At Badgerbrook Primary School, our Geography curriculum aims to ignite a lifelong curiosity and wonder about the world and its people. We want our pupils to develop a deep appreciation for the diversity of places, cultures, resources, and both natural and human environments.
Our teaching is designed to provide pupils with knowledge about a range of global locations, people, and resources, while fostering an understanding of the key physical and human processes that shape our planet. As pupils progress through the school, we encourage them to build on this knowledge and develop a clearer understanding of how these processes interact, forming the landscapes and environments around us.
Through the development of geographical knowledge, understanding, and skills, we provide a framework that helps pupils explore how the Earth’s features are connected, shaped, and transformed over time. This foundation supports their ability to see the world in a more informed, interconnected way.
Our Geography curriculum at Badgerbrook Primary is designed to ensure that all pupils:
We also aim to ensure that all pupils become skilled in essential geographical practices, including:
At Badgerbrook Primary School, teachers collaborate closely to plan Geography lessons using our structured learning journey planning format. Our Geography curriculum is designed with progression maps and knowledge maps to ensure that teaching builds long-term understanding.
As well as this, we underpin our learning based on the Sustainable Development Goals to help pupils understand global challenges and inspire them to be global citizens. The SDGs provide a framework that connects Geography with real-world issues, such as climate action, sustainable cities, responsible consumption, and life on land and below water. This approach helps pupils retain key content and effectively integrate new knowledge into broader geographical concepts. By structuring learning in this way, we aim to support pupils in developing a deep, lasting understanding of Geography.
At Badgerbrook Primary School, the EYFS Geography curriculum is focused around developing children’s map skills and exploring their local area. A key part of this focus involves hands-on activities where children create their own maps and go on a “Whetstone Walk” to discover their surroundings. Map-making is woven into their play, with activities like designing treasure maps, crafting a “bear hunt” map, and even going on a real bear hunt around the school grounds, using their maps as guides. The curriculum also introduces children to global geography through playful interactions with atlases and globes, often linked to story time, where they learn about animals from around the world. The focus on map skills continues, enhanced by the story “Rosie’s Walk,” which further helps children build a sense of direction and spatial awareness.
In KS1 at Badgerbrook Primary, pupils build their locational and place knowledge, learning about the world, the United Kingdom, and their local area. They are introduced to key vocabulary related to human and physical geography, and begin to develop geographical skills, including firsthand observation, to enhance their understanding of different locations.
Teachers use knowledge organisers to plan learning effectively. These organisers map out key information for each unit, supporting regular quizzing to check pupils’ understanding, reinforce knowledge, and identify areas where further practice is needed.
Geography units are taught once per term, alternating with History, Science, Design and Technology and RE which are designed by staff to meet the National Curriculum targets. Each topic spans a two-week period and is delivered in a focused block to allow for deep, immersive learning. Staff ensure that the National Curriculum requirements for KS1 Geography are fully met, following the school’s progression map to provide comprehensive coverage across the phase.
By the end of KS1, children will be able to;
Locational Knowledge
Place Knowledge
Human and Physical Geography
The KS2 Geography curriculum broadens pupils’ knowledge and understanding beyond the local area to encompass the United Kingdom, Europe, and North and South America. Pupils explore the location and characteristics of some of the world’s most significant human and physical features, deepening their locational and place knowledge through targeted geographical skills.
Geography units are taught once per term, alternating with History, Science, Design and Technology and RE with each topic spanning a twoweek block. This intensive format supports deep, focused learning in each area.
In Lower Key Stage 2 (LKS2), staff ensure that the National Curriculum expectations are met, building on the foundations from KS1. By following the school’s progression document, teachers carefully plan and sequence content, allowing new knowledge and skills to build on what pupils have previously learned.
In Upper Key Stage 2 (UKS2), staff continue to build on prior learning from LKS2. Through careful reference to the progression document, the curriculum remains structured and cumulative, ensuring that pupils’ knowledge and skills are strengthened and expanded as they move through KS2. This approach enables pupils to make meaningful connections in their geographical understanding as they progress.
By the end of KS2, children will be able to;
Locational Knowledge
Place Knowledge
Human and Physical Geography
Geographical Skills and Fieldwork
At Badgerbrook Primary School, our History curriculum is designed to spark a lifelong curiosity about the past and how it shapes the world we live in today. We aim to give pupils a rich and meaningful understanding of history—not just in the UK, but across a
wide range of cultures, time periods, and global events.
We want children to think like historians: to ask thoughtful questions, explore evidence, and understand the complexity of human experiences over time. History isn’t just about learning facts—it’s about making sense of how people lived, what they believed, and how their choices and actions influenced the world.
As pupils move through the school, they build the skills to examine sources, consider different viewpoints, and tell informed stories about the past. We help them appreciate the diversity of cultures, races, and societies, and encourage them to see how historical events connect and influence one another across time and place.
By the time they leave Badgerbrook, our pupils will have a deep, engaging understanding of history, equipped not only with knowledge, but with the tools and curiosity to keep exploring the past and its relevance to their own lives.
Our History curriculum at Badgerbrook Primary is designed to ensure that all pupils:
• Develop a strong foundation in historical knowledge, exploring significant events, people, and places from Britain and across the wider world. Pupils will gain insight into different time periods, cultures, and societies, helping them understand how the past has shaped the present.
• Build a deep understanding of key historical concepts, including continuity and change, cause and consequence, similarity and difference, and historical significance. These concepts help pupils make sense of complex historical narratives and draw meaningful connections across time and place. We also aim to ensure that all pupils become confident in six essential disciplinary skills that underpin historical thinking:
• Chronological Understanding – Pupils learn to place events in order, recognise patterns over time, and understand how different periods relate to one another.
• Knowledge and Understanding – Pupils explore historical content in depth, developing a secure grasp of key facts, contexts, and interpretations.
• Interpretation – Pupils examine different sources and viewpoints, learning to question bias, reliability, and the reasons behind contrasting perspectives.
• Historical Enquiry – Pupils pose thoughtful questions, investigate evidence, and carry out independent research to explore the past.
• Organisation and Communication – Pupils learn to present their ideas clearly, using appropriate historical vocabulary and a range of formats including discussion, writing, and visual representation.
• Using Sources – Pupils engage with a wide variety of historical sources—such as artefacts, documents, images, and oral accounts—to build and support their understanding of the past.
Through these aims, we empower pupils to think critically, ask meaningful questions, and develop the skills and curiosity to explore history in a way that is both rigorous and relevant to their lives
At Badgerbrook Primary School, teachers work collaboratively to plan History lessons using our structured learning journey format. Our History curriculum is carefully mapped out with progression and knowledge documents to ensure that pupils build a secure and lasting understanding of key historical concepts and content.
Our curriculum is designed to develop six core disciplinary skills—chronological understanding, knowledge and understanding, interpretation, historical enquiry, organisation and communication, and using sources. These skills are revisited and deepened across year groups, allowing pupils to grow as historians and apply their learning in increasingly sophisticated ways.
We make meaningful links between historical content and the real world, helping pupils explore how past events, cultures, and decisions continue to shape society today. Lessons are enriched with a wide range of sources, including artefacts, images, documents, and oral history, encouraging pupils to think critically and engage with history in a hands-on, reflective way.
By structuring learning in this way, we aim to support pupils in developing a deep, thoughtful, and enduring understanding of history—one that equips them with the tools to question, investigate, and appreciate the richness of the past.
In EYFS, children begin to explore history through the ‘Past and Present’ Early Learning Goal within the ‘Understanding the World’ area of the curriculum. They learn about their own life-story and family history, using everyday experiences, play, and stories to understand the concept of time and change. Topics like ‘All About Me’ help children reflect on how they’ve grown, while events such as Remembrance Sunday introduce them to significant moments from the past. Through rich vocabulary, routines, and hands-on activities, children start to build a sense of chronology and historical awareness in a way that is meaningful and age appropriate.
In KS1, pupils start to build their chronological understanding by learning about significant individuals, events, and changes within and beyond living memory. Initially they look at moments and objects close to them to understand the idea of history and change. They then explore local history, such as the story of Badgerbrook School and key figures like King Richard III, alongside broader topics like the Great Fire of London and Ruby Bridges. Pupils begin to use simple sources—photographs, artefacts, and stories—to ask and answer questions about the past. History is taught in focused blocks, alternating with other subjects, allowing for immersive learning. Teachers use knowledge organisers to support planning and assessment, helping pupils retain key facts and develop core historical skills.
In KS2, pupils deepen their understanding of British, world, and local history through a broad range of topics—from Ancient Egypt and the Maya Civilization to Roman Britain, the Anglo-Saxons, and the Civil Rights Movement. They develop key disciplinary skills such as interpretation, enquiry, and source analysis, and begin to make connections across time periods and cultures. Pupils learn to evaluate significance, explore cause and consequence, and understand that history can be viewed from different perspectives. By the end of KS2, they are able to construct informed accounts of the past and communicate their ideas using appropriate historical language and formats. Throughout their time at Badgerbrook, children are supported to become thoughtful, curious, and reflective historians, equipped with the skills to explore the past and understand its relevance to the world around them.
Yr Grp | Unit 1 | Unit 2 | Unit 3 |
EYFS History | All about me Past and Present ELG | Remembrance around the World History People, culture and communities ELG | Traditional tales Past and Present ELG |
1 History | Changes within living memory: How have toys changed over time | Local History: How has my school changed over time? | Events Beyond Living Memory How did we learn to fly? |
2 History | Events Beyond Living Memory that are significant nationally: Great fire of London | Significant People; Monarchy/Power Local History Richard III & King Charles III / Elizabeth II | Significant People: Ruby Bridges goes to school |
3 History | 3000BC – 500BC: Stone Age to Iron Age | 1200BC-600AD Ancient Greece | PSHE/History: The Digital Revolution |
4 History | 250AD-900AD non-European society: The Maya Civilisation | 43AD-410AD Roman Britain | Local History: Roman Leicester Depth Study |
5 History | The First Civilisations 7000BC – 332BC: Ancient Egypt | 449AD-1066AD Anglo Saxons, Scots & Vikings | Extended version of unit 2: Anglo Saxons, Scots & Vikings Depth Study |
6 History | 1939 – 1945AD Theme study beyond 1066: The Second World War | 1903-1928AD Short Local History Unit (5 hours): Women’s suffrage, Alice Hawkins
| 1954-1968AD Civil Rights |