1. An atlas can help children with their geography studies and allow the family to look up places they have visited or heard about in the news. 2. Students receive a free Ordnance Survey map of the local area in Year 7 and should be encouraged to locate places using grid references and plan outings using the map. 3. Keeping up with current events by watching news and reading newspapers helps inform students about global issues and allows them to debate controversial topics.

1. Year 6/Parents 1 Buy your child an atlas, not only will it help their studies, you can look up the location of places you are travelling/have travelled to, find unknown places in the news, or ask them to locate the places we have studied. So your child is interested in Geography, so here’s ten top tips that will help encourage their interest… 2 In Year 7, each student receives a free Ordnance Survey map of the local area. Ask your child to locate their home and the homes of others on the map. Ask them to provide 4 and 6 figure grid references. If you don’t know how to do them, get them to teach you! You could also ask your child to plan a family walk or outing using the map. The Geography Department uses the Oxford School Atlas. Love an atlas... Love a map...

2. 3 Keep up to date... Geography is topical, so encouraging your child to watch the news and read newspapers, will help inform them of the issues facing the World. Geography is full of opinions, so debating controversial topics is a a way of training the Geographer within! 4 5 Google Earth is a free programme to download ( http://earth.google.com/ ) that provides access to a 3.D. Earth and quality satellite imagery. Great to explore places you have been or places you dream of travelling to… 'Google' Earth... Love books... Visit the library! Encourage your child to read fiction and non-fiction with a geographical theme. Travel books help develop an interest in other places and their cultures.

3. 6 7 8 Love photos... Encourage your child to watch fiction and non-fiction films with a geographical theme. A great deal of geographical knowledge can be gained from both the ‘March of the Penguins ’ and ‘Happy Feet’. Love film... Plan adventure... Geographers love images. Ask your child to take pictures of landscapes that interest or inspire them, whilst on a day trip or holiday. Provide your child with a photo album or scrap book, so they can record their travels. Ask your child to plan a day trip as part of your family holiday. This will encourage your child to use maps, public transport timetables and read about local visitor attractions. Of course, you could set a budget!

4. 9 10 Ask a Geographer... Enjoy your Geography at College. It might lead somewhere… Encourage your child to come and ask us their questions. We might not know the answers, but it will be fun discovering together! WWW.GGIP.CO.UK Love connections... Geographers recognise that everything is connected. Encourage your child to recognise the connections between your family and the wider world. Where do your relatives live? Which countries provide your food? Where were their Christmas presents manufactured?