AQA GCSE Geography lesson for the 2016 specification Unit 1B: In this lesson we look at how ecosystems operate, from small-scale ecosystems to biomes. We start with a retrieval practice task based around coats. We begin by looking at what the biotic and abiotic components of an ecosystem are. The students are given an example ecosystem and have to categorise the components according to whether they think they are biotic or abiotic. We then look at different scales of ecosystems and look at trophic levels. The students work out which examples belong with which trophic level . We then explore an example of a food chain, using a small-scale ecosystem (a pond) the students have to work out which creatures belong in which trophic level. We then look at biomass in the food chain and discuss why biomass declines at each level. We finish with a 4-mark GCSE style question and there is some tips for students who need it on how to answer it. Hope this saves you some valuable planning time. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/markthegeographer

AQA GCSE Geography lesson for the new specification Unit 1C: In this lesson we look at erosion, transportation and deposition. The starter is “which row is the odd one out”. The pupils need to work out which row has an incorrect term in. Just gets them thinking. We then look at erosion and when rivers are eroding more effectively. The pupils learn about vertical and lateral erosion and will be making some diagrams in there exercise books. They then receive a worksheet where the processes of erosion and transportation are illustrated, the pupils use an information slide (or sheet if you prefer) and label the processes on and colour code the area of the diagram where that process is displayed. We then look at how these processes vary as you progress down the long profile of a river. The pupils get another worksheet where they read the labels and draw an appropriate diagram in each box to create an illustrated log profile. We finish with a summarising pyramid plenary. In a nutshell lesson includes: Odd one out starter. Vertical and lateral erosion diagram activity Worksheet on processes of erosion Worksheet activity on processes of erosion along the course of a river Summarising pyramid Hope this saves you some valuable planning time. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/markthegeographer

AQA GCSE Geography lesson for the new specification Unit 2B: In this lesson we look at the changing rural landscapes of the UK. The lesson starts with a practice task. We then look at a cartoon which is showing rural-urban migration together with other geographical concepts. We then look at the reasons for people moving into rural areas. We then introduce two examples, one of rural population growth (South Cambridgeshire) and the other of rural population decline (Outer Hebrides). The pupils have a task worksheet to complete with various tasks for them to tackle. We finish with a 6-mark practice question with some guidance on how to respond. Hope this saves you some valuable planning time. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/markthegeographer

AQA GCSE Geography lesson for the new specification Unit 2A: In this lesson we look at how urban change has led to social and economic inequalities in London. The starter is called “perfect paragraph?” The pupils will see a response to a GCSE-style question and need to spot the errors in the paragraph, we then discuss if anything needs adding to the answer. We then look at inequalities in London and we use an Iceberg Analysis to determine causes of social inequalities and short and long terms effects. The short term effects go in the iceberg above the water. The longer term effects go underneath the water. We then consider what indicators could we use to map social deprivation. We use percentage of people on benefits as an indicator and the pupils create a choropleth map of London. We consider the pattern and the pupils look at what the benefits and drawbacks of presenting the data this way is. Once we have completed the diagram we tackle a 6-mark question on social inequalities in a HIC city. I usually do this as a live writing exercise, but there is guidance should the pupils need it. In a nutshell lesson includes: Perfect Paragraph Starter Iceberg analysis of cause and effects of social inequalities Choropleth map activity using percentage of people claiming benefits as an indicator. GCSE-style question with guidance or live writing exercise. Hope this saves you some valuable planning time. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/markthegeographer

AQA GCSE Geography lesson for the new specification Unit 2A: In this lesson we look at the emergence of megacities and the reasons for urbanisation. We start with a quick photo starter of Tokyo. We introduce the two concepts of natural increase and rural-urban migration. The pupils have a worksheet to fill in regarding push/pull factors, firstly adding their own ideas, then with some input from the teacher, then they categorise into social, economic and environmental. We then look at megacities, with a introductory video. the pupils then plot the location of the megacities as of 2018 using longitude and latitude coordinates. The pupils then have some extension tasks around their map. We then have a brief interlude to consider what living in a megacity might be like and watch a short clip on Tokyo and living in such a high density population. We then finish with a comparison of a map showing megacities from 1975 and answer a GCSE-style question. In a nutshell lesson includes: Photo starter Video clip Push/pull worksheet exercise with questions. Long & lat skills task followed by map interpretation. Video of Tokyo GCSE-style question using map with guidance Plenary quiz Hope this saves you some valuable planning time. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/markthegeographer

AQA GCSE Geography lesson for the new specification Unit 2B: In this lesson we introduce the economy and how it has changed over time and why. The lesson starts with a quick retrieval practice quiz. We then introduce the idea of the economy with the pupils completing a Frayer model, we then look at where the UK is in international standings currently and where it might be in the future. We then look at the structure of the economy, we remind ourselves of the different sectors with a sorting task and then look at how the UK’s economy has changed over time. The pupils complete a worksheet and complete a pie chart. We then look at the main drivers in this change and the pupils use information sheets/slides to complete a worksheet. We then finish with a GCSE-style practice question with some guidance. Hope this saves you some valuable planning time. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/markthegeographer

AQA GCSE Geography lesson for the new specification Unit 1A: In this lesson we look at monitoring, prediction, planning and protection in regards to tropical storms. The lesson has a tropical stormed themed retrieval practice starter. We firstly introduce the importance of monitoring to aid prediction with measurements of SST’s. There is a cloze writing exercise on monitoring of hurricanes. A video clip from American tv provides a useful example of how tropical storms are monitored and their paths predicted even on mainstream television. There are some questions for the clip. We then look at protection, specifically storm shelters in Bangladesh, the pupils will have to label the storm shelter and annotate why these features of the storm shelter were needed. We then look at how building in vulnerable areas has made the risks of tropical storms and storm surges more severe. We then look at Bangladesh as a success story of monitoring, predicting, planning and protection, the students have a grid with the actions that have been undertaken by Bangladesh, they have to categorise them accordingly. We finish with a GCSE-style practice question with some guidance and structure provided for the students. Hope this saves you some valuable planning time. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/markthegeographer

AQA GCSE Geography lesson for the new specification Unit 2A: In this lesson we look at social opportunities in one borough of London, Shoreditch. We start with a photo interpretation of Shoreditch today so the pupils can start to think about what Shoreditch is like and what type of people may live there. the pupils will have a worksheet to work through as the lesson progresses. we start by looking at Shoreditch in the 1980’s (1981 really due to census data). The pupils get a feel for what the borough was like then. We then introduce modern day Shoreditch with a video. The pupils then use an information sheet to complete tasks regarding various aspects of life there including housing, ethnic and cultural mix, entertainment etc. We briefly consider the negatives of urban change in the area before tackling a GCSE-style question on the positive impacts urban change has had on people in a HIC. The pupils do have some help with some points to get them going if they need it. In a nutshell lesson includes: Photo interpretation starter Worksheet task on old and new Shoreditch Video clips where appropriate GCSE-style question with guidance Hope this saves you some valuable planning time. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/markthegeographer

AQA GCSE Geography lesson for the new specification Unit 2A: In this lesson we look at where people in the UK live and the reasons for our population distribution. The starter is based on the population total for the UK and the pupils have some questions to think about. I usually do this as a discussion. There is also a can you name 15 cities starter which works well for high ability groups. We then look at cities in the UK. the pupils have a map and need to find the location of some of the major cities in the UK, we then briefly talk about their distribution. Next the pupils consider the human and physical factors that affect population distribution before putting this knowledge to work on a worksheet with several tasks and questions. We finish with GCSE-style question on human and physical factors that affect population distribution. In a nutshell lesson includes: Two starters on population and cities. Map task on the major cities of the UK Worksheet on the population distribution in the UK Video clips where appropriate GCSE-style question with guidance on how to respond. Hope this saves you some valuable planning time. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/markthegeographer

AQA GCSE Geography lesson for the new specification Unit 2B: In this lesson we look at the evidence and reasons for a north-south divide in the UK. The lesson starts with a retrieval practice task. We then briefly look at a cartoon illustrating the economic differences between the North and South of England. After introducing the concept of a North-South divide the pupils create a ‘Road to the North South Divide’ in there books by annotating a road to show how the divide was established. We then use evidence from a data table to annotate a map showing the divide. The pupils then look at the strategies that have been adopted to re-balance the difference. They use information slides (LEP’s, enterprise zones and the Lancashire LEP) and video clips to make notes for Boris Johnson to address the public about he North-South Divide. Finally we answer an exam question with some guidance for the pupils on how to answer. Hope this saves you some valuable planning time. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/markthegeographer

AQA GCSE Geography lesson for the new specification Unit 2B: In this lesson we look at the post-industrial economy and how it has changed the UK economy. The lesson starts with a quick retrieval practice quiz. We then introduce the idea of a post-industrial economy. The pupils then complete an information gathering exercise where they collect information on three sections of the economy that are behind these changes, development of IT technology, the services industry and finance and research and development. All the information is recorded in a A3 knowledge organiser. We then finish with a GCSE-style practice question with some guidance. Hope this saves you some valuable planning time. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/markthegeographer

AQA GCSE Geography lesson for the new specification Unit 2B: In this lesson we look at how trade and in particular Fairtrade can help reduce the development gap. The lesson has a retrieval practice starter based around Ordnance Survey symbols. We firstly introduce what tariffs and quotas are and the pupils fill in a table where they decide if the statement applies to a tariff or a quota. The pupils complete a cloze exercise on what free trade is and we then look at the benefits of being in a trading group or trade bloc. We introduce Fairtrade and there is a video clip, we then look at Uganda and coffee farmers in the country who participate in a Fairtrade scheme and community project. The pupils complete a guided reading exercise and there is also a video for this. We finish with a GCSE-style practice question with some guidance and structure provided for the students. Hope this saves you some valuable planning time. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/markthegeographer

AQA GCSE Geography lesson on reducing the development gap in Malaysia. ****You will need the Oxford GCSE Geography textbook for AQA. This lesson contains a differentiated a3 worksheet for the pupils to workthrough using the textbook. There is a variety of tasks that the pupils can choose from and some video clips on Jamaica to give the pupils a brief insight into the island. Included are:- Starter activity Video Clips Differentiated Worksheet. Hope this helps. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/markthegeographer

AQA GCSE Geography lesson for the new specification Unit 1A: In this lesson we look at the causes, effects of and responses to the Somerset Levels floods of 2014. The lesson has a multiple choice retrieval practice starter. We firstly introduce the location of the Somerset Levels and the pupils consider why the area may be prone to flooding, this could be just a discussion or they could annotate the map. They use sentence fragments to write a description of the location. We then look at the causes of the floods, for this the students complete a cloze exercise and highlight long and short term causes. There is a video clip to watch on what happened during the floods. The students then create a map to show the extent of the floods by colouring by numbers on a worksheet. They then look at the impacts and categorise them into social, economic and environmental. We then briefly look at dredging with an optional video clip before the students sort the responses out into immediate and long-term responses on a worksheet. We finish with a GCSE-style practice question with some guidance and structure provided for the students, there is also marking guidance provided. Hope this saves you some valuable planning time. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/markthegeographer

AQA GCSE Geography lesson on Sustainable Urban Living using Freiburg as an example. Included in the lesson is: Video clips on Freiburg Information sheet on sustainable living in Freiburg A3 double sided task worksheet with a variety of actvities for differing abilities Practice GCSE Questions You may wish to use alongside the Oxford AQA GCSE Geography textbook, but all resources are included. Hope this helps. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/markthegeographer

AQA GCSE Geography lesson for the new specification Unit 2B: In this lesson we look at the environmental impacts of quarrying in the UK. The lesson starts with a quick true or false retrieval practice quiz with sound effects. We then look at a photo of a quarry and the pupils think about all the impacts the quarry may be having on the physical environment. There are possible answers on the next slide. We then look at ways that industry might be able to become more sustainable. The pupils have hexes and are asked to develop the points further by explaining their potential impacts. There are suggestions on the following slide. We then look at quarrying and Torr Quarry as an example. The pupils have an info sheet and a knowledge organiser to complete with questions relating to Torr Quarry and Quarrying. There is also a video clip on quarry restoration to help with this section. We finish with a 4-mark practice question with some guidance on how to respond. Hope this saves you some valuable planning time. https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/markthegeographer