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Geography · Key Stage 1 · The School
Four countries, one kingdom
ENGLAND (capital London), SCOTLAND (Edinburgh), WALES (Cardiff) and NORTHERN IRELAND (Belfast) together make the United Kingdom. Great Britain is the big island holding England, Scotland and Wales — so Northern Ireland is in the UK but not in Great Britain. People mix those two up constantly.
The seas around us
The NORTH SEA is to the east, the ENGLISH CHANNEL to the south, the IRISH SEA between Britain and Ireland, and the ATLANTIC OCEAN to the west. Britain is an island, which has shaped almost everything about its history, its weather and its food.
Finding places
On a map, north is up, south is down, east is right and west is left. Say where each capital is using those words: Edinburgh is north of London; Cardiff is west. Practise until it is automatic — every later map skill is built on it.
England, capital London. Scotland, capital Edinburgh. Wales, capital Cardiff. Northern Ireland, capital Belfast. Together they make the United Kingdom, capital London. Now the tricky bit: GREAT BRITAIN is the island holding England, Scotland and Wales — so Northern Ireland is in the UK and not in Great Britain, and the Republic of Ireland is in neither. Point to each on a map as you say it.