This is the first in a series of lessons that I am writing under the heading ‘Geography at Christmas’ over the next few weeks. This one is all about finding your way using the stars - like the wise men did. I teaches students how to find the North Star, Polaris, using the Little Bear or Plough and challenges them to plan some fictitious journeys across the Arabian desert.

This resource looks at how extreme the weather has become in the UK. It examines the reasons for droughts and floods and looks at some of the causes of heatwaves. It encourages students to work independently, ideally on a PC, to research some of the impacts of water shortages. It also touches on the increased likelihood of storms in years ahead.

This is an assessment to test pupils' knowledge of the Superpowers Unit of Work. It includes questions on what makes a country influential, analysis of graphs, comprehension and the issues surrounding Mexican immigration to the USA.

This presentation examines the case for Fair Trade as a means of closing the development gap. It shows how Fair Trade has helped a Colombian farmer to provide his son with an education and at how the Chilecito Schools Project, working with the La Riojana Co-operative, has brought learning to the remote valleys of Argentina and wine to the rest of the world. Students are also challenged to think about the limitations of fair trade. There are a number of tasks and striking images in the presentation to challenge students of all abilities.

This is a test on China which is best suited to Key Stage 3 students. It has questions on population distribution, the One Child Policy, air pollution and development. It runs to six pages.

This resource was used as part of a unit to cross the bridge between KS3 and GCSE. It aims to develop students' geographical skills. This lesson clarifies the difference between war and conflict. Students are then given a number of 'well-known' conflicts to look at in more detail, following which there is an exercise that involves looking at the parts of the world where there is the greatest tension.

This resource is a collection of 15 PowerPoint presentations that were used to deliver a bridging unit between Key Stage 3 and GCSE Geography but which could also be used for PSHCE lessons. It is ideal for using with Year 8/9 classes who have made their option choices as it engages those who have not opted for Geography but teaches vital skills to those who are going on to GCSE. There are some purely skills-based lessons such as ‘Describing Landscapes: Photo Sketches’ and ‘Contrasting Landscapes of the Middle East’ but other lessons are specfic to certain conflicts and events in history such as 9/11, the Syrian Civil War and the Middle East conflict.

This is the first scheme of work we cover with our Year Seven students once they’ve done their skills and map work basics. It covers the make-up of the British Isles, the location and function of its main cities, an explanation of our temperate maritime climate, a lesson on relief rainfall, a skills exercise to do with migration that involves flow lines and lessons on population distribution, inequality and the North-South divide. It assumes that you have copies of Geog.1 in your department, but you could always edit those references out and substitute questions and activities from books that you do have.

This collection of eleven presentations will help to deliver a unit of work on the Horn of Africa, broadly following the outline suggested by Geog.1 (4th Edition) pp.118-137. It includes an introduction to the continent, lessons on physical geography and climate, a study of coffee farming in the Ethiopian highlands and fair trade. There are also lessons on living and working in the hottest place on earth and on modern day piracy in the Indian Ocean.

This resource describes the formation of a flood plain and levees. It explains sequential deposition. It looks at how estuaries form and how they are used. There are a number of tasks and activities on the slides. The Exxon Valdez disaster is mentioned as the tanker run aground on a sandbank off the coast of Alaska.

This resource explores the reasons for conflict, such as political change, climate change, the increasing demand for resources and different ideologies. It includes a poem ('How to die' by Siegfried Sassoon) and gives students to opportunity to analyse political cartoons. This lesson is part of a series on the Geography of Conflict which was used as a bridge between KS3 and GCSE level study.

One of a series of standalone worksheets that can be used to get students thinking about topical issues. This one, on sea level rises, is ideal for use as extension work or homework. It includes a variety of tasks that can be completed independently.

This is a test of map skills, best suited to KS3. It includes questions on map symbols, grid references, measuring distances, giving directions and following routes. To use it you will need a 1:50 000 map of Ipswich.

This is a mock examination paper which I wrote to assess a unit on Geographical Skills. We taught the unit as part of the new GCSE AQA 9-1Geography course. The bundle consists of the paper itself, a resource sheet and a detailed mark scheme. It is based on some census data from two wards in the suburbs of Ipswich.

This is a straightforward and easily marked baseline assessment to give to students on entry to Year 7. It tests the knowledge of places, simple maps skills, the ability to observe and describe a landscape and students' capacity for thinking geographically.

This assessment broadly matches up with the unit In the Horn of Africa in the Geog.1 series. It consists of a question paper and a detailed mark scheme. The questions relate to knowledge of places, completing and reading a climate graph, the coffee trade, employment and development issues.

This assessment matches up with the unit Landscapes of Vietnam which I wrote for KS3 students rather than have them study China or India like everyone else. I had a Vietnamese lodger staying with me at the time whose mother sent many useful maps and bits of information. The questions are about knowledge of places, climate, delta formation, the monsoon and its impacts and development issues on the Mekong Delta. The lesson slides are available separately on this site.

This presentation covers the long profile of a river, using the River Lune in South Cumbria / North Lancashire as its example. There are photographs of the river at different stages along its journey to the sea at Plover Scar. There are also diagrams to illustrate the long profile of the river, its changing cross profile as it nears its mouth and the Bradshaw Model. There are numerous tasks and activities. This presentation is also designed to be used in Pocket Point format. For more information, search for Pocket Point Resources on Facebook.

This resource covers variations in the speed of flow within the river channel and the resulting landforms. It mentions slip-off slopes, river cliffs, helicoidal flow, the erosion of the bluff line and the formation of ox-bow lakes. There is a field sketching exercise that is integral to the lesson and some further activities.