Barton Hills River Study

On Tuesday 11th March Year 11 and 12 Geography students visited Barton Hills Nature Reserve in Bedfordshire. On the visit the students carried out a practical investigation into the chalk stream there, investigating aspects such as cross-sectional area, discharge and sediment types.

The students used a range of specialist equipment, such as flow and pH meters, to gather data for their investigations. They also practised their field sketching skills and learnt about the area's geological history as part of the Chilterns.

An enjoyable and productive day was had by all. The GCSE students are have subsequently written about their investigation for the controlled assessment, while the AS students have used their own findings to help them prepare for next term's examinations.

Flood Management in Milton Keynes

On Wednesday 12th February our Year 12 Geography students visited Willen and Caldecotte Lakes in Milton Keynes. On the visit we investigated the hard engineering strategies that have been put in place to protect the Milton Keynes from flooding.

The students made notes about the flood defences in use and despite the blustery conditions managed to draw field sketches and maps which they have since used to produce a case study of river management.

Chasing Ice

This week Year 12 Geography students visited The University of Northampton to attend a special screening of the award winning film 'Chasing Ice'. Chasing Ice is the story of environmental photographer James Balog and his team who headed to the Arctic to capture images to help tell the story of climate change.

The film features some extraordinary footage of glaciers including a calving event in Greenland that lasted for 75 minutes. See the clip from the film below in which the glacier retreats a full mile across a calving face three miles wide.

Can't see the video? Click here.

Year 7 & 8 Residential Fieldtrip

To support their learning in geography Year 7 and 8 students are invited on a residential field trip to the Brecon Beacons, Wales. The students will undertake practical investigations and fieldwork related to topics studied in Year 7 and 8.

The fieldwork will run over three days, from Wednesday 7th to Friday 9th March. During our stay the students will visit the Breacon Beacons National Park, where they will be given talks by specialist local tutors and carry out practical fieldwork investigations. We will also visit Big Pit, where the students will have a guided tour of a coal mine.