Fieldwork and skills, Year 7: more practice

It is vague: it names no place and nothing you can measure

HintThink about whether you could collect numbers or counts to answer it.

The whyA sharp enquiry question names a place and something that can be measured or counted, so evidence can answer it. 'How many people use Hill Park on a Saturday?' is much stronger.

'How many shops on our high street are empty?'

HintOne question is a matter of opinion; the other is a matter of counting.

The whyOpinions cannot be measured or checked, so they make poor enquiry questions. A count of empty shops can be collected, recorded and compared.

Secondary data

HintPrimary is first-hand; this is second-hand.

The whySecondary data comes from books, websites, maps and official statistics. An enquiry often uses both: primary data from the field and secondary data to set it in context.

A clinometer

HintThink of the angle between the ground and the flat.

The whyA clinometer is held up and sighted along the slope to read the angle in degrees. It is used when comparing the steepness of a hillside or a beach.

Sunlight would heat the thermometer itself and give a reading hotter than the air

HintThink about what the Sun does to the glass and liquid inside.

The whyAir temperature is the temperature of the air, not of the instrument. Meteorologists use shaded, ventilated boxes for the same reason.

15

HintAdd all three days, including the dry one.

The why4 + 0 + 11 = 15 mm. Rainfall is measured as a depth in millimetres.

A satellite image

HintIt is taken from higher than any aircraft.

The whySatellite images cover whole regions and can be taken again and again, so they are good for showing change over time.

A river

HintNatural features curve; roads and railways tend to be straighter.

The whyRivers wind across the land in curves, called meanders, and trees often line the banks. Man-made routes such as motorways run straighter.

To see how the land has changed

HintThink about what is different between two dates.

The whyPairs of images can show a city spreading, a forest shrinking or a coast eroding, which a single image cannot.

You can leave out clutter and highlight only what matters

HintA photograph records everything; a drawing lets you choose.

The whyA sketch is an argument in pencil: the geographer decides what to draw and label. It focuses on the features relevant to the enquiry.