Key Stage 1 geography · Locational knowledge

KS1 geography: the seas around the UK

The United Kingdom is surrounded by water, and in Key Stage 1 children are taught to name and find the seas around it and to describe what the sea is like. Teachers link this to the four countries, to the coastline and to simple vocabulary such as coast, beach and cliff. It gives children a clear sense of the UK as a group of islands, which they build on when they study the coast, ports and trade.

Seas around the UK, explained

The main stretches of water around the UK are the North Sea to the east, the English Channel to the south, the Irish Sea between Great Britain and the island of Ireland, and the Celtic Sea to the south-west. Beyond these, to the west and north, is the Atlantic Ocean. Teachers do not expect every child to learn all of them at once. Many classes start with the North Sea, the English Channel and the Irish Sea, and add the others as they become more confident with the map.

Children are taught to find these on a map or atlas, and to describe where they are using direction words and the names of the four countries. A good question is “Which sea would you cross to get from England to Ireland?” or “Which sea is on the east side of Scotland?” This ties locational knowledge to the vocabulary of position that children are learning at the same time.

The objective also asks children to identify characteristics, so they learn what the sea is like as well as where it is. Seawater is salty. The sea moves in waves, driven by the wind, and the water rises and falls on the shore roughly twice a day, which is called the tide. Coasts are shaped by the sea, so children meet words such as beach, cliff and coast. They also hear about what people do on and near the sea: ferries, harbours, fishing boats, lifeboats, wind turbines far out in the water, and seaside holidays.

First-hand observation is part of the work. If it is practical, a class may visit a beach, or they may watch a short film, handle shells and sand, or taste a drop of salty water on a fingertip in a supervised activity. Children then draw, label or describe what they noticed. The vocabulary they use, rather than complicated facts about each sea, is what teachers are looking for at this age.

Words your child will hear

Sea: A large area of salt water that is smaller than an ocean and often partly surrounded by land.
Ocean: One of the five biggest areas of salt water on Earth, such as the Atlantic.
Coast: The place where the land meets the sea.
Island: Land with water all around it. Great Britain and Ireland are both islands.
Tide: The regular rising and falling of the sea on the shore, about twice a day.
Harbour: A sheltered place on the coast where boats can stay safely.
Compass directions: North, south, east and west: the words used to say where a place is.

What the National Curriculum says

The programme of study for Key Stage 1 says:

Pupils should be taught to name, locate and identify characteristics of the 4 countries and capital cities of the United Kingdom and its surrounding seas
Pupils should be taught to use world maps, atlases and globes to identify the United Kingdom and its countries, as well as the countries, continents and oceans studied at this key stage
Pupils should understand basic subject-specific vocabulary relating to human and physical geography and begin to use geographical skills, including first-hand observation, to enhance their locational awareness.

Objectives from the National Curriculum in England, © Crown copyright, used under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Try it: labelling the seas on a map

On a map of the United Kingdom, where would you write North Sea, English Channel, Irish Sea and Atlantic Ocean?

Find the east side of the map. This is the side of England and Scotland that faces towards the rest of Europe. The water here is the North Sea.
Look along the south coast of England. The narrow stretch of water between England and France is the English Channel.
Find the west of Great Britain. The water between England, Scotland and Wales on one side and the island of Ireland on the other is the Irish Sea. Northern Ireland is on the far side.
Look at the far west and the top of the map. The huge area of open water here is the Atlantic Ocean, which is an ocean and not a sea.
Say a sentence with a direction word for each, such as “The North Sea is to the east of Scotland.”

The North Sea is to the east, the English Channel to the south, the Irish Sea to the west, and the Atlantic Ocean beyond to the west and north.

Common mistakes and how to help

Thinking the Atlantic Ocean is another sea

It is next to the seas around the UK and is blue on the same map. The words “sea” and “ocean” are often used loosely in everyday talk.

What helps: Say that the Atlantic is one of the five oceans, and the seas are smaller. Ask your child which of the labels is the biggest.

Putting the North Sea at the top of the map

The North Sea has “north” in its name, but it lies to the east of Great Britain. East and west are also easily swapped at this age.

What helps: Link each sea to a neighbour: the North Sea faces Europe, the Irish Sea faces Ireland. Walk to the map, face north and point east and west.

Believing the sea stays still and is always the same

A child who visits the beach once may only see the sea at one level and think that is how it always looks.

What helps: Look at photographs of the same beach at high and low tide, or talk about how the harbour boats float at one time of day and sit on the mud at another.

Thinking the UK is one big island

On a quick glance, England, Scotland and Wales look like one shape, and Northern Ireland is easy to miss.

What helps: Point out that Great Britain is an island, and that Northern Ireland is on a different island across the Irish Sea. A trace with a finger around each coast makes it clear.

How to help at home

Watch the sea whenever you can. On a trip to the coast, keep well back from cliff edges and look together at the waves, the line where the tide reaches and the things that have been left on the sand. Ask them to describe what they see and hear. Stay close to your child near the water.
Taste, see and feel the salt. Dissolve a spoon of salt in a jug of water and let your child watch it disappear. Talk about why the sea tastes salty. Remind them never to drink seawater.
Find the seas on a map. Trace a finger around the coast of the UK and name the water you pass: the North Sea, the English Channel, the Irish Sea, the Atlantic Ocean. Then ask a direction question: “Which sea is on the west?”
Look at things that travelled by sea. Check the labels on fruit, toys and clothes. A lot of what we use arrives on ships. Find the country on the map and imagine which seas and oceans the ship crossed.
Draw a coast. Ask your child to draw a seaside scene and label what they know: sea, beach, cliff, harbour, boat. Writing the labels practises the vocabulary the class is using.

Leads on to

Key Stage 2: Countries of Europe and Russia
Key Stage 2: North America: countries and features
Key Stage 2: South America: countries and features
Key Stage 2: Counties and cities of the UK
Key Stage 2: UK regions, mountains and rivers
Key Stage 2: UK land use and change
Key Stage 2: Latitude, longitude and hemispheres
Key Stage 2: Tropics and polar circles
Key Stage 2: Prime Meridian and time zones