Stimulus -
Developing a sense of place

Through this Activity you will:

be introduced to a number of different ICT strategies that can be easily adapted and used when exploring a variety of places and geographical themes
begin to think about what makes 'place' a central concept for understanding geography.

ACTIVITY - Britain or not?

Do you find yourself responding to this image? Does it intrigue? Capture your imagination? Make you want to find out more?




Explore this PowerPoint Presentation provided as a stimulus for this activity.
CPDPI_BritainorNot

We could give this activity an imaginative context. Perhaps you have been exploring virtual journeys with the help of Google Earth and have visited a number of different locations. When you arrive at your destination, you are taken out for a walk along the coast by a friend who is a keen naturalist. You focus your binoculars along the cliff top. Look closely. What do you see? Are you in Britain or not?

Sense of Place

In the introduction to Chapter 2 of Teaching Geography in Primary Schools, Fran Martin encourages us to think more closely about what 'Place' means to us on a very personal level. She writes:

Place is a central concept in geography. How often do we stop to think about what places really mean to us? Does the concept have any meaning to us in our everyday lives?

In a very real, everyday sense, places play an important part in our lives. Each place we encounter will result in interactions with a variety of people and environments, and these interactions have an emotional as well as an intellectual component. The unique combination of the two will help us build up a sense of place that we then - consciously or not - apply to other places, whether experienced at first hand or indirectly; for example, through the news, films, books we read or brochures we pore over to select a holiday destination.

Our own, and children's, sense of place is therefore an important place to begin whenever we undertake a geographical study. The other important thing to recognise is that children's sense of place will not be limited to their own locality although this will, of course, be the place they know and understand in greatest depth.

Fran Martin (2006)



Our understanding of places is in part influenced by our experiences of the world.

Where is your favourite place (or places)?

Take a few moments to reflect on this question. When you have come up with an answer stop and think why these places have meaning and significance for you personally.

Try this activity with your class - what are their favourite places? This might be a good way to learn new things about them as people and the 'place' in which they live.



Reference

Martin, F. (2006), Chapter 2 'Knowledge & Understanding of Places' in Teaching Geography in Primary Schools, p.29, London: Chris Kington Publishing ISBN 1 8998 857 83 4

CPDPI_ICTResearchFrames