Lesson video

Hello geographers.

My name is Mr. Robertson and I am really excited to be learning with you today.

Today we are beginning a new unit of work and our key inquiry question is going to be Europe.

What is it like to live in northern Italy? So we're going to be going on a fantastic voyage of discovery to the beautiful country of Italy to find out and what it's gonna be like to live there.

So are we ready? Have we got on our geography caps? Are we ready With our explorer ruck sax? Off we go.

By the end of today's lesson, we will be able to locate northern Italy on a map and describe how far it is from where you live.

I'm really excited to be learning today because I love geography and this is going to be fantastic.

So we have three key words today in our lesson.

I'm going to say the key word first and then I'm going to ask you to repeat it back to me.

So our first words are digital mapping tools.

Brilliant.

Our second word is root, absolutely spot on.

And our final word is order.

Amazing.

Let's find out what these words mean.

So digital mapping tools allow us to zoom in on places to investigate features using online maps.

A route shows the starting point and end point of a journey, sometimes with stops in between.

And a border is the dividing line between two countries.

These words are going to come up today as we go through this lesson.

So our first lesson in this new unit about northern Italy is all about location and transport.

And so this lesson is going to be in two parts.

The first part of our lesson is going to be all about locating Italy, and the second part of our lesson is going to be about travelling to northern Italy from the UK.

Are we ready? Let's go.

So we're going to be learning about northern Italy in this unit and it might be useful to consider what we already know about this topic before we learn more.

So I'd like you to think about everything you know already about Italy.

Maybe you've been there at some point.

Maybe you've got relatives there, maybe it's just a country that you've heard about.

Pause the video, turn to the person next to you and let's share.

Can you say maybe three things you know about Italy? Off you go.

Wow, what a lot of amazing things I'm picking up here.

I can hear lots of fantastic things that you already know about Italy.

Jun done some thinking as well.

He says pizza is from Italy.

I know this because I ate one in an Italian restaurant in London.

Oh, John, I absolutely love pizza.

Do you like pizza? What's your favourite flavour? I really like mushrooms, artichokes, and peppers.

Anyway, enough about pizza.

There's lots more to find out about Italy.

So when we investigate a topic, there are lots of different sources we can look at to find out more about it.

So we might find out information in our school.

We might be able to look at the internet and search and find information there.

We might be able to go and find out some information in some books.

Maybe we can ask members of our family to see what they know.

Of course we could also ask our friends to see if they can help us with any information.

And finally we can of course look at the television.

So we've got lots of different sources of information, places we can go to do some research.

How reliable are these different sources of information? And by reliable I mean how likely are they to give us information that is trustworthy and accurate.

The video talked to the person next to you, trial, reliable might these different sources of information be.

Some really interesting discussions there.

Thank you very much.

Yes, I could hear people saying things like books could be really reliable.

We just need to make sure they're from a publisher and there are proper information books.

Family and friends can be reliable, but they may have different experiences.

So maybe their experience of something might be different from someone else's experience.

The internet can be a great source of information, but you have to be really clear which websites you are looking at, making sure they're from a trusted and reliable source.

Because anyone can put information on the internet and just because it's on the internet it doesn't mean it's reliable.

So really good there everybody about reliability.

So let's focus down on our geographical inquiry.

Now we want to think about where Italy is located in the world.

and of course maps and globes could be used to locate places in the world.

This is something we've talked about in previous lessons.

A map is flat and that means it represents the world in two dimensions.

There's an example map of the world there for you.

On the other hand, a globe is spherical.

It is shaped like a ball.

It is a three dimensional model of the earth.

So globes are really accurate.

When we try and take the world as a three dimensional spherical object and turn it into a two dimensional map, it can cause problems for accuracy.

And so geographers have to make lots of different adjustments to make the map as accurate as they can.

Italy is located in southern Europe.

Here you can see a map of Italy and the question is, where is Italy on the map? If you look in the top left hand corner, you can see a compass which direction points south.

Hmm.

I wonder.

Oh, I know if I look at the compass, I can see the letters.

N-W-E-S.

S is south of course.

So that means that Italy is going to be in the south of Europe.

Talk to the person next to you.

Pause the video, can you see Italy? Off you go.

Great geographical thinking guys.

Aisha thinks she knows where Italy is as well.

She says Italy is south of Germany.

Is she right? Yes she is, isn't she? There is Italy, the dark green country and it's south of Germany and also Switzerland.

Well done Aisha, did you spot Italy too? So let's check our understanding so far.

Where is Italy located? Is it a northern Europe, B, Southern Europe or C Western Europe? Pause the video, have a think.

Brilliant geographical thinking.

It's B, Italy is in southern Europe, well done geographers.

So Italy borders the countries of Austria, France, Slovenia and Switzerland.

And as well as those countries, a lot of the country is bordered by water.

Look carefully at the map of Italy.

Why do you think Italy is sometimes called the boot? Pause the video, talk to the person next to you.

Use your geographical skills.

Some brilliant ideas there.

John's been looking at a map of Italy as well and he says it's shaped like one.

It is, isn't it? Look at that map of Italy going down the east coast.

You can see what looks like the heel, can you see that? Near the country of Albania and then boot shaped and then we've got the island of Sicily and it almost looks as though Italy is going to boot the island of Sicily away.

So yes, a really memorable shaped country.

Italy shaped like a boot.

Let's check our understanding again.

Which of these countries border Italy? I want you to select two answers.

Is it A, Croatia, B, France, C, Germany, or D Switzerland? Pause the video, have a think.

Amazing geographical thinking everybody.

Yes, Italy borders, B France and D Switzerland.

It's to the south of Germany but it doesn't actually border Germany.

Well done if you've got those right.

So as well as a map, we could also use digital mapping tools to investigate and these are really brilliant because we can zoom in and out and that allows us to investigate the main features of Italy.

You've got two images here.

We've got a digital mapping tool showing the whole of Europe on the left and on the right we've zoomed in our digital mapping tool to focus on northern Italy.

So we're going to do our first task now.

I'd like you to either use an atlas or a digital mapping tool and you're going to use that to locate the UK, Italy and northern Italy.

When you've done that, I'd like you secondly, to show all the countries that border Italy on a map.

So we're really going to be focusing on our geographical location skills in this task, use either an atlas or digital mapping tool to locate where the UK is and Italy and specifically northern Italy.

And then show all the countries that border Italy on a map.

Good luck geographers.

Off you go.

Wow, what an amazing lot of brilliant location work you've done.

On the left you can see on our digital mapping tool we've got Italy and then around it we've located where the United Kingdom is.

And of course that's an island just off the coast of France and Belgium.

We've got the country of France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia, all countries that border Italy.

And in the second map on the right you can see we've zoomed in to focus on northern Italy, which is the part of Italy that we're going to be exploring in great detail for the rest of this unit.

Well done if you manage to locate all of that successfully.

So for the second part of this lesson, we're going to be thinking about travelling to northern Italy from the UK.

Are you ready? Let's go.

So first thing I want you to think about is this.

We're going to imagine we're going to travel to northern Italy from the UK and I want you to think about which direction we would need to travel to get to Italy from the UK.

To help you we've got a compass rose on the screen and you can see this compass rose has got the cardinal directions of north, west, east and south, and we've also got the other directions as well of northeast, southeast, southwest and northwest.

I'd like you to talk to the person next to you.

I'd like you to think where is the United Kingdom on that map and where is Italy? If you were travelling from the United Kingdom towards Italy, which direction would you be travelling in? Pause the video, Have a think.

Ooh lots of great conversations going on there.

It's amazing to see you using those compass skills.

Absolutely, we would be going southeast because Italy is southeast of the United Kingdom.

Well done if you got that right.

Let's just recap what we've just learned.

In what direction do we travel to get to Italy from the UK? Is it A, northwest, B, southeast or C east? Pause the video.

Have a think.

Brilliant geographical thinking geographers.

Of course it's the southeast.

Congratulations if you got that correct.

Let's think about this in a bit more detail.

Milan is a major city in northern Italy.

I want us to think about a route that we could take to get to Milan from London.

Remember, a route is a journey with stopping points along the way.

If we were to leave London and go to Milan, what countries would we go through on the way? Now there's more than one possible answer here, so I'd like you to turn to the person next to you and have a little think.

Imagine you were porting a route from London to Milan, which countries might you go through? Pause the video, let's have a think.

Ooh some brilliant route planning going on their geographies.

Thank you for that.

I can hear people saying that we might go through France and Switzerland to get to Italy.

Brilliant thinking.

Some people saying, hmm, maybe you'd go to Belgium through tiny little Luxembourg and Germany and Switzerland.

So well done the thinking of different routes you might take.

As well as knowing what countries we might want to go through.

We also need to know something about distance.

Now we can use the scale of a map to work out how far it is between London and Milan.

Have a look at the bottom left of your map.

Can you see there's a scale there.

It's got the numbers at zero and then the number 1000 at the other end.

That means that the distance between zero and a thousand is a thousand kilometres on that scale.

Using this scale, do you think we might be able to try and work out the straight line distance between London and Milan? So of course we don't follow roots in a straight line because we've got natural obstacles to get around, haven't we? Like mountains and rivers, but just imagine 'cause it helps give us a sense of the direction.

Again, pause the video, turn to the person next to you approximately what would be the straight line distance between London and Milan.

All some brilliant work there.

Well done geographers.

You could see the scale there and Jun says, the straight line distance is about 1000 kilometres.

Is that what you came up with as well? Well done if you came with a figure that was close to that.

It may not be more exact.

You might have been just more or just less than a thousand kilometres, but well done if your answer was in that area.

So how would we actually get to Milan from the UK? Well, there's a variety of different sorts of transport that we could use.

We could use aeroplane, bicycle, car, coach, ferry, train or walking.

What might be the advantages and disadvantages of these different types of transport.

I want you to pause the video and talk to the person next to you.

Think about each of those transport types in turn, what might be some advantages, some benefits, some good things about that transport and what might be some disadvantages or negative things about those types of transport? Pause the video.

Have a think.

Ooh you've been having some really interesting conversations there, weighing up your advantages and disadvantages.

So we might need to take different types of transport and they're going to follow different routes because a bicycle can go on paths that a train definitely can't, can they? 'Cause bicycles can go back to rugged areas, but of course aeroplanes will follow a different route.

They'll be going across through airspace in a much more direct way.

Different types of transport are going to cost different amounts.

Travelling by aeroplane is very expensive, whereas of course travelling by bicycle is free or at least you only pay for the wear on your tyres.

And some water and food you might need to stop for.

Some will be quicker or slower.

I wonder which of these forms of transport do you think could get you to Italy the quickest? I wonder which of those forms of transport you might think would be slowest to get.

Of course, a journey might require more than one type of transport.

For example, if you wanted to fly to Milan, you would have to get to the airport first.

You might need to drive to the airport, you might need to get a taxi or a bus and then you can get on your aeroplane and fly to Milan.

So that's going to involve at least two types of transport.

If you wanted to drive to Italy, you would need to get a ferry or a train to cross the English channel.

You could see a photograph of a cross channel ferry there.

Maybe you've been on a ferry like this before.

The car will drive on the road to the port.

It will need to go up the ramp and be stored on the ferry.

And then when it arrives in a port in another country like France, you can then get off the ferry and drive.

Of course, there's also the channel tunnel, which means there's a tunnel underneath the English channel and you can go on that by train.

She's really exciting as well.

To help us investigate possible routes, distances, and journey times.

We can use digital mapping tools and travel websites and that can be really helpful to help us make decisions about what we want to do.

Of course, the distance route and time taken will depend on what type of transport is used.

Aeroplanes are very, very quick when they're in the air, but they take longer because you have to check in and go through security.

Cars can be quick as well, but of course you might have to stop to load onto the ferry.

And of course there can be roadworks and traffic jams as well.

Okay, let's check what we've understood so far.

I would like you to name two tribes of transport that you would be likely to use to get to Milan from the UK.

There are a selection of different forms of transport.

Which two of those would be likely that you would get to Milan from the UK? Pause the video, have a think.

Ooh brilliant geographical thinking everybody.

So the most likely is going to be a car, a ferry, aeroplane, train or coach.

Of course you could walk, but it's gonna take a very long time because as we established earlier, it's over a thousand kilometres.

Similarly cycling, it would be great fun but it would take a very long time.

So you are probably less likely to use those forms of transport.

Okay, so this is our practise task for today.

For this you can use either an atlas or a digital mapping tool.

I want you to plan a route to Milan from the place that you live.

You are planning this.

I'd like you to find out this information for me.

I'd like you firstly to find out the distance in kilometres from where you live to Milan.

I'd like you to think what direction you are going to be travelling in to get from where you live to Milan.

I'd like you to investigate what type of transport you will use.

And of course it might be more than one type of transport.

I'd like you to think about which countries you would travel through or over to get to Milan.

And finally I'd like you to find out how long it would take in hours.

So we're going to be doing some fantastic investigating here, geographers, and I can't wait to see what you find out.

Once you've done your investigations, I'd like you to think about two advantages and two disadvantages of the method of transport that you've taken.

So why might that be a really great form of transport and what might be some possible problems with it? I'm really excited to see what you find out.

Good luck geographers enjoy your investigations.

Wow, what a lot of amazing information you found out.

So here's an example that I've been working on.

I've been planning a route to northern Italy from London.

Now the distance from London to Milan is 1,189 kilometres.

If I'm travelling from London to Milan, I'm going to be travelling in a southeast direction.

I'm gonna be travelling by car.

But if you remember what we said earlier to actually get across the channel, I'm gonna need to use either a ferry or go on the channel tunnel on the train.

My journey is gonna take me through the countries of France and Switzerland and it's gonna take me 14 and a half hours because a thousand kilometres is actually quite a long way, isn't it? I wonder where you travelled from, and I wonder if that journey was longer or shorter than mine from London.

I wonder if you chose a different form of transport to me.

And I also wonder if you travelled through or over any different countries from me.

Interesting thinking geographers.

So what about some possible advantages and disadvantages of the methods of transport? So because I chose a car, some advantages are, you get to see lots of scenery on the way because we're gonna be driving down and noticing some amazing rivers or maybe some mountains as we go on that journey.

And of course it's quicker than a bike, definitely quicker than a bike.

However, there are some disadvantages.

If I go by car, it's gonna take me a lot longer than a plane.

But a big problem is that cars use petrol or diesel a lot of the time and that can cause air pollution.

So it's not the most environmentally friendly form of transport.

If I wanted to do the most environment mentally friendly, I might wanna take the train because then there are lots of us on the same train and all of us are sharing the fuel that the train is using.

So let's summarise what we've learned today.

We've learned that Italy is in southern Europe and it borders Switzerland, France, Austria, and Slovenia.

We've learned that digital mapping tools could be used to locate Europe, Italy, and the main features of northern Italy.

And finally, we've learned that investigations of travel to Northern Italy include comparing route, distance, and time.

You've done absolutely brilliantly today learning all of that, and I'm really looking forward to carrying on with this unit in our next lesson.

Thank you very much.