Africa

This continent the second largest continent on Earth and the second most populated one. It is divided by the equator and is full of contrasts. There are very dry areas with high temperatures, such as the world's largest hottest desert. Not many animals and plants can live in its harsh conditions. On the other hand, there are areas with plenty of fresh water and beautiful lakes. Lake Victoria, for example, is the world's second largest freshwater lake. In the past, many people from this continent were sold as slaves. Between the 15th and the 19th centuries (500 years), the Atlantic slave trade took an estimated 7–12 million slaves to the New World only.

North America

This continent is wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. Most of the continent's land area is dominated by Canada, the United States, and Mexico, and is the third-largest continent by area, following Asia and Africa. It was named after the Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci who was the first European to suggest that this continent were not the East Indies, but a different land previously unknown by Europeans. There are three main languages spoken there: English, French and Spanish. It is also known for tornadoes – which appear on every continent except Antarctica - however, the vast majority of tornadoes occur in the Tornado Alley area.

South America

This continent is located in the Southern Hemisphere and is known for many famous sights: the world's highest waterfall, Angel Falls (Venezuela); the largest river (by volume), the Amazon River; the longest mountain range, the Andes, the driest place on earth, the Atacama Desert; the largest rainforest, the Amazon Rainforest; the highest capital city, La Paz, Bolivia; the highest lake in the world, Lake Titicaca. It is home to many interesting and unique species of animals including the llama, anaconda, piranha, jaguar and tapir. There are also important mineral resources, such as gold, silver, copper, iron and petroleum found in this continent.

Europe

This is the world's second smallest continent by surface area, covering about 10,180,000 square kilometres or 2% of the Earth's surface and about 6.8% of its land area. It is divided from Asia by the Ural and Caucasus Mountains. There are about 50 countries there – no one knows exactly because the number is still changing. This is because many countries go through political changes and divide. Former Yugoslavia, for example, split into Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Montenegro, Macedonia and Serbia. One of its countries, Ancient Greece, is the birthplace of Western culture. In the past, this continent's nations 'controlled' the Americas, most of Africa, Oceania, and large portions of Asia.

Asia

With over 4 billion people, this is the most populated continent on Earth. One of the reasons that Europeans became interested in this continent was due to Italian merchant Marco Polo, whose travel stories were very popular and influenced many explorers. There are many beautiful sights to see there - the Great Wall of China can even be seen from space. Many lovers like to visit the Taj Mahal which was built in 1631 by emperor Shah Jahan. He was very sad when his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal, a Persian princess, died during the birth of their 14th child. Today, people on this continent are known for eating a lot of rice and fish and (in India) not eating beef because cows are sacred animals.

Australia

This continent is the smallest one, but it is also one of the wealthiest in the world. For at least 40,000 years before the first British came to this continent in the late 18th century, it was inhabited by people known as Aborigines. Even today, there are hundreds of Aboriginal cultures and languages which are different but share the same basic beliefs, such as The Dreaming. This continent is famous for the variety of animals that live there: it has more than 378 mammal species, 828 bird species, 4000 fish species, 300 species of lizards, 140 snake species, and two crocodile species. You've probably heard of Tasmanian devil, kiwi (bird) and dingo, to mention just a few.

Antarctica

There is no description for the 7th continent, Antarctica. Search the web to find information about this very special continent. Discuss your findings with a friend or a teacher.