Merry Christmas!

 

Important information for YEAR 7s!!!

If you have failed HISTORY this 1st term..... (or you have got a C-)
Who? Failed students must do a little essay/project about 1066.   
What? You must explain the importance of that year in the history of Britain. Name of battles, people involved, kings, etc.  You may use pictures and drawings too.   
How? It must be done in paper as a little project of at least 5 to 10 pages or as a poster.
 When? The deadline when this must be handed in will be the 1st week in the school after the Christmas holidays. 

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If you have failed GEOGRAPHY this 1st term..... (or you have got a C-)
Who?
Failed students must do a little essay/project about an earthquake, volcano and tsunami (3 of them). 
What?
You must choose a real case study for each of the natural disasters and explain all about it as you did in the project (Remember that in that project you just used one example, this time you need to work more and do 3 in total). 
You may use pictures and drawings too. 
How?
It must be done in paper as a little project of at least 5 to 10 pages or as a poster. 
When?
The deadline when this must be handed in will be the 1st week in the school after the Christmas holidays. 

Toledo with year 9s

Toledo is one of Spain's jewels. Embraced by the River Tajo, within its walls it offers visitors a spectacular example of the history of Spanish art. Romans, Visigoths, Muslims, Jews and Christians...all of the peoples that have played a part in the history of Spain left their mark in Toledo, assuring its classification as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the twentieth century. We are back home after a nice day out in there. I just hope you had fun and learnt a lot visiting the cathedral and Tránsito Synagogue. Here you have some pictures to summarise your day out. 

Christmas Concert and News about donations

Just a couple of messages & reminders.

As we all know the Cristmas Concert will be this Friday (13/12/13) most of you are working hard to participate or to attend, do not forget to invite family and friends and buy the tickets in advance. This year all the money will go as a donation to "Fundación Agua de Coco".

My second important message of today is about the money it was collected to the "Philippines", we must be all very proud of the effort we just did in one day and the outcome. The final figure was 1624 Euros!!!

Well done everybody!

Geography in Key Stage 4 (year 10 & 11)

Dear parents and students of year 9,

I have got some requests about information a little bit more in detail about Geography in year 10 and 11. So, I have decided to make a brief summary of the important information to pay attention about this subject and posted on here. You may find this information and other, in the "portal de comunicación".

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KEY STAGE 4 – YEARS 10-11

 
1.Aims
In Key Stage 4, students in Montessori Mataespesa/Fresnos will be prepared for the International General Certificate of Education exam of the University of Cambridge Examinations Board (IGCSE), Syllabus number 0460. The aims are therefore the same as those specified by the exam board and are summarised as follows: -
1. To develop a sense of place and an understanding of relative location on a local, regional and global scale;
2. To develop an awareness of the characteristics and distribution of a selection of contrasting physical and human environments;
3. To develop an understanding of some of the processes affecting the development of such environments;
4. To develop an understanding of the spatial effects of the ways in which people interact with each other and with their environments;
5. To develop an understanding of different communities and cultures throughout the world and an awareness of the contrasting opportunities and constraints presented by different environments.

 
2. Syllabus outline
All students will follow the same teaching syllabus, based on the exam syllabus.

YEAR 10 (Physical Geography)
1. Plate Tectonics, Earthquakes, volcanoes, fold mountains, rift valleys, natural hazards and human response.
2. Weathering and mass movement
3. Fluvial processes and associated landforms, flooding, river pollution, water resources – uses, competition and conflict
4. Marine processes and associated landforms, coastal flooding, coastal pollution, and coastal management
5. The collection of meteorological data and factors affecting climate
6. Tropical rainforests – climate and vegetation, plantation farming, small-scale subsistence agriculture, deforestation and global warming
7. Deserts – climate and vegetation 

YEAR 11 (Human Geography)
1. World population distribution and density. World population growth, the concepts of overpopulation and carrying capacity. The demographic transition and variations in world population growth. Pro- and anti-natalist policies. Population structure, population pyramids. Population migration – causes and consequences
2. Settlement site, situation, pattern, morphology, function and growth. Settlement hierarchies and spheres of influence – shopping patterns. Urbanisation and associated problems. Urban land use models and comparisons between MEDCs and LEDCs. Inner cities and their redevelopment, ribbon development, dormitory suburbs/villages, green belts. Rural-urban migration in the LEDCs and shanty towns
3. Employment structure
4. Farming – changes in commercial and cash-crop farming
5. Energy – significance of different energy sources, acid rain, the siting of power stations
6. Industrial systems - motor vehicle assembly, high technology industries
7. Leisure & tourism
8. Revision



3. Time allocation

Students will have 3 x 55 minute periods of Geography and some homework per week.



4. Resources

Each student will have a copy of The New Wider World (Third Edition) by David Waugh (ISBN ). Each student will have access to the Oxford Practical Atlas (ISBN 0 19 831836 7). The textbook and atlas are supplemented my many teacher-prepared resources and by past examination questions.



5. Assessment

No assessment will be made of the students’ notes but assessment will be based on IGCSE style questions and the grades awarded will be equivalent to those that would have been obtained by the student under examination conditions bearing in mind the stage in the course. There will be tests at the end of most teaching units and formal examinations in June of Year 10 and in January of Year 11. All students will enter for Paper 1, Paper 2 and Paper 4 (Alternative to Coursework).


 

Year 9s OPTIONS TIME!!! Is Geography for me?

Dear parents and students of year 9s,

As you get closer to narrowing down your options, I have received some questions from pupils asking me about next year. Most of you are a bit excited and nervous about what to do and choose for year 10 and 11. Well, it is difficult for me to give an individual answer for each of you, for that reason you should think about a few things, and you can read them all down here. This applies just as well to any subject, not just Geography.

Step 1: Most important - do you enjoy it?
If you enjoy a subject you will work harder and be more attentive. That will lead to a happier couple of years, and a better grade at the end of it. If you enjoy several subjects, go to step 2...

Step 2: Are you good at it?
If you have several subjects you enjoy, think about which ones you are best at. Remember though, that if you haven't done well recently it doesn't mean you won't do better next year, especially as the people in your group will change which may help you concentrate better. If you are still struggling, go to step 3...

Step 3: The Department
If you haven't made your decisions based on Steps 1 and 2 (and even if you have), take a look at the department you will be working in. Every subject has huge strengths, and you need to decide which are appropriate for you. In last year's IGCSE exams, most of our Geography students at Montessori School Mataespesa got a grade C / B - and many A or an A*. Is this something that is important to you? You can also think about the classrooms, access to past papers, and the staff - but see the word of warning in Step 5!

Step 4: What will you study next year - is it interesting?
If you still can't decide, you could ask again and get details from other IGCSE students that you met in the Options Meeting last Thursday 28th November about the course you are going to study. You might find Geography more interesting than you thought - from global issues like climate change and fighting poverty, right down to why you live in your house and why there isn't a cinema nearby, geography is an interesting subject. Remember also that some new subjects that sound fabulously exciting might not turn out the way you think they will. This brings us on to the next point...

Step 5: The teachers
You might want to study with the same teacher for the next two years. Or you might want to get away from one you have at the moment! :,( But don't let this be something that influences your decision to do any particular subject. Remember that teachers are unlikely to teach all the groups in your year for IGCSE, and even if they do, in all subject areas teachers move on from time to time. Mr. Vallely and "myself" Mr. Legaz.... we are very busy every year and last minute subject changes may occur.

Whatever you decide, make sure it is the right subject for you. The Geography Department naturally wants you ALL to do Geography because we think it is the most important subject you could take (where else will you learn about global warming, rainforest destruction, shopping patterns and coastal erosion?) but we also want you to make the right decision. Ask us at any time if you want more advice.

Here you have a couple of videos from a school in UK giving you reasons to choose GEOGRAPHY as IGCSE. I will try to publish some other videos on here to help you with your final decision. Show it to your parents so you make the right choice!!!

Updated information about the 2nd TERM

Most of the information about the second term is ready on the web page. Have a look on your "year tag" and you will get the information in advance about test, books, projects, etc (Year 8A History and 11 GEOG will be updated soon)