The coast of the UK

Geography

Mapping the coast

Coastal erosion

The changing coastline

Protecting the land

Coastal habitats and ecosystems

Coasts and tourism

Coasts and the future

This unit links to 'Global trade: How do we get our stuff?' by understanding how coastal development and jobs are linked to trade and travel. 

This unit develops the idea of land use in 'Farms and factories: where does our food come from?' and revisits briefly 'Settlements: Where do people live and why?' in considering coastal settlements, and also builds on the idea of sustainable travel explored in 'Sustainable world: Does it matter how we live?'.

This unit explores how coastal landscapes form and change. Pupils learn about erosion, habitats and human activity at the coast, and investigate how coastal environments are used, protected and managed in the face of ongoing change.

Coasts: what happens where the land meets the sea?

A human feature is something that humans have made or built.

A physical feature is natural and has not been formed or made by humans.

Land use is the function or purpose of a particular area.

Waves are the movements of energy across water.

Erosion is the process of Earth’s surface, e.g. rock or soil, being worn away and transported from its original site.

The geology of an area is its physical structure and what rocks and minerals exist there.

Sediment is material that is moved by water or air and settles in another place.

Deposition is when sand, mud and rocks are dropped by the river.

Something that is static does not move or change

A flood is when there is too much water in a waterway, such as a river, and it overflows onto land that is normally dry

Energy is the power used to make things work, for example to provide heat or light or to operate machinery

An ecosystem is a natural environment and the plants and animals live and interact within that environment

Habitat is the natural home or environment of an animal, plant or other organism

Pollution is anything that makes the environment dirty or unhealthy

A tourist is someone who who travels to a different place from where they live for a holiday

A dock is an area in a harbour or port where ships go to be loaded, unloaded or repaired

A lagoon is a shallow area of water that is protected from the ocean by a natural feature such as a sandbar or coral reef

A national monument is a place or building preserved by government because of its historic, scenic or scientific importance

Carbon dioxide is one of the greenhouse gases in Earth's atmosphere that traps heat

Fossil fuels are natural substances that were formed over millions of years from the buried remains of ancient organisms; they include coal, oil and gas

Renewable energy is sources of energy that can be re-used and will not be used up or run out

If something is sustainable it is able to continue over a long time

The atmosphere is the layer of gases that surrounds Earth. It includes the oxygen we need to breathe, so it is essential for life on Earth

Coasts: what happens where the land meets the sea?

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