Mere School Curriculum Statement

At Mere School we believe all our children have the right to succeed, to have high aspirations for their future lives and develop who they are in a respectful and caring environment. Our school ethos is firmly rooted in our school vision -

'We enjoy - we learn - we achieve.'

Geography at Mere School

At Mere School we believe that geography provokes and answers questions about the natural and human worlds, using different scales of enquiry to view them from different perspectives.  It develops knowledge of places and environments throughout the world, an understanding of maps, and a range of investigative and problem solving skills, both inside and outside the classroom.  As such, it prepares pupils for adult life and employment.  Geography is a focus within the curriculum for understanding and resolving issues about the environment and sustainable development.  It is also an important link between the natural and social science.  As pupils study geography, they encounter different societies and cultures.  This helps them realise how nations rely on each other.  It can inspire them to think about their own place in the world, their values, and their rights and responsibilities to other people and the environment.

The Curriculum Aims

• To develop a contextual knowledge of the location of globally significant places - both on land and marine - including their defining physical and human characteristics and how these provide a geographical context for understanding the actions of processes.
• To understand the processes that give rise to key physical and human geographical features of the world, how these are interdependent and how they bring spatial variation and change over time.
• To be competent in the geographical skills needed to:
  1. Collect, analyse and communicate with a range of data gathered through experiences of fieldwork that deepen their understanding of geographical processes
  2. Interpret a range of sources of geographical information, including maps, diagrams, globes, aerial photographs and Geographical Information Systems (GIS)
  3. Communicate geographical information in a variety of ways, including through maps, numerical and quantitative skills and writing at length.