1. 15 creative ideas for encouraging quality Geography Becky Kitchen
Secondary Curriculum Leader

2. 1. Mobile phone fieldwork
Students work in small groups to record the strength of their mobile phones around the school site. These are then mapped on a choropleth map.
Good for:
Doing fieldwork in the school grounds.
Engagement with geographical enquiry
Links to National Curriculum: Tertiary sectors of the economy
With thanks to Chislehurst Girls’ School

3. 2. Gobble-de-gook phrases
Students write a paragraph in answer to a question. They then cover key words with post-it notes and write other words over the top so that the phrase still makes sense. Another student then has to try to work out the words underneath the post-it notes and peer assesses the actual answer.
Good for:
Engaging with key terms
Peer assessment
Practising exam questions
With thanks to Hitchin Girls’ School

4. Let’s have a go!
You have two minutes to write an answer to the following question:
How does a waterfall form?
You will need:
Paper
A pen
Scissors
Some post-it notes
Select between 7 and 10 words in your answer and substitute them with other words. Your sentence still has to make sense!
Hand your paper to the person sitting next to you. They have one minute to work out what the gobble-de-gook sentence should say.

5. 3. Pick ‘n’ mix pedagogy
Teachers score points for each of the activities which they include in their lessons.
Good for:
Supporting ITE students
Trying new things in lessons
With thanks to Hitchin Girls’ School

6. 4. Careers top trumps
These top trumps cards can be used for teaching about different sectors of the economy or for encouraging students to think about different Geography careers.
Good for:
Options open evening
Raising the profile of geography in the curriculum
Links to National Curriculum: Primary, Secondary, Tertiary and Quaternary sectors of the economy
With thanks to Blackpool ASPIRE Academy

7. 5. Gruffalo food webs
Read the story of ‘The Gruffalo’ by Julia Donaldson. Students create a food web using the information given in the story.
Good for:
Engaging low ability students
Encouraging literacy within geography
Links to National Curriculum: the functioning of natural systems.
With thanks to British School in Guangzhou

8. 6. Map Off
Every November the Royal High School, Bath run a ‘Map Off’ event. Resources for the 2015 Ashcloud Appocalypse and the 2016 views on climate change are available online and are free to access.
Good for:
Embedding GIS in the curriculum
Encouraging engagement with maps and data
Links to National Curriculum: Climate change and plate tectonics
With thanks to Royal High School, Bath

9. 7. Revision T-shirts
White t-shirts can be bought fairly inexpensively. Students can then design their own revision t-shirts.
Good for:
Revising content for GCSE and A level exams
Practising drawing diagrams
With thanks to Bay House School

10. 8. Sediment sensory pods
Fill containers that students can fit their hands in with sediment.
Students feel the sediment and try to work out its characteristics. For example, was the sediment carried along a coast, river or glacier? Where would you expect to find the sediment along a river’s course?
Good for:
Bringing concepts to life
Encouraging thinking skills
Links to National Curriculum: rocks, glaciation, hydrology and coasts.
With thanks to Hodgson Academy

11. 9. Beach model
This can be used as a revision activity but could also be used at the start of a topic on coasts. Provide students with some text describing features and processes on a beach. They then create an annotated model to illustrate this
Good for:
Introducing or revising a concept
Visualising geographical processes
Links to National Curriculum: coasts.
With thanks to Kings School, Pontefract

12. 10. Sedimentary rock recipe
Each person in the class collects a cup with a different ingredient in it e.g. oats, sugar, flour, cocoa etc. These represent different types of sediment. Students take it in turns to empty their cup into a large, transparent container and use this to answer questions such as: Where are the oldest and youngest layers? How are the different layers formed? What materials do you find and where to they come from?
Good for:
Visualising geographical processes
Links to National Curriculum: rocks.
With thanks to Myton School

13. 11. A future geography classroom
Students design, make and annotate a model of a geography classroom in 2050.
Good for:
Considering geographical futures
Gifted and Talented students, Open Evening or Geography Club
With thanks to St. Catherine’s School

14. 12. The biscuit game
Follow the instructions on the sheet ‘the biscuit game’.
Let’s have a go!
Good for:
Visualising large numbers
Engaging students
Links to National Curriculum: population and development.
With thanks to Commonweal School

15. 13. Leaf blower hurricane simulation
Use a leaf blower to simulate the high wind speeds experienced during a hurricane.
Good for:
Giving students an unforgettable experience
Providing a stimulus for creative work
Links to National Curriculum: weather and climate
With thanks to Witton Park Academy, Blackburn

16. 14. Article relay race
Working in groups of 2 or 3, students take it in turns to answer questions based on an article.
Good for:
Encouraging students to engage with text
Working together as a team to work out the correct answers
With thanks to Poynton High School

17. Let’s have a go!
Divide into teams of two or three and decide who is going to go first.
When the buzzer goes, that person moves to the article and attempts to answer the first question…
You will need:
A suitable article
A series of
questions
This continues until all of the questions have been answered.
The team to finish first with all of the correct answers is the winner!
…once they have done this they go back to their teammates and the next person gets up, goes to the article and attempts to answer the second question.

18. 15. Beach bar Open Evening
Give your Open Evening event a theme. At St. Chad’s they had a ‘beach bar’ theme. Fresh fruit cocktails were served and sounds of The Pacific filled the department. A range of activities were laid on including quizzes, model making of geographical features and interactive puzzles.
Good for:
Engaging students in a fun and interesting way
Encouraging students to have an input into Open Evening activities
With thanks to St. Chad’s High School

19. For more information about Quality Marks see:
Deadline for 2017 / 2018 applications: 31st December 2017