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A slow morning at the edge of the sea

There is no activity quite so good at slowing a child down as rockpooling. Ten minutes after arriving at a likely-looking ledge, the running and shouting stops, and you find them crouched and silent, nose almost in the water, watching a crab the size of a thumbnail go about its day. The tide sets the pace. You cannot hurry it, and when it turns, it sends you home.

That rhythm is the whole appeal. A morning on a rocky shore gives you a couple of hours of genuine, unhurried attention — to the water, to the small creatures in it, and to each other. The only trick is to do the planning at the kitchen table beforehand, so that the day itself can be slow.

Read the tide before you pack the car

Everything depends on the tide table, so start there. Local tide times are widely available in printed almanacs, harbour offices and on the tide boards outside many seaside pubs. Find the day's low water time and its height, then work out what sort of tide you have.

• Spring tides, which fall near the new and full moon, pull the water back furthest and expose the richest lower-shore pools. These are the best days.
• Neap tides leave more water behind, so you see less — though upper-shore pools are still full of life.
• Low water runs roughly 50 minutes later each day, so a good time today will be an hour out tomorrow.

Arrive about an hour and a half before low water and follow the tide down, then turn and follow it back up. Plan your exit route while the rocks are dry, and note any headland, gully or causeway that could cut you off. Tell someone where you are going, and remember that phone signal on a rocky shore is often patchy.

Grippy shoes, warm layers and a light bucket

Wet rock covered in weed is the slippiest surface most families ever walk on. Wellies, for all their seaside charm, offer almost no grip. Trainers with a decent tread, or wetsuit booties, are far safer — and dress for a cold wind even in July, because that is usually what you will get.

• Trainers, walking shoes or booties. No flip-flops, no smooth soles.
• A fleece and a windproof layer, plus a hat for the breeze off the water.
• Sun cream and a hat, because the sea reflects light and burns are easy to miss.
• A shallow white tray, or a small bucket filled only a third with water.
• A magnifying glass and a small torch for peering into crevices.
• A flask, snacks, and towels left in the car.

A white tray beats a deep bucket every time: children can see what they have found without lifting it out of the water, and the creatures stay cool and shaded for the few minutes before they go back.

Where the life is hiding

The classic find is a proper pool with a fringe of seaweed, a few pebbles on the bottom, and a rock overhang you can look under without shifting anything. Damp weed at the edges is a good sign — the wetter the better.

• Beadlet anemones, red or green, looking like blobs of jam when the tide is out and opening into a crown of tentacles when submerged.
• Snakelocks anemones in the lowest pools, green with purple-tipped tentacles.
• Shore crabs and the faster, fiercer velvet swimming crab, usually under stones or in weed.
• Blennies, gobies and butterfish — small darting fish that will hover and watch you back.
• Limpets, periwinkles, topshells and dog whelks on the rocks and weed.
• Barnacles, mussels, sponges and sea squirts for anyone who prefers their wildlife stationary.

Look, don't lift: rockpool etiquette

A rockpool is a shelter, and everything in it is there because the tide allows it. The whole point is to look closely and leave it exactly as you found it. A few simple habits make a real difference.

• Turn a stone over on its side, look, then replace it exactly as it was, dark damp side down.
• Wet your hands before touching anything. Dry hands, and hands covered in sun cream, damage the surface of soft creatures.
• Never prise a limpet off its rock. It returns to its own scar to seal in moisture, and if it is shifted it will not survive.
• Do not poke anemones to make them close. Each one that shuts uses energy it needs for the returning tide.
• Keep anything you have caught in water, in the shade, one at a time, for a few minutes — then return it to the same pool.
• Never move a creature between pools, and never take live shells home. Empty shells and mermaid's purses belong on the beach too, as shelter for other things.
• Watch your feet. Barnacle and mussel beds are alive, and they are sharp.

Some shores are designated as marine conservation sites or nature reserves, where nothing at all should be collected. Check the signs at the car park or the noticeboard before you start.

Let the tide end the day

When the water begins creeping back up the shore, the day is done. An incoming tide moves faster than most people expect across flat rocky ledges, so treat the first sign of it as your cue rather than waiting until the rocks under your feet get wet.

The walk back is the best part if you let it stay slow. Name what you saw, argue over whether that was a butterfish or a blenny, and let the smallest ones tell the story again from the beginning. A notebook with a few wobbly drawings will do more for the memory than any photograph. Then home for chips, a bath, and a look at tomorrow's tide table.