Lesson video

Hi, everybody, I'm Mrs. Lomax, and today, I'm going to be teaching you some geography.

Geography is one of my favourite subjects, so I hope you're as excited as I am, so let's find out what we're going to be doing today, shall we? Today, we are going to be investigating local and national landmarks.

So let's have a look, shall we? So the outcome for today's lesson is that you are going to be able to identify and locate some personal, local, and national landmarks, and give some reasons why they are important.

There are some key words in today's lesson.

So we have human feature, physical feature, landmark, statue, diversity.

Let's do my turn, your turn.

Human feature.

Physical feature.

Landmark.

Statue.

Diversity.

Well done, and remember to keep an eye out for those keywords in today's lesson.

So our lesson today is split into two parts, investigating national landmarks and investigating local landmarks.

We're gonna start with investigating national landmarks.

Landmarks are important human or physical features.

Do you know the name of this landmark? Have a little think and see if you can guess it with your class.

If you said Buckingham Palace, you would be correct.

Buckingham Palace is the official home of King Charles.

It is a well-known London and UK Landmark Humans made it or built it, therefore, Buckingham Palace is a human feature.

Let's do a little check, shall we? I want you to tell me Buckingham Palace is A, a human feature or B, physical feature.

Pause the video, collect your answers, and then come back and check.

If you had said A, a human feature, you would be correct.

Buckingham Palace is a human feature because humans made it.

The Giant's Causeway on the coast of Northern Ireland is made from thousands of natural rock columns, and you can see them there in that photo, can't you? They're a very interesting shape, aren't they? Do you think this is a human or a physical feature? Giant's Causeway is a physical feature.

It is natural and has not been built by humans, even though it does look a little bit strange, doesn't it? With all those columns right next to the sea, it is a natural feature, a physical feature.

So let's check, shall we? The Giant's Causeway is a human feature or a physical feature.

I want you to choose A or B.

Collect your answers as a class, come back, and we'll check.

If you had said that the Giant's Causeway is a physical feature, so B, you would be correct, well done.

This is Yr Wyddfa, the highest mountain in Wales.

Yr Wyddfa used to be called Snowdon, and I would just like to apologise if I have not said that correctly.

I have been practising to make sure I try and get the Welsh pronunciation correct, so I do apologise if I didn't get it quite correct.

Anyway, what can you see in this photograph? Do you think this is a human or a physical feature? Have a really close look at this photograph and have a think about what you can see.

You might want to have a little chat with your talk partners, pause the video, and then come back.

So did you spot that there's some water and a beautiful blue sky, and there is definitely a mountain, isn't there? Lots of rocks, rocky outcrops, and there's some grass, isn't there, as well? So I wonder if you spotted anything I didn't spot.

This means that Yr Wyddfa is a physical feature.

However, this is the visitor centre at the summit, and that is a human feature.

So the summit is the very top, the highest point of the mountain, and here you can see, can't you, that that visitor centre has been built by humans.

Even though it's been built with a local rock to blend in with the natural surroundings, it's been made by humans, so it is a human feature.

The actual mountain, Yr Wyddfa, is a physical feature.

So the mountain itself is physical, is natural, but on that physical feature, there is a smaller human feature, which is the visitor centre.

So sometimes you can have a bit of both in the same place.

So let's check, shall we? True or false, Yr Wyddfa is a human feature.

So I want you to choose whether that's true or false, and then justify your answer by using either A, it was made by humans, or B, it is natural.

So again, Yr Wyddfa is a human feature, true or false, and then justify your answer with either A, it was made by humans, or B, it is natural.

Pause the video, collect your answers, and then come back and check.

How did you get on? If you said that Yr Wyddfa is a human feature is false because B, it is natural, you would be correct.

Remember Yr Wyddfa is the mountain, so that is a physical feature, okay? It's the visitor centre that is at the summit that's the human feature, yeah? But the actual mountain, Yr Wyddfa, oh dear, is the physical feature.

Okay, let's see if you can match the landmark to the label.

So you've got Yr Wyddfa, Giants' Causeway, and Buckingham Palace, and I want you to say whether they are A, a human feature, or B, a physical feature, okay? Collect your answers together as a class and then you can come back and check when you are ready.

How did you get on? If you said that Yr Wyddfa was a physical feature, B, you would be correct.

Giant's Causeway is also a physical feature, so B, and Buckingham Palace is a human feature, so A.

Well done, everybody.

This is the Glenfinnan Viaduct in Scotland.

I want you to have a look about what you can see in this photograph.

Talk to your talk partners, collect your ideas as a class, and then decide if you think this is a human or a physical feature.

Pause the video and come back when you're ready.

How did you get on? There's quite a lot going on in this photograph, isn't there? For a start, there's some beautiful hills in the background, some gorgeous trees and grass, and there's definitely a little house in the back.

I can see three or four people in the foreground of the photo, and then right in the middle, underneath that cloud of steam is a train, isn't it? It's a steam train because it's under a cloud of steam, that would make sense, and it's going over a bridge.

It's almost like a type of bridge, isn't it? Going from one side of the valley to the other, and it's got arches going along, and this is known as a viaduct, okay? So the Glenfinnan viaduct is actually the railway and that arch structure that is going across the valley, okay? So if you thought that the Glenfinnan viaduct in Scotland was a human feature, you would be correct, because it's been built by humans.

Yes, it's been built over a physical feature, but the actual viaduct itself is a human feature because it has been built by humans.

So we've had a look at some national landmarks, but we can name and locate those landmarks using maps and images, because it's always useful to know where things are, isn't it? So here is the Glenfinnan Viaduct in Scotland, and there is the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland, so across the sea in Northern Ireland and then here's Glenfinnan in Wales, okay? And the red markers that you can see on the map are where the landmarks actually are.

And then you've got the photo next to them , just so you know which one is which.

And finally, Buckingham Palace is in London.

So have a good look at that map.

You've got one in every country of the United Kingdom there, haven't you? Scotland, Northern Ireland, England, and Wales.

So true or false, Buckingham Palace is a national and well-known landmark.

I want you to think if that is true or false, and then justify your answer using either A, it's the King's home in the capital city of the UK, or B, it's such a lovely building with beautiful gardens.

So true or false, Buckingham Palace is a national and well-known landmark, and then justify your answer with either A, it's the King's home in the capital city of the UK, or B, it's such a lovely building with beautiful gardens.

If you can pause the video, collect your answers, and then come back and check.

How did you get on? If you said that it is true, Buckingham Palace is a national and well-known landmark because it's the King's home in the capital city of the UK, so A, you would be correct, well done.

So have a look at task one.

I would like you to tell a partner what your favourite national landmark in the UK is and why.

What is it called? Where is it? What is it like? And why do you like it? Okay, so choose your favourite national landmark in the UK and tell your partner what is it called, where is it, what is it like, and why do you like it? It can be a physical or a human landmark and it doesn't have to be one of the ones we've looked at already in the slides.

It can be a different one if you want.

It can be one of the ones from the slides as well though.

So have a go at the task, and when you're finished, come back and we'll carry on.

How did you get on? Here's an example of what I've had a talk about with some of my friends.

So I love the Elizabeth Tower and the Big Ben bell, because it's so tall and loud and it's in London.

So we've had a look at investigating national landmarks.

Let's have a look at investigating some local landmarks.

Obviously, your local landmarks will be different to the ones in this video.

However, I'm going to give some examples that are local to near my school.

So let's have a look at investigating local landmarks.

This is a statute near Muswell Manor.

It's on Shellness Road on the Isle of Sheppey.

I want you to have a look at that photograph.

What can you see in the photograph? Have you ever seen this statue? Pause the video, have a good look at the photograph, and then come back when you are ready.

So what did you spot in the photograph? There's definitely a statue, isn't there, with three men with their arms open wide and then there's some lovely scenery in the background, isn't there? And did you spot the cute little puppy, the cute little dog in the front of the photograph? That might be my favourite parts of the photograph.

So this is actually a statue of the Short brothers, Eustace, Oswald, and Horace.

They're some fantastic names, aren't they? The statue is on the edge of a marshy field and we can see that in the background of the photo, can't we? Why do you think their arms are outstretched? Have a chat to your talk partner and then come back.

Okay, let's have a little check.

Where is the Short Brothers Statue? A, in a busy city.

B, on the edge of a marshy field.

Or C, at the seafront.

Okay, so you need to choose A, B, or C to answer where is the Short Brothers Statue.

A, in a busy city.

B, on the edge of a marshy field.

Or C, at the seafront.

Collect your answers, come back and check when you're ready.

How did you get on? If you had said that it is B, on the edge of a marshy field, you are correct, well done.

So the Short brothers built the first aircraft factory on Sheppey over 1,000 years ago.

They helped make the first flight in an aeroplane in this country happen, and this is where the first flight was made.

So maybe their arms are outstretched because they are amazed at the first flight, or maybe they're even pretending to be aeroplanes themselves.

Let's do a little check.

Why is the Short Brothers Statue special? A, It reminds us of their first flight.

B, it reminds us of their first aeroplane.

Or C, it reminds us of their first climb.

So I want you to choose A, B, or C.

Why is the Short Brothers Statue special? A, it reminds us of their first flight.

B, it reminds us of their first aeroplane.

Or C, it reminds us of their first climb.

Gather your answers as a class, pause the video, and come back and check.

How did you get on? If you said that the Short Brothers Statue is special because, A, it reminds us of their first flight, you would be correct, well done.

So this map shows where the Short Brothers Statue is, and you can see one red marker for our school and one red marker for the statute of the Short brothers.

So have a really good look at the map there, okay? You can see, can't you, that it's near the mud and sand, which is that brownie, sandy colour, it's sand.

And then there's the ocean past that.

Into the west, there is more fields, okay? This mural was painted by a local community artist and local school children, and if you have a look at the photo, isn't it beautiful? What can you see in the photograph? Pause the video, have a good look, and then come back.

There are actually quite a lot of things, aren't there, when you look closely? You can see a dolphin and a seal or a sea lion that seem to be playing, and there's a boat.

There's definitely a starfish and some seaweed.

I think there might even be a crab, some seagulls maybe.

I'm sure you spotted a lot more things than I have as well.

Well done.

Have you seen this mural before? Do you know where it is? It can be found at Leysdown seafront.

Local people love it because it was made by people who live here, including children.

Visitors see it when they visit the beach.

Landmarks grow in importance as people talk about them and tell others where they are.

So let's do a little check.

Where is the Leysdown mural? A, in a busy city.

B, on the edge of a marshy field.

Or C, at the seafront.

So where is the Leysdown mural? A, in a busy city.

B, on the edge of a marshy field.

Or C, at the seafront.

Pause the video, collect your answers, and then come back and check.

If you had said C, at the seafront, you would be correct.

Well done.

Let's have another little check.

Why is the Leysdown mural special? A, it is at the seafront.

B, it has lots of visitors.

Or C, it was made by local people.

So I want you to have a think about why the Leysdown mural is special.

A, it is at the seafront.

B, it has lots of visitors.

Or C, it was made by local people.

Pause the video, collect your answers as a class, and then come back and check.

How did you get on? If you said that the Leysdown mural is special because C, it was made by local people, you were correct.

Well done.

And here, this map shows where the mural is, and you can quite clearly see, can't you? It is very, very, very much on the seafront, on the last little bit of land before the beach really, isn't it? And then behind, can you see, there are lots of buildings behind this one? Whereas with the statue, there was more fields, wasn't there? Here, you can see it's actually right in the town where lots of people will be seeing it.

A personal landmark is a special place for family and friends.

We call this place Blackberry Heaven.

It's part of a field where there are lots of blackberry bushes.

At the end of the summer, we pick enough to make jam and pies for the winter.

If I say to my friends, "Meet you at Blackberry Heaven," they know exactly where to go.

There's no map for this landmark.

It's a secret.

I'm afraid I won't be sharing where this is, 'cause as it is a personal landmark, I want to keep it for myself and my family and my friends.

I hope you don't mind.

So why is Blackberry Heaven special? A, only my friends and family know where it is.

B, it has lots of visitors.

Or C, it was made by local people.

I want you to choose why is Blackberry Heaven special.

A, only my friends and family know where it is.

B, it has lots of visitors.

Or C, it was made by local people.

Have a go, collect your answers as a class, and then come back when you are ready.

How did you get on? If you said that Blackberry Heaven is special because, A, only my friends and family know where it is, you would be correct, well done.

Let's have a look at task two, shall we? I want you to choose three local landmarks, and then you are going to add them to a map of the local area and write a sentence about each one.

So here are some ideas.

You could choose a church, the statue of the Short brothers, the memory bench outside the school, your actual school, the seaside art display.

Maybe you have a personal one that you don't mind sharing where it is, but if you do have one you want to keep a secret, maybe don't put that one on your map.

So you are choosing three local landmarks, adding them to the map of the local area, and writing a sentence about each one.

Pause the video, have a go, and then we'll have a look at some feedback when you get back.

How did you get on? This was my example that I've made.

So you can see there, the Leysdown mural at the seafront is colourful, even on a rainy day.

And then I like the Short Brothers Statue because it looks like they are flying.

And finally, the school memory bench is important because it's where I sit and talk to my friends.

How did you get on? Did you have some that were very similar to your friends? Or did somebody have one that nobody else had picked? It's interesting, isn't it, to have a look at each other's landmarks and see what you've picked? So let's have a little summary about investigating our local and national landmarks.

National landmarks are well known and many people want to visit them.

Local landmarks are known and matter to the people who live there.

People can have landmarks that means something special only to them.

Landmarks can help us find our way around.

And maps help us locate and find landmarks.