Geography · Year 2

Active learning ideas

Using Intermediate Compass Points

Active learning helps students grasp intermediate compass points because spatial reasoning develops best through movement and physical interaction. When students step between north-east and east, they feel the angles, which strengthens memory more than passive listening or textbook work.

• National Curriculum Attainment Targets
• KS1: Geography - Geographical Skills and Fieldwork

• 20–45 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Experiential Learning
• 45 min · Small Groups

Outdoor Compass Hunt: Directional Clues

Provide each small group with a compass and clue cards naming intermediate directions to landmarks, such as 'Find the tree north-east of the bench.' Groups record findings on a sketch map and report back. Conclude with a class discussion on patterns noticed.

Can you name all eight compass points?

Facilitation Tip

Before the Outdoor Compass Hunt, mark the eight points on the ground with cones so students see the angles and positions clearly.

What to look for

Provide students with a pre-drawn compass rose. Ask them to label each of the eight points. Then, point to a specific location on a classroom map (e.g., the bookshelf) and ask students to write where it is relative to their desk using one cardinal and one intermediate point.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Self-Management
• Social Awareness

Activity 02

• Experiential Learning
• 30 min · Whole Class

Human Compass Rose: Whole Class Formation

Mark a large compass rose on the playground with chalk. Assign students to stand at each of the eight points holding signs. Call out directions for the 'arrow' student to face, then have groups rotate to new positions while naming intermediates.

What do you notice about how NE, NW, SE, and SW fit between the four main compass directions?

Facilitation Tip

During the Human Compass Rose, ask students to call out the name of the point they are standing on to reinforce vocabulary while moving.

What to look for

Show students a simple map of the school playground with key landmarks. Ask: 'If the slide is North of the swings, where might the climbing frame be if it is South-West of the swings?' Encourage students to use the eight compass points in their answers and explain their reasoning.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Self-Management
• Social Awareness

Activity 03

• Experiential Learning
• 25 min · Pairs

Map Description Pairs: Local Area Directions

Give pairs a simple map of the school grounds. One partner describes a location using intermediate points, like 'the gate is south-west of the field,' while the other marks it. Switch roles and check accuracy together.

How would you use compass directions to describe where something is?

Facilitation Tip

For the Compass Point Matching puzzle, have students trace each intermediate point in bright colors so the overlaps and adjacencies remain visible.

What to look for

Give each student a card with a picture of a common object (e.g., a tree, a bench). Ask them to draw a simple map showing the object in relation to a school landmark (e.g., the school gate) and label its position using at least one intermediate compass point.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Self-Management
• Social Awareness

Activity 04

• Experiential Learning
• 20 min · Individual

Compass Point Matching: Individual Puzzle

Students cut out and match intermediate direction labels to a compass rose template, noting positions between main points. They then label their own local map with three locations using full eight-point terms.

Can you name all eight compass points?

Facilitation Tip

In the Map Description Pairs activity, provide a simple grid on scrap paper so students practise drawing and labelling positions before transferring the skill to a school map.

What to look for

Provide students with a pre-drawn compass rose. Ask them to label each of the eight points. Then, point to a specific location on a classroom map (e.g., the bookshelf) and ask students to write where it is relative to their desk using one cardinal and one intermediate point.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Self-Management
• Social Awareness

A few notes on teaching this unit

Teachers approach this topic by starting with the body. Students become points on the rose so they feel the angles between directions. This kinaesthetic entry point prevents confusion about north-east being ‘to the right’ or a separate direction. Avoid worksheets that show only static compass roses; these can reinforce the misconception that directions move with the map. Research shows that alternating outdoor and indoor tasks maintains engagement and consolidates learning.

By the end of the activities, students confidently use all eight compass points to describe locations and explain how intermediate points sit between cardinal directions. They can justify their choices and apply this understanding outdoors and on maps.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During Outdoor Compass Hunt, watch for students who treat north-east as a separate direction instead of between north and east.

  Stop the hunt at a marked north-east cone. Have students stand with arms pointing north and east, then slowly lower the east arm halfway between the two to feel the angle. Ask them to name the new direction aloud.

• During Human Compass Rose, watch for students who think north-east is always on the right side of the rose regardless of orientation.

  Rotate the class slowly while they remain in place. Ask each quadrant group to call out their direction so students notice that north-east stays in the same physical space, not on the same side of their bodies.

• During the Compass Point Matching puzzle, watch for students who pair south-west with north-east as simple opposites instead of adjacent points.

  Ask students to lay their puzzle pieces on the table in order. Then have them walk around the table clockwise, naming each point aloud so they see that south-west follows south and precedes west, not directly opposes north-east.

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Methods used in this brief

• Experiential Learning