Continents and Oceans — Answer Key
Part A: Sort the Words
Sort each word or number into the correct category box.
1. Read each name. Sort it into the correct group: continent or ocean.
Continent
North AmericaSouth AmericaAntarctica Ocean
ArcticSouthernPacific Continents are giant pieces of land, so North America, South America, and Antarctica all belong in the continent group. Oceans are huge bodies of salt water, so the Arctic, Southern, and Pacific belong in the ocean group.
Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the missing word or number on each line.
1. The continent covered in ice and snow is Antarctica.
Antarctica sits at the very bottom of Earth where the weather is freezing all year, so the whole continent stays buried under thick ice and snow.
2. The Arctic Ocean is near the North Pole.
The Arctic Ocean is at the very top of Earth, the same spot where the North Pole sits, so it is the ocean closest to the North Pole.
3. We live on the continent called North America.
The United States, Canada, and Mexico are all part of the same big piece of land called North America, which is the continent we live on.
4. A map is a flat picture of a place.
A globe is round like Earth, but a map takes that round shape and lays it out flat on paper so it is easier to look at and carry.
5. The Southern Ocean surrounds the continent of Antarctica.
The Southern Ocean wraps all the way around the icy continent at the bottom of Earth, which is Antarctica.
Part C: True or False?
Read each statement. Circle True or False.
1. Antarctica is the coldest continent.
True False
True. Antarctica is covered in ice and snow all year and has the coldest temperatures anywhere on Earth, so no other continent is colder.
2. North America and South America are the same continent.
True False
False. North America and South America are two separate continents that are connected by a thin strip of land, but they are not the same continent.
3. The Arctic Ocean is the smallest ocean.
True False
True. Out of all five oceans, the Arctic takes up the least space on Earth, which makes it the smallest one.
4. There are six oceans on Earth.
True False
False. Earth has five oceans, not six. They are the Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, Arctic, and Southern.