Powerpoint for a 1hour lesson on waterfall formation. Adjustable depending on students’ ability and lesson time. Each level gets harder for them to remember.
Starter for students to think
Mind map alone/ do together
Label picture and explain/ students guess
Match key terms and definition
Video on formation
What happened in the video (with image): explanation by students
Storyboard explanation
Fill in the blanks(1)
Complete the order (2)
Team activity: spot the mistakes/ correct
Team activity: summarise formation/ feedback
Plenary: checking understanding of key terms by labelling the waterfall
Homework: learning the definitions for pop quiz (literacy skills)
Includes an optional worksheet as homework to reineforce formation
Tropical Rainforest Information
4 tasks
Team work option (if students are good)
Pair work option (if you need more control)
Homework available if 4th task is too much.
Homework available if all tasks finished.
View different biomes
Guess the word starter (4 pictures 1 word)
Definitions
General climate
Video
Word bank
Definitions of words on board
Address misconceptions
All answers fade in
Task to find locations
TEA describe their locations
Challenges included
SEN worksheet
2024 Statistics on screen
Population density statistics handout for students absent before/ unaware of stats (extras)
Lots of visuals
Different versions: Easy, Normal, Hard
Can be used differently, e.g. explained for visuals vs. real map vs. less data etc.
Choropleth map (2 versions for difficulty)
Answers (for low ability to use for TEA)
TEA answers usin gap fill/ sentence starters
Definitions on screen
Population Tennis Game (interactive and fun discussion)
Images for prompts
Table of factors that increase or decrease population
All answers available
Plenary debate (fun discussions)
Video of UK history with its population rates increasing / decreasing (5minutes)
2 versions, an easier one for lower ability
There is a lot of content and discussions about the world for learning.
1 hour lesson (my students (many SEN and class dynamics) are trained)
Classes with distractions or not hard-working are likely to need 2 lessons.
3 hour lesson
Exam question included (9 marks)
Structures and example answers to scaffold
Level examples (aiming high)
Examples of case studies
1 main case study worksheet
Class feedback for self-marking and improving
Challenges included
Easily amendable
Answers included
2024 Statistics
NASA night lights 2024
Interesting fun facts
Gap fill with word bank
Worksheet available for scaffolding
Definitions of words in detail
Lots of images
Lots of assessment for learning
Visual modelling with students possible
Mind map
Writing task (factors)
Density calculation
Numeracy included
Challenges included
Plenary: challenge both views
Self-assess
Helpsheets available
Both SEN, low ability and high ability covered
2024 Life expectancy statistics game (solo, teams, class options)
Involves world statistics, and 8 different countries.
Past and Future of UK, South Korea and Japan population.
In depth discussions about ageing population. Positive, negative, benefits, pro-natal policies, pensions, knock on effects, etc.
Population pyramid readings
Critical thinking/ guessing
Literacy lesson
Reading a newspaper (slide)
Optional: reading the news
Video of elderly explaining their actions
Critical thinking/ guessing with knowledge
Definitions all included
Writing a diary entry using key terms .
Lots of prompts provided with definitions.
Challenge question about resolution
Example provided for low ability
Template included for low ability
Task allows lower ability/ SEN the time the extra time they need for tasks, whilst higher ability work on a higher thinking skill challenge.
Lesson planned for 1-2hours depending how in depth your class can go on discussions/ prompts, critical thinking and their writing ability.
Full terminology
Starter: key term with word bank
Map reading skills
Describe locations
Examples I do, we do, you do
Peer assessment
Hinge questions AFL
Biome information to read - optional methods/ tasks/ printouts if wanted
Map included for biome annotations
Journey through Russia Map (A, B, C, D)
Describe the biomes, what you see, etc throughout your journey
Success Criterion
Example (I do)
We do - together example
Answers for peer assessment
Plenary
Challenges included: these may be considered “hard” for KS3 but you can teach it or adapt them.
Pointless Gameshow starter!!! Fun.
Key terms
Use of key terms
Lots of AFL
Many images
Choropleth map
Atlas
Population
Challenges included
Example/ Model answer
Explain why the Sahara Desert is sparsely populated
Plenary
Animals in the Savanna - Lion King Remake of animals - Students well engaged and excited
Learning objectives - command words - meanings
Map of Savanna (students to add to their maps from previous lesson - Physical Geography of Africa). If you don’t have this, the maps (6 to a page) are also included if you wish to make this into an activity to shade in the biome and label the latitudes.
Video about the Savanna - Notes about the biome
Animal adaptation - I do (Lion), We do (Elephant), You do (Giraffe and Warthog). Challenges included.
All students are able to complete giraffe, lower ability may struggle with warthog so I had them think more about the giraffe. Remind them of Pumba from Lion King.
Answers on board - Students to add 3 more to their animals. Handouts available for students who can’t read, lower ability/ SEND to assist them. My students did not stick them in, they used it as help.
YOU ARE A GEOGRAPHER (Science advanced and you create your own animal!)
Choose 3 characteristics (timer them). Explain why those three and how they adapt to the Savanna.
Criteria and levels (on the board I have 5 and 6). On paper (handouts or printouts or you can adapt depending on your class/ student) I have level 3-7 success criteria.
Key words on the board, connectives on the board, challenges on the board, examples (sentences and images) on the board.
Sentence builders (shared between students) allows every student able to complete the task. Higher abilities will not use it but have it as a reference.
Students will be working at different paces due to ability. My higher ability asked to do more characteristics but only because they completed it. My lower ability/ SEND I expected at least 3 sentences (this is because this is in their assessment so they need to have this). Students who finished are able to sketch their animal. Higher rewards given as motivation.
Peer assessing. Students peer assess the presenter (visualiser if you have). We used fingers due to time, but if you have longer lessons or extend another class they can use the peer assessment handouts where students assess themselves, and then peer assess. They can then improve upon feedback.
Many students loved the task, wanted to share and spend their 15 minutes break continuing.
Starter images - good and bad things about living there
Learning objectives
Key terms - word bank and challenge
Image explanations to help lower ability
I do, we do, you do short activity and challenge question
Images for AFL checking push pull factors before main activity
Engaging activity - card sort real example
Paragraph writing reasons - sentence starters, challenge included
A few more examples of different scenarios - students think of factors and intervening obstacles
Plenary - push pull factors for themselves
The history of China to now
Can easily be 2 lessons worth
Students are extremely engaged, lots of discussion points. I answered a few and had to tell them to write it down or address it next lesson.
Several tasks to do
Main task
Video with worksheet
You may need to pause depending on your students, or call out each number as you reach it.
Drawing a Then and Now image of China
Engaging lesson about the one child policy
Depending on your class you can adapt the PPT.
The lower and higher ability materials are already available (it’s set on level 3 and 4)
Includes opinion line at start and end of lesson. Can be done in classroom on in their books.
See how it changes as they learn about the topic.
Print out of the colour coded answers for lower ability/ SEND students to assist.
Very fun and engaging deforestation debate (they need some knowledge beforehand, otherwise your help during the debate). All students say it is the best geography lesson they had (including if I do this in other schools as a one off). All students are actively participating in every second of the lesson. I really enjoy this lesson but it is a lot of energy and they need to respond to you. For a class that are noisy/ active I used a bell per round (5), but other classes it is not needed.
Hot air balloon debate.
There is a bit of preparing time for all students at the start so they are ready.
Depending on their ability, during the “note taking” sections (between some rounds), you can give questions to volunteers/ help them out ready for the debate in advance. Otherwise, my students were just practicing their confidence and speech/ public speaking skills. E.g. I had one stand up high and speak loudly, and used the uniform as “one” to vote for him.
For example, they may ask for some advice. The lower abilities would take their books to read or use for ideas during this time. You may want to provide a finished handout for the volunteers as they are note taking (unless they are high enough ability to multitask it). I usually photocopy another students’ finished notes to give them because it is related to the actual debate they did, rather than what you’ll guess they will say.
After the debate, they have a good view on all stakeholders and can create their own speech about who they support. Sentence starters/ examples, prompts provided. Challenge included. Some students to share their speech afterwards.
This builds great confidence in their speaking, reading, and class support.
It is fast pace, so behaviour needs to be quickly acted upon.
Responsibility shared, more freedom and trust in the classroom. It is something different and worth trying if you haven’t. It will indicate whether you can trust/ give freedom in lessons.
This is a shorter version than my original to fit within 50mins-1hr class. It can easily be adjusted.
1-2 hour lesson
Lesson plan attached in full (updated)
Thinking starter image
Facts (prior knowledge check AFL)
Videos with questions on causes and impacts
News report with example, gapfill/ sentence starters
Plenary AFL
Worksheets to print
2 versions (diff AFL)