Geography lessons
Geography: water & carbon cycles, coasts, hazards, urbanisation, globalisation, and fieldwork skills.
Key topics
- Water & carbon cycles
- Coasts & landscapes
- Hazards
- Urbanisation
- Globalisation
- Fieldwork & skills
Lesson course
Work through each lesson, run the interactive practice, and tick it off as you go.
1. Water & carbon cycles
Physical
The water cycle
Describe stores and flows of water.
The water cycle moves water through stores (oceans, ice, atmosphere) and flows (evaporation, precipitation, run-off) as a closed system.
Label a water-cycle diagram with stores and flows.
The carbon cycle
Describe carbon stores and transfers.
Carbon moves between the atmosphere, oceans, plants and rocks; photosynthesis and combustion are key transfers.
Explain two transfers in the carbon cycle.
Climate change
Explain causes and responses.
Human emissions enhance the greenhouse effect, warming the planet; mitigation reduces emissions while adaptation manages the impacts.
Compare mitigation and adaptation with examples.
2. Coasts & landscapes
Physical
Coastal processes
Explain erosion, transport and deposition.
Waves erode (hydraulic action, abrasion), transport material (longshore drift) and deposit it, shaping the coast.
Explain longshore drift with a diagram.
Coastal landforms
Identify erosional and depositional landforms.
Erosion forms headlands, caves, arches and stacks; deposition forms beaches and spits.
Sequence the formation of a stack.
Coastal management
Compare management strategies.
Hard engineering (sea walls) resists the sea; soft engineering (beach nourishment) works with it; managed retreat allows controlled flooding.
Evaluate hard versus soft engineering.
3. Hazards
Physical
Plate tectonics
Explain plate boundaries.
Plates move over the mantle; boundaries (constructive, destructive, conservative) cause earthquakes and volcanoes.
Match boundary types to hazards.
Earthquakes & volcanoes
Explain causes and impacts.
Earthquakes release energy along faults; volcanoes erupt magma. Impacts depend on magnitude and a country's level of development.
Compare impacts in a rich and a poor country.
Managing hazards
Explain how hazard risk is reduced.
Risk is managed through prediction, building design, planning and education to reduce impacts and save lives.
Give three ways to reduce earthquake impacts.
4. Urbanisation
Human
Urban growth
Explain causes of urbanisation.
Urbanisation is the growing share of people living in cities, driven by rural–urban migration and natural increase.
Explain push and pull factors of migration.
Urban challenges
Explain challenges of rapid growth.
Rapid growth brings challenges: housing shortages, congestion, pollution and inequality, including informal (squatter) settlements.
Describe one challenge in a named megacity.
Sustainable cities
Explain sustainable urban living.
Sustainable urban living uses green transport, recycling, energy efficiency and green space to reduce environmental impact.
Suggest three features of a sustainable city.
5. Globalisation
Human
Globalisation
Explain causes and effects of globalisation.
Globalisation is growing interconnection through trade, technology and transnational corporations, shrinking the world (time-space compression).
Explain the role of TNCs in globalisation.
Development
Explain measures of development.
Development is measured by GDP, the HDI and other indicators; the development gap separates richer and poorer countries.
Compare two development indicators.
Trade & aid
Explain how trade and aid affect development.
Trade and aid can promote development; approaches such as fair trade and investment have both benefits and drawbacks.
Evaluate fair trade as a strategy.
6. Fieldwork & skills
Skills
Fieldwork enquiry
Carry out a geographical enquiry.
An enquiry follows the route: question → data collection → presentation → analysis → conclusion → evaluation.
Plan an enquiry from question to conclusion.
Geographical skills
Interpret maps, graphs and GIS.
Interpret maps (grid references, scale, symbols), graphs and GIS, and describe patterns with supporting evidence.
Find grid references and describe a pattern.
Exam technique
Use case studies and command words.
Use case studies, data and command words; structure extended answers and reach justified conclusions.
Plan a 'to what extent' answer.
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