Archive for the Geography category

The amazing summer weather heralded the start of our term of events and held as we paid our annual visit to Rushall Mixed Organic Farm with Year 8 as part of their farming unit. It was the largest group we have taken but thanks to the farm staff and their clever planning the groups of girls managed to fit in an extensive programme of activities which included looking at the farm as a system, crop rotation, diversification and pond dipping without bumping into each other too often! Some girls had the opportunity to have a very interesting talk on bee-keeping which included the sampling of the freshest honey straight from the hive. They also conducted some experiments to see if there were any negative effects of farming on the environment and had the opportunity to meet the lambs born this year. You can see more about the farm at www.rushallfarm.org.uk.

Towards the end of term Ms Yeo and Miss Gandell attended the Schools Launch of the wonderful Britain from the Air at the Oxford Castle. The exhibition is a free, open air street gallery boasting a hundred huge aerial photographs of Great Britain reflecting the diversity of landscapes that we have. It continues until 4th September and we urge all girls (and their families) to go during the summer break as it is fantastically inspiring.

Our run of luck that we had had with the weather throughout this term came to an end for the Year 11 trip to the Jurassic Coast. Having said this, it wasn’t as bad as last year, and we actually saw the Cove this time – just got a bit damp in the process! Spirits were high as always, particularly as the geological processes that created this stunning landscape were re-enacted through the medium of cake. This is the last Geography fieldtrip the Year 11s have before their exams and we wish them the very best for the summer.

 

Year 13 Geographers raised £182.20 on World AIDS Day!

Once again the Year 13 Geographers and Miss Gandell organised a Red Accessories Day to raise money on World AIDS Day. Girls wore red shoes, hair bands, tights and beads, and red ribbons were on sale throughout the day. The Year 13s studied HIV and AIDS as part of their Health Issues module in Year 12. They raised awareness of the issue through an informative and interactive assembly. The money raised has been split between two AIDS charities in the UK (the National AIDS Trust and CWAC). CWAC visits Year 9 as part of their PSHCE syllabus so brought a more personal note to the fundraising this year.

Thank you to all who participated and we look forward to fundraising with next year’s Year 13 Geographers.

The Year 10 Geographers set out on this very cold January morning to visit the City of Gloucester. Despite what felt like sub-zero temperatures, the girls remained in high spirits and were as cheerful as ever.This fieldwork complements the Unit on Changing Urban Environments and we shall be using the data in Geography lessons during the first few weeks of this term to develop new data presentation techniques and analytical skills in preparation for their Controlled Assessment in the Summer.

After braving the snow and fog, we made it to the Natural History Museum in London for our annual Year 9 visit to the Earth Galleries and Ecology wing.The girls worked with great enthusiasm, completing all the tasks set. The visit reinforced our work on our Unit on Tectonics and introduced the Unit on Rainforests and Ecosystems. Unfortunately the Earthquake simulator had shaken itself to bits and therefore was under repair. Some girls made a valiant effort to recreate the Kobe earthquake, but to no avail. Many have said they will return once it is fixed! We were delighted that the girls were so positive about the experience and look forward to running the trip again next year.

The Year 12 Geographers took their first fieldtrip out to three Oxford locations in the first week back after half term.

At each site, they used a number of data collection techniques to gather information on the housing and service provision in each area. Back in the classroom, Year 12 have followed up this work by using the Census as a secondary data source to gather further information on the human characteristics of each location. They will then use this data to help them to develop three detailed and extensive case studies which will be extremely valuable resources for their AS levels.

Our first fieldtrip of the year! After initially being postponed due to wet weather, we finally managed to take the Year 7 forms out for a double period each to Banbury Road in Summertown.

As it turned out, the weather on all three fieldtrips was excellent and the girls worked quickly and effectively on all the tasks. In small groups, they completed pedestrian counts at set points along the Banbury Road and then a land use survey. This fieldtrip will form the basis of their first geographical enquiry, which they will write-up over the next couple of weeks. This will culminate in a ‘Location, Location, Location’ group activity on Open Evening.

The Year 12 geographers carried on the long-standing tradition of visiting Slapton Ley Field Study Centre on the South Devon coast. Each return visit we are amazed at the speed of change along the coast of Start Bay with the relentless progress of holiday let developments despite the aggressive coastal erosion.

Our schedule focused on these key aspects:

• Investigating how and why infiltration rates differ due to soil and land use
• Examining river variables of the River Harbourne, which has its source on Dartmoor
• Coastal erosion and management schemes
• Plant succession on a shingle ridge

The weather was exceptionally kind to us, and blue skies followed us for much of the visit. As always, the girls worked with typical OHS enthusiasm and were fully involved in all the data collection and analysis. They returned with plenty of case studies and data that will reinforce their AS and A2 work and hopefully they have picked up important lessons about possible future locations of their own holiday homes through cost-benefit analysis of coastal management schemes!