Travel around the World

WORLD GEOGRAPHY

NORTH AMERICA

North America is surrounded by three oceans, the __________ on the north, the ___________ on the east and the ____________ on the west. The large sea to the south is called the _______________ and the gulf is called the __________________. The largest bay in the world is in N.A. and is called _________ Bay. There is also a major group of lakes on this continent; they’re called the ________ Lakes, but their individual names are __________ , __________ , __________ , __________ and __________ . There are also many important rivers. In the far north is the ___________ and ___________ . On the west are the _________ and the _____________ . In the south is the _____________ and the _________________ . In the east are the _________________ and the _______________ . The major mountain range in N.A. is called the ______________ and it ________ to __________ along the length of the continent. There are also many other smaller mountain ranges including the ________________ Mountains in the west and the ___________________ in the east. The tallest mountain in N.A. is ___________________ and is found in the American state of ______________ . The tallest mountain in Canada is ________________ . N.A. is the third largest continent and covers over 16% of the earth’s land surface.
Canada is divided into ____ provinces. ___________________ is on the west coast. Then there are three prairie provinces: _______________ , __________________ and _______________ . The next two large provinces are _____________ and _______________. Then there are the Maritime provinces: ___________________ , ______________________ , _________________ Island and ___________________ which only joined Canada after World War 2. In the far north are three territories: __________, the _______________________ and the newest addition, ______________ .
Politically, North America has three major countries: _____________ , ______________ and ___________ . South of those three countries are twenty smaller countries including _______________ , _______________ and __________________ . Over 500 million people live on this continent with Mexico City and New York City being the two largest urban areas. Mexico City is the second most populous city in the entire world. The three major languages in N.A. are ____________, _____________ and ____________.
North America is divided from South America by a canal which was opened in 1914. It is called the __________Canal and is in the country of ___________ . It is now popular on the cruise ship circuit but was designed to facilitate shipping traffic, so that cargo didn’t have to go all the way around ________________ to get from the east coast to the west coast of North America.

SOUTH AMERICA

South America stretches from north of the equator all the way south almost to the continent of _________________ . It is bounded by the _________ Ocean in the west, the _________ Ocean in the east, and the _______________ Sea to the north. In the south, the ________ Passage separates S.A. from Antarctica. There is also a famous strait in the south, the Strait of ____________, which is known for its rough and turbulent waters.

The highest mountains in S.A. are the ____________ and the highest peak in this range is Mt. __________________. This mountain range is the longest maintain range above sea level and is the second highest in the world.
The highest waterfall in the world, _________ Falls, is on this continent. The highest navigable lake in the world, Lake ________________, is also on this continent.
There are five main river systems in South America. The largest, the __________ River, is the world’s largest drainage basin and carries approximately 1 /5 of the world’s fresh river water. It is also the 2nd longest river in the whole world.
South America is known both for its tropical rain forests, which cover more than 1 /3 of the continent, and its desert areas which run along the ______ coast through Peru, Chile and southern Argentina. the most well-known desert is the A_____________.
There are some well-known animals native to South America. Especially well-known are the following: the a____________ and b__________________ which are large snakes, the l_____ and a_______ which are now raised here in B.C., and the p_________ which is a flesh-eating fish. Of course, f_________ and p___________ are also well-known birds native to S.A., and from the ____________ Islands, off the west coast of S.A., come the G__________ tortoises.
There are only 12 countries in South America. The largest is ______________ with a capital city that is easy to remember: _________, although it is better known for its coastal city of R______________. The second largest country is _________________ in the south; it’s capital is B_______________ .The third largest country is _______ on the west with its capital L_______.

EUROPE

Europe is bounded by the ________ Ocean to the west, the ________ Ocean and _____ Sea to the north, the _______________ Sea and_______ Sea to the south and the _______ Mountains and the _______ Sea to the east.
The United Kingdom with its capital of ________ and Ireland with its capital of _______ are separated from the mainland of Europe by the _________ Channel and the _________ Sea.
On the main continent are several mountain ranges including the _______ with Mt. _______ , which separates Austria and Italy, and the ___________ between the Black and Caspian Seas. The tallest mountain in Europe, Mt. _______ is in these mountains in the southeast corner of Europe.
Europe has several major rivers that have long been used for transportation throughout the continent. These rivers include the _________ in England, the __________ in France, and the ______ and the _______ in Italy. The _______ River flows into the North Sea. The __________ River flows into the Black Sea, and the ____________ River empties into the Caspian Sea.
Here are the names of some of the capital cities:
United Kingdom or Great Britain ________________
Ireland ________________
Netherlands ________________
Germany ________________
France ________________
Spain ________________
Italy ________________
Greece ________________
Russia ________________
Here are some of the major tourist attractions:
in Paris ________________
in London ________________
in Rome ________________
in Athens ________________

AFRICA

Africa is the ________ largest continent in regards to both area and population. Approximately one in seven people on the planet live in Africa.
On the north, Africa is bordered by the ________ Sea. On the west is the ________ Ocean, and on the east is the ________ Ocean. In the northeast is the ________ Sea which separates Africa from Asia. The ________ Canal connects the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea and so means that ships don’t have to go all the way around the southern tip of the continent to travel from Europe to Asia.
Africa has the longest river in the world: the ________. It also has several other major rivers including the C________ and the N______ emptying into the Atlantic and the L________ and the Z________ flowing into the Indian Ocean. ________ Falls, on the Zambezi, is the most spectacular waterfall on the continent and considered one of the seven natural wonders in the world.
On the eastern side of the continent run several narrow rift valleys. In one of them is Lake ________, the longest freshwater lake in the world. Between two rift valleys is Lake ________, Africa’s largest lake and the second largest freshwater lake in the world after Lake Superior in North America.
Less than one-fifth of Africa is covered in f________, while about two-fifths is covered with grasslands or ________. About two-fifths of Africa is covered by _________ including the largest desert in the world: the ________. Two other well-known deserts include the N________ Desert in the southwest and the K________ in the south.
The highest mountain in Africa is Mt. ________ on the eastern side of the continent; it was created by volcanic activity. In the northwest corner are the ________ Mountains and in the east are the ________ Highlands.
Perhaps what Africa is best known for is its animal life. Gir________, li________, ze________ and el________ live on the gr________. Gor________, chim________ and mon________ live in the fo________. Hippo________, flam________ and cro________ live along riverbanks.
Plant life is not as well-known but there are some remarkable species including date ________, mahogany and ebony. The unusual ________ tree has been said to look like it was planted upside down because its limbs look like roots. C________ is grown in the eastern highlands, o________ are grown along the northern coast and pa________ flourishes along the Nile River.
There are ____ countries in Africa. The largest is the ________ in the north and the smallest is ________, a group of islands in the Indian Ocean. Egypt is perhaps the most famous country and has a capital city called ________. Kenya’s capital is ________ and South Africa’s capital is ________. Other countries to know include Nig______ which is known for its oil resources and Bots______ for its diamonds. M________, in the Indian Ocean, is one of the largest islands in the world. The Su____, Zim________ and Rw_____ are frequently in the news due to political unrest.

ASIA

Asia is the __________ continent in terms of area and population. Approximately 60% of the people on earth live in Asia.
Asia is surrounded by three oceans, the ___________ , the __________ , and the ____________ . It also has several major seas including the B______ Sea to the west, the R_____ Sea and the A________ Sea to the south, and the ______________ Sea and the B___________ Sea to the northeast. The lowest point on earth, the ________ Sea, is between the countries of Israel and Jordan. The C________ Sea is actually a salt-water lake, the largest inland body of water in the world.
There are many major rivers in this large continent. Here are some of them: the Y_________ and the H____________ in China, the G________ in India, the _________ in Pakistan, the T______ and the E___________ in Iraq and the Yenisey, O__ and the L______ in Russia.
There are also many mountain ranges. Two of them form the boundary between Asia and Europe: the U______ and the C_________ . Another range, the H_________, holds the highest point on earth, Mt. ________.
There are several huge deserts in Asia. In the southwest, Most of the __________ Peninsula is one large desert called, for obvious reasons, the ________ Desert. In China and Mongolia is the _______ Desert the is known for its rocky terrain.
Since Asia is such a huge continent, there are obviously very many animals indigenous to that landmass. Some of the most well-known ones include the giant p______ and the H_________ black bear in the Himalayas and the B______ t_____ in India. Other animals native to Asia include the B______ camel with two humps and the d_______ with one hump, the water b________ and the K______ d________ which is actually a type of lizard.
Many of the spices, including n_______ and c__________ , used in our foods come from plants native to Asia. R________ , o_______ , s_________ , b__________ , m__________ and t______ also grow in the wild in Asia. B_________ is a fast-growing grass with stalks that can grow up to 30 cm. in diameter. R________ trees are the source of the original rubber for tires.
There are _____ countries in Asia. The country with the largest population in Asia, and in the entire world, is _________. It’s capital city is __________ . The second largest country in the world in terms of population is also in Asia. It is _________ with its capital of ____________ . Other major countries include South Korea with its capital of ___________ , Vietnam with its capital of Hanoi, Japan with a capital of __________ , Saudi Arabia with its capital of __________ and Iran with its capital of _______________ . Currently, there are wars in A______________ with its capital of _________ and Iraq with its capital of ________________ . Civil unrest has existed for many years, and even decades, in Pakistan with its capital of __________ and Israel, with its capital city of ______________ .

OCEANIA

The continent of Oceania is known by various names. Some call is Australia after the largest island. Some call it Australasia because it is comprised of Australia and various other islands south of Asia. Which name you use isn’t really important. What counts is that you know a little about the tremendous variety of natural wonders on this continent.
The ____________ continent in the world, Oceania is bounded by the ____________ Ocean on the west and the ___________ Ocean on the east. It is a continent of islands divided into ________ main groups: Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia. Most of Oceania is comprised of coral atolls and volcanic islands; most hold very few people.
Polynesia includes the C________ Islands, a popular vacation destination for Canadians. Micronesia includes G_________ which holds an American army base. Melanesia includes F_______, another popular holiday destination. Australasia includes the two largest countries, _____________ and ________________.
Australia has been inhabited by indigenous Australians for more than _________ years. The Dutch arrived only in the 1600s and the British came in the 1700s. Since 1901, Australia has been its own country with the capital being __________ and its largest city being ____________.
Australia has the largest __________ reef in the world; it is off the northeast coast of the country and is over 2,000 kilometres long. Australia is also the f__________ continent and most of it is either desert or semi-arid, although the southeast and southwest corners have a temperate climate. The northern part of the country has a tropical climate. The most famous mountain, although not the tallest, is Ayers Rock or __________, a large sandstone mound that rises from the surrounding flat land and seems to change colour from violet to red depending on the time of day and the weather conditions. The lowest point is Lake __________ at 16 metres below sea level.
Since Australia is an island, it is not surprising that it has many unique and unusual plants and animals. Many of the plants, such as eu__________ and acacia trees, are well-adapted to receiving little rainfall. Some of the most well-known animals include the pl_________, the k___________, the k__________ and the wombat. The most famous birds are the emu and the k_____________. Australia is also home to the largest variety of ___________ snakes in the world and several species of both freshwater and saltwater crocodiles. The wild dog, the _________, was introduced to Australia about 5,000 years ago.
The second largest country in Oceania is ______________ with _____________ as its capital and ___________ as its largest city. It is comprised of _________ main islands and various smaller ones and is found southeast of Australia. The south island is very mountainous and has a range called the ______________ running along its length; the north island, while having fewer mountains, is notable for its v_________ activity and hot springs.
Being another isolated island nation, New Zealand also has many unusual plants and animals. Unfortunately, many of them have become extinct during the approximately 1,000 years that people have lived on these islands. Still surviving is the famous flightless ___________ bird. There are ____ snakes native to New Zealand and only one rare, venomous spider. There are many insects, however, including the largest one in the world: the __________.
The aboriginal people of New Zealand are called ____________, but as in Australia, most of the people are of European descent.
Due to a relatively warm climate and a history of British colonialism, people in both Australia and New Zealand enjoy a wide variety of sports including ___________ and _____________.

ANTARCTICA

Antarctica is the ______ largest continent. It is very cold. Most of it is south of the Antarctic Circle and ____% of it is permanently covered with ice that has an average depth of 1.6 kilometres. It has about ____% of the earth’s ice and 70% of the world’s fresh water. V_________ is the highest point, and Mount E______ is an active volcano. More than 70 lakes lie below the surface of the ice sheet; Lake V_______ is the largest and is believed to contain _________ life. The surface of the lake is permanently covered in ice, but the _________ of the ice sheet above and the ________ from geothermal heating below means the water remains a liquid.
No one ____________________ lives on this continent. Various countries have research stations there but scientists are only stationed there for awhile. So, there are no countries, no cities, no schools.
Antarctica is not known only for its cold climate. It has the highest _____________ elevation. It is also the w__________ and the dr_________ continent. Since little precipitation falls, the centre of the continent is actually the largest ________________ on earth!
Not suprisingly, there are few indigenous plants and animals. Huge schools of antarctic ____________ provide food for all sorts of other sea life including whales, squid, seals and various penguins, including the ____________ penguin and the ____________ penguin. Many of the tiny mites and midges that live in Antarctica have a type of ______________ liquid, glycerol, in their bodies that doesn’t solidify in the freezing temperatures. The largest terrestrial animal is a _______________________ only a little bigger than one centimetre in size. A wide variety of mosses, lichens and algae also manage to survive.

[These pages may be copied for use with students if the following credit is provided: ©2008 Sophie Rosen.]

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