One of the ways that I like to stretch my most able students is by offering them the opportunity to enter nationwide geography competitions. The benefits of this are threefold: students get the chance to challenge themselves and expand their geographical knowledge; the profile of the geography department is raised; and older students gain valuable […]
Read more
“Fieldwork makes geography come to life, puts everything into context in glorious 3D and helps students really grasp how geography literally shapes the world around us.” Kate Humble, BBC Springwatch presenter (taken from Parkinson, 2009) It doesn’t take long to persuade a geography teacher of the benefits of fieldwork and even less time to encourage […]
Read more
Firstly…good news! As part of their not-for-profit work, Esri UK has recently announced that a school subscription to ArcGIS Online will now be free! So now that you have no excuse for leaving GIS out of your Schemes of Work, here are a couple of exciting and innovative ways you can use the software with your classes […]
Read more
It seemed like every geography teacher that I knew had visited Iceland – apart from me. Finally, this Easter holiday, I got my turn to visit this geographer’s paradise. Along with my sixth form geographers, I went on a 5 day tour of South Iceland to marvel at the glaciers, waterfalls, volcanos and dynamic coastlines. […]
Read more
Top of my department’s development plan is to increase the use of GIS (Geographical Information Systems) in our curriculum. Personally, I am a strong advocate for introducing it to students at all levels – it is a tool that is being used in many exciting industries and students should be confident with using it. Google […]
Read more
I’ve set myself four New Year’s resolutions in order to develop my teaching, add new elements to my lessons, and engage my pupils. It may be dark and bleak outside, but inside the classroom there is no need for my lessons to be! Let me share my ideas with you: Have a weekly ‘Geography in […]
Read more
I am currently completing a part-time Masters degree in Geography Education at the Institute of Education, UCL. The module I am currently studying is entitled ‘What is Education’ and asks students to consider the ‘big questions’ of what education is for, both now and in the future. Whilst the assignment does not need to be subject-specific, my […]
Read more
I find my school a very exciting place to be in the run up to Christmas. Whilst the concerts, plays, presents, and games all add to the atmosphere, I think it is also important to strike a balance between fun Christmassy lessons and worthwhile learning, especially during the last week of term. I would like […]
Read more
This year, my holiday unintentionally enabled me to witness and think about some excellent geography. I believe everything can be related to geography in some way! This gave me the idea for a lesson for my KS3 classes. ‘The Geography of my Holidays’ asks pupils to think carefully about either a holiday or a day […]
Read more
I am very lucky to work in a girls’ school where the students are extremely focused and conscientious. Many are not satisfied unless they have a page full of detailed, multi-coloured notes at the end of every lesson. Therefore, when I invited my Year 11 class into the classroom and asked them to put away […]
Read more