A continent is a large landmass on Earth and there are seven: Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Europe, North America, South America, Oceania.

A location is the particular position of something on Earth.

The Equator is an imaginary line encircling Earth at 0° latitude and is an equal distance from the North Pole and the South Pole.

The northern hemisphere is the half of Earth located north of the Equator.

The southern hemisphere is the half of Earth located south of the Equator.

Using maps to locate countries in North and South America

Geography

Climate of North and South America

Physical geography of North and South America

Human geography of North and South America

Economic activities of North and South America

Planning a journey through the Americas

Using digital maps to identify different landscapes of North and South America

This unit provides a foundation for 'South America: Why does the Amazon matter?', which extends and deepens pupils’ understanding of physical and human geography and processes through a case study of the Amazon as a region of Brazil.

This unit builds directly on 'Europe: How diverse are its landscapes and places?', which focuses on the diverse people and landscapes of Europe, as well as earlier work in 'Contrasting locality: What is it like to live in (named location) in Jamaica?', which extends and deepens pupils’ understanding of physical and human geography and processes.

This unit introduces the continents of North and South America through their physical and human features. Pupils explore climate, land use, and economic activity across different regions, and plan a journey that connects a range of contrasting places.

North and South America: how diverse are their places and landscapes?

The weather of a place is the day to day condition of the atmosphere, e.g. sunny, snowing, warm etc.

Climate describes the average weather conditions over a long period of time.

Lines of latitude are imaginary lines on Earth showing position north or south of the Equator, measured in degrees.

A physical geographical feature is natural and has not been built by humans.

A landscape is an area and its landforms and features that can be seen when viewed from another place.

Biomes are regions of the world with places that have similar climates, vegetation and animals that have adapted to living there.

Settlements are places where groups of people live and work.

The population is the total number of people living in a particular area.

A major city is a large city with a population of over 100,000 people.

A feature in the landscape which has a particular meaning attached to it, for example to help with directions, is called a landmark.

Goods are items that people need or buy, e.g. food, clothes and services are systems that supply a public need, e.g. waste collection.

Wealth is having a lot of money, possessions or resources.

Inequality is when something is not shared evenly between everyone.

An indicator is a sign that shows the level or state of something.

A tourist attraction is something that people travel to see or do.

A human geographical feature is something that humans have made or built.

A route shows the starting point and end point of a journey, sometimes with stops in between.

a GIS contains digital maps that allow us to investigate geographical patterns

a large area with similar plants, animals and climate

the features of an area, made up of natural things like hills and rivers, and human things like buildings and roads

North and South America: how diverse are their places and landscapes?

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