During the last week of this half term, our year 11 geography students finally went on their field trip to Carding Mill Valley in the Shropshire Hills to conduct a river study and develop their fieldwork techniques.

The students were raring to go and the rain and wind didn’t dampen the spirits of our budding geographers and their behaviour and attitude to learning was impeccable.

On arrival, the students developed their river fieldwork techniques and measured river variables such as velocity, depth, width, gradient and bedload size. We then went on a walk through the valley and continued our learning on river landforms such as v-shaped valleys and interlocking spurs, meanders, waterfalls and discussed how humans had impacted on the area. Students will be examined on their fieldwork investigation techniques in their final GCSE exams.

After 18 months of not getting out of the classroom, or even into classrooms at some points, the year 11 students and staff loved getting out in the field to do some practical geography. This is the heart of the subject and why we enjoy geography so much. We have more trips planned and we look forward to our continued study of places and the relationships between people and their environments. Have a look through the photos to see the students at work!