Wednesday, 14 January 2009

Skills for Paper 1 & 2

GCSE Geography – A Skills Checklist
You should be able to do the following in a GCSE (AQA A) geography exam:

1. Ordnance Survey & Sketch Maps
1:50,000 & 1:25,000 (an accurate scale will be included on the map)

Recognize symbols (a full key will be included with the map)

4 figure grid references (identifying a square kilometre)

6 figure grid references (more precise)

Measure straight line distances (string & spare paper is not permitted in the exam)

Measure winding distances (string & spare paper is not permitted in the exam)

Direction

Draw & annotate cross-sections (string & spare paper is not permitted in the exam)

Describe height and slope

Identify simple contour patterns (valley, ridges, hill top, flat land etc.)

Describe drainage patterns

Describe patterns of: vegetation

land use

communications (all forms of transport)

settlement (rural/urban; nucleated/dispersed/linear; etc.)

Use maps with photographs

Draw & label simple sketch maps

2. Atlas Maps
Latitude & Longitude

Describe patterns & distributions (refer to direction, regions, sizes & distances)


3. Topological Diagrams
Interpret topological diagrams (e.g. map of the London Underground)


4. Photographs
Aerial (overhead)

Oblique (at an angle)

Satellite images

Sketch diagram from photograph


5. Graphs & Charts – Draw, label & interpret:
Line graph

Bar chart

Scatter graph

Pie chart

Stacked bar/line graphs

The following power points will help with all your REVISION needs:










Photos
View more presentations from igrant.







What are the 4 main aspects the exam will test you on?


Knowledge – this means learning some facts about a range of different places at different scales (e.g. a whole city like London or a small area such as the Docklands), geographical ideas, processes and issues that you have studies. You need to learn your case studies and key words thoroughly. 30% of your marks will come from knowledge.



Understanding – you need to know how processes like erosion and deposition work and how features like headlands and spits are formed and be able to explain them fully. You may have to make decisions about the best place to locate a wind farm for example and give reasons for your choice. 30% of your marks will come from understanding.



Skills – you need to be able to use maps, graphs, photographs, statistics and so on. You may need to draw a diagram or sketch map to help you explain an answer. Paper 1 has a skills section where you are given an OS map and various graphs, etc. and the questions will test whether you can analyse and interpret them. Don’t forget the skills you used in your coursework! 40% of your marks will come from skills.


Attitudes and values – different groups of people have different views about issues – for example whether tourism should be encouraged or restricted in areas like Dartmoor. These different views can lead to conflict. Some questions will try to find out whether you understand these different views and why different groups of people hold them.


Geo - Revision - try this activity to help you memorise your case studies!

Red Pen Black Pen

The idea of using two coloured pens as a revision technique, was described to me by an Occupational Health Therapist who had to learn the 300 parts of the human eye.

The idea is that the two colours work on the two halves of the brain. The black pen signifies the information that you already hold in your conscious memory. The red pen signifies those things in your unconscious memory that you wish to transfer into your conscious memory. The red pen strongly signifies danger and is held by your unconscious memory without realising it.

Having used this technique in school for the last two years, it can have a very positive effect but its success depends to some extent on the preferred learning style of the pupil.

The concept map has a strong visual impact and obviously allows visual learners to assimilate information quickly. Repetition of this exercise may assist a more kinaesthetic learning style.

The revision technique has several stages :

Stage 1 – Produce a concept map to cover a topic you wish to revise e.g. farming (attached). Could be set as a homework, obviously how you set out your concept map is personal to you and students will learn faster by having completed this first step themselves.

Stage 2 – Produce a blank skeleton of your concept map (attached)

Stage 3 – In the lesson ask the students to revise from their concept map for 10 minutes – no longer !

Stage 4 – Turnover the concept map with the answers on it. With your black pen write down everything that you can remember.

Stage 5 – When you cannot remember anymore turn over the answer sheet and then fill in the blanks in red. This is the end of the first evolution.

Stage 6 – Spend 10 minutes revising from the sheet you have been working on.

Repeat from stage 4 !

During the exercise the amount of black ink should increase and the red pen decrease as you transfer more information into your conscious memory.

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