 3 students consider the Urban World, looking at major cities and the issues affecting cities. Students learn about resource management in the UK, and at a Global scale, considering the varying solutions of both large-scale infrastructure developments, and intermediate / appropriate technology.

Curriculum plans at Key Stage 3 are designed to support and enhance learning undertaken within the AQA GCSE and A-Level curriculums, and students begin their GCSE studies with a broad and varied foundation knowledge and with secure geographical skills.

Our sequential lesson planning and explicit lesson resources provide challenge whilst at the same time scaffolds learning and supports students from different starting points to ensure all students can make rapid progress. This is structured to support sequencing of lessons, using the same overarching and topic questions as the Long Term Plans. The content clearly addresses these questions, and supports the acquisition and embedding of key knowledge. Inclusion of sample questions and annotated answers helps students to consolidate and address common misconceptions. Lessons start with low-stakes tests which are used to test recall from prior learning and encourage students to discover synoptic links within the topics studied. The sequence of lessons at KS4 is planned with an understanding of how our students learn to maximise strengths ensuring strong schematic development. Misconceptions regarding both knowledge and understanding are addressed in each sequential lesson plan and in lesson resources. This ensures that all classes receive consistent messages regardless of who teaches them. Ensuring our students are up to date with current affairs and ‘Geography in the news’ aims to enable our students to see Geography as ‘their world’ rather than an unconnected subject which they are not part of. In an ideal world as Geographers we would visit the places that we are looking. However, as that is not a possibility, we expose our students the places we learn about through the use of images, documentaries and maps. We believe that ‘seeing’ things greatly improves' our students understanding. Our sequential lesson planning is regularly evaluated and updated to ensure our curriculum continues to include “the best that has been thought and said” (Matthew Arnold, 1869).

Fieldwork visits take place in Year 10 and 11 which offer GCSE students the opportunity to visit a river, coastal and urban area. We support our disadvantaged students where necessary to access our full curriculum including trips and visits. Regular low stakes tests, dialogical tasks requiring students to explain key concepts and ideas, formative assessment at least three times a year, and homework tasks are planned to help students remember this knowledge in detail. Quality assurance procedures both at departmental level, through HoD and peer drop-ins, learning walks, and whole school observations by SLT ensure that departmental and whole school standards are maintained. Marking moderation for Cycle Assessments takes place during department CPD and on training days. This is dictated by the needs of staff. Whole school book looks take place each term with a focus on a specific year group to ensure parity and consistency across classes in terms of feedback and quality of work. Feedback is then used to inform department CPD. At KS4, homework is planned for the whole year which requires students to recall previously taught skills and knowledge or gauge understanding of new topics. In addition, revision and exam tasks are used to address specific gaps or misconceptions. This encourages our students to be independent learners.