Places around the world
Year 1 · Geography
Explore places, read maps and discover the world around you.
Choose a game
Take your time, try a game and collect stars.
Continents and oceans: the 7 continents and 5 oceans
Is Africa a continent or an ocean? Which ocean is the biggest? A free KS1 geography game about the 7 continents and 5 oceans, with a printable.
Play Continents and oceans: the 7 continents and 5 oceans
Learning about places around the world
In this Year 1 geography collection, you can practise Continents and oceans: the 7 continents and 5 oceans. Choose a game above for a short activity, or explore the examples below before you play. The full guide for each game explains its controls, gives more examples and includes a free printable for practice away from the screen.
Talk it through
Keep a globe, atlas or simple map nearby. Ask your child to point to a place or direction before naming it. Relate a map symbol or feature to a real example, and compare places rather than memorising isolated names.
Ask: “Where would you look to check your answer?” Give your child time to explain. Return to an example after playing and ask whether they would approach it differently.
Continents and oceans: the 7 continents and 5 oceans
The Earth is covered by huge areas of land called continents and huge areas of salt water called oceans. In Key Stage 1, children learn to name the seven continents (Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania and South America) and the five oceans (the Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, Southern and Arctic). In the game, children sort names into continents and oceans. The Quick quiz asks which of four names is an ocean, and a few big facts, such as which ocean is the largest.
Try an example: Is Oceania a continent or an ocean?
It sounds like "ocean", but Oceania is the continent that includes Australia, New Zealand and many Pacific islands.
Show the answer
A continent.
What to look out for
Thinking Oceania is an ocean. Explain that Oceania is land: Australia, New Zealand and lots of islands. The ocean nearby is the Pacific.
Read the full Continents and oceans: the 7 continents and 5 oceans guide
Practise away from the screen
- Look at a globe or a world map together and play "point to it": one person names a continent or ocean and the other finds it.
Curriculum connections
These games support selected practice connected to Locational knowledge in the National Curriculum in England. The programme groups requirements by key stage; the year shown here is our suggested practice placement. A game covers selected examples, rather than assessing every requirement.
Questions families ask
Where should we start with places around the world?
Start with Continents and oceans: the 7 continents and 5 oceans. Look at the worked example together, then try a round. If the task feels unfamiliar, use the full game guide or its free printable before trying again.
Does this cover everything taught at this level?
No. This collection brings together the games currently available for this learning area. It supports selected skills and does not replace the full programme of study or practical teaching.