CONTINENTS AND OCEANS FACTS

The earth’s surface is divided into large, unbroken masses of land. These large masses of land are the
continents. There are seven continents. This table shows the names of the continents and their areas in
square miles.
THE CONTINENTS
Asia 17,100,000 sq. mi.
Africa 11,800,000 sq. mi.
North America 8,500,000 sq. mi.
South America 6,900,000 sq. mi.
Antarctica 6,000,000 sq. mi.
Europe 4,000,000 sq. mi.
Australia 3,000,000 sq. mi.
Europe and Asia together are sometimes called Eurasia. Antarctica is the continent surrounding the
South Pole. It is entirely in the Southern Hemisphere.
Two continents, North America and South America, are in the Western Hemisphere. The other continents
are in the Eastern Hemisphere.
In addition, there are other smaller masses of land near the continents. They are called islands. The
largest of these is Greenland. Australia is the smallest of the continents. It is sometimes called the Island
Continent.
Around the continents is a great sheet of salt water. This sheet of water is divided into several large
portions. Each is called an ocean. The largest ocean is the Pacific Ocean. Other oceans are the Atlantic,
the Arctic, and the Indian. The oceans cover almost threefourths
of the earth’s surface.
I. Directions for using your map:
1. Label the equator on the map.
2. Write the name of each continent in the right place on your map.
3. Label the oceans on the map.
4. Label Greenland.
5. Label north, south, east, and west on the map, by compass rose.
6. Put a figure 1 next the largest continent on the map.
II. Without looking at your map try to answer the following questions.
1. Write the names of the continents in alphabetical order.
2. Do the same for the oceans.
3. Which two continents are entirely in the Southern Hemisphere?
4. What ocean separates North America and Asia?
5. What continent is sometimes called the Island Continent?