Geography Unit Lesson on the Seven Continents of the World

ETEC 546 Micro Teaching Digital Presentation Presented by: Eva E. Mora

A continent is a large continuous mass of land, namely, Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia, listed in order of size. (Europe and Asia are sometimes considered a single continent, Eurasia.)

North America The third largest of the continents, North America extends from Alaska, the Queen Elizabeth Islands, and Greenland to Panama's eastern border with Colombia in South America. Canada, the United States, Mexico, the Central American republics, the Bahama Islands and the Greater and Lesser Antilles are all parts of North America—more than 9,300,000 square miles (24,100,000 square kilometers), or more than 16 percent of the world's land area. North America's population of more than 490 million is increasingly urban.

South America A triangular-shaped continent, South America is bordered on the east by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by the Pacific Ocean, and on the north by the Caribbean Sea. It is connected to North America by the Isthmus of Panama. The fourth largest of the continents, South America has an area of about 6,882,000 square miles (about 17,825,000 square kilometers), or about one eighth of the land surface of the Earth. In the early 21st century the population was approximately 351 million.

Europe The area of Europe totals more than 4 million square miles (10 million square kilometers). It spreads from 35° to 81° N latitude and from 60° E to about 10° W longitude. Norway's Svalbard (Spitzbergen) extends European islands to more than 80° N, and Iceland extends to nearly 25° W. Europe is centrally located among the world's landmasses. Fortunately, its location in the westerly wind belt brings to the land the marine influences of the nearby oceans, seas, and bays. The peninsular shape of the continent and its numerous islands and indentations along the coasts facilitate the influence of the marine winds. The result is a moderate climate with a long growing season over much of Western Europe. This is quite in contrast to the severe cold conditions of comparable northerly latitudes along the East coast of North America for much of the year.

Asia A land of extremes and contrasts, Asia is the largest and the most populous continent on Earth. It has the highest mountains and most of the longest rivers, highest plateaus, and largest deserts and plains of all the continents. Asia is also home to some of the world's oldest cultures. It has some of the poorest as well as some of the richest nations in the world. It contains a major share of the world's largest cities, yet most of Asia's people are rural dwellers. Because of its size, age, population, and rich resources Asia has long been of great interest to the rest of the world. During much of Asia's history, outsiders, principally Europeans, tried to exploit and control it and its people. In the 20th century, however, Asia was the scene of great change. Many of the undeveloped countries of the region took various approaches to modernizing their economies and societies, some under Communism. Progress was often slow because of physical and cultural barriers, but there were some notable advances and the efforts to upgrade living standards continues today.

Africa The continent of Africa lies astride the equator, extending beyond 35° N. latitude and reaching almost 35° S., or about as far north as Washington, D.C., and about as far south as Uruguay. It is the second largest landmass in the world, after Eurasia, and its area is more than three times that of the United States. Its population in 2002 was estimated at 827 million. The average population density is only 71 people per square mile (27 per square kilometer), but this is misleading because much of the land is almost uninhabitable desert or rain forest. Roughly one third of Africa's total land area is devoted to agriculture, but in nearly half the countries less than 6 percent of the land is cultivated.

Australia Wedged between the Indian and Pacific oceans, Australia lies south of the Eurasian landmass. It is an island continent and, like the island continent of Antarctica, it is located entirely in the Southern Hemisphere. Australia is also the only continent occupied entirely by a single nation. Tasmania, a much smaller island off the southeast coast, is also considered to be a part of the continent of Australia.

Antarctica Antarctica is fifth in size among the world's continents. Its landmass is almost wholly covered by a vast ice sheet. Lying almost concentrically around the South Pole, Antarctica—the name of which means “opposite to the Arctic”—is the southernmost continent, a circumstance that has had momentous consequences for all aspects of its character. It covers about 5.5 million square miles (14.2 million square kilometres), and would be essentially circular except for the outflaring Antarctic Peninsula, which reaches toward the southern tip of South America (some 600 miles [970 kilometres] away), and for two principal embayments, the Ross Sea and the Weddell Sea.

It’s A Big World After All!

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