Teacher notes

This KS2 activity can be used when studying a locality in the UK. The unit includes information about how the land and buildings in the locality are used, and how the environment in this locality has changed (National Curriculum KS2 Places - 1 and 3). It can provide the information for the children to make contrasts with their own locality. The navigation activity also reinforces geographical skills in following directions and estimating distances.

This unit investigates Swansea Marina, an area of redevelopment, in a number of ways. The first part of the unit introduces the location of Swansea Marina, and the concept that this area was once a working dock and is now a marina for leisure craft. At the end of the introduction the children are presented with a choice of routes through the unit, and can click on one of three telescopes to explore further.

One telescope takes them to 'Changing Buildings'. Here the children are shown pictures of the buildings in their present use, and are told of their past use, and how this linked to the work of the dock.

A second telescope allows the children to 'Look round the Marina'. The pictures in this section give a flavour of what the marina is like, and includes information on some of the services available in the marina area for the residents and tourists.

A third telescope shows a sequence of pictures of a boat going through the lock into the marina. This part of the unit is linked to the navigation activity (Activity 1). In this exercise the children need to guide a boat through the marina by giving directional instructions.

Activity 2 contains questions about Swansea Marina to test children's understanding of the information presented in the unit.

A further activity could be to use the information in the unit to design a tourist poster for the marina. Students should focus on the interesting things there are to do and see.