The population of the UK
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can explain where people live in the UK and how topography influences population distribution.
Key learning points
- The UK has a population of around 67 million people.
- The population of the UK is unevely distributed with around 10 million people living in and around London.
- The population distribution of the UK is affected by the topography, with fewer people living in mountainous areas.
Keywords
Relief - the height and shape of land surfaces
Population density - the number of people living in a defined area, e.g. 300 people per square kilometre
Population distribution - describes how the people in that population are spread out across the area
Common misconception
Population density is the same across the UK.
Population density varies widely due to factors like topography and urbanisation.
Teacher tip
Get pupils to move around the room to demonstrate migration.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What are the four countries that make up the UK?
Q2.What does population density refer to?
Q3.Which factor would most likely lead to a sparse population?
Q4.What type of area is likely to have a high population density?
Q5.Why might an area with fertile soil have a high population density?
Q6.Which country has the highest population within the UK?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What is the approximate population of the UK?
Q2.Why is London the most populous city in the UK?
Q3.Relief...
Q4.Match the two parts of the statements about population density
Q5.Why is population density higher in cities like London?
Q6.The people of the UK
To help you plan your 7 geography lesson on: The population of the UK, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 7 geography lesson on: The population of the UK, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 3 geography lessons from the Population: where do people live? unit, dive into the full secondary geography curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.