Geography Words
By Cindy Grigg
1
Look at a globe. A globe shows us what the Earth looks like. It is a model of Earth. Earth is shaped like
a ball or a sphere. What colors do you see on the globe? You see a lot of blue. That's the water in Earth's
oceans. Earth has more water than land. There are five named oceans. There are seven large masses of
land called continents. .
2
Around the middle of the globe, you will see a line of
latitude called the equator. The equator, or 0° latitude,
divides the Earth in half. The equator is like a belt that
goes around Earth's middle. The top half of the Earth is
called the Northern Hemisphere. The bottom half of the
Earth is called the Southern Hemisphere. The word
"hemisphere" means half a sphere. Lines that run across
the globe from east to west are called lines of latitude.
Can you name three continents in the Northern
Hemisphere?
Lines that run from north to south are called lines
of longitude. 0°longitude is called the Prime Meridian. It divides the Earth into the Eastern Hemisphere
and the Western Hemisphere. North America and South America are two continents. They are in the
Western Hemisphere. The Western Hemisphere is west of the Prime Meridian. The other half of the Earth
is called the Eastern Hemisphere. Which continent is completely in the Eastern Hemisphere? Which are in
both the Eastern and Western Hemispheres?
3
Lines of longitude and latitude are put on globes and maps by cartographers, or map makers, to
help us find places. These lines are like a ladder. Lines of longitude are like the sides of a ladder except
they bend to meet at the poles. Lines of latitude are like the steps on a ladder. The lines you see on a globe
are not marked on the Earth. They are imaginary lines.
4
Longitude and latitude are tools used by cartographers to make accurate maps and globes.
Longitude and latitude are tools used by geographers to talk about the Earth and record information.
Geographers help us understand the Earth and its people.
5
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1. The equator divides the Earth into the ______
and the ______ Hemispheres.
Northern and Southern
Eastern and Western
Top and bottom
Answer is found in paragraph _______.
2. What does the word "hemisphere" mean?
3. A simile compares two things using the words
"like" or "as." Which of these is a simile?
A globe is a model of Earth.
The lines you see on a globe are not
marked on the Earth.
The equator is like a belt that goes around
Earth's middle.
Answer is found in paragraph _______.
4. Which of these is the main idea of this story?
There are five named oceans.
The geography words in bold print help us
talk about places on the Earth.
Earth is divided into different hemispheres.
5. Lines of latitude run ______.
6. Which line marks the Eastern and Western
Hemispheres?
north and south on the globe
The Equator
From top to bottom
The Prime Meridian
across the globe from east to west like the
steps of a ladder
Latitude
Answer is found in paragraph _______.
Answer is found in paragraph _______.
Geography Words - Answer Key
1
Northern and Southern
2 The word "hemisphere" means half a sphere.
3
The equator is like a belt that goes around Earth's middle.
4
The geography words in bold print help us talk about places on the Earth.
5
All of the above
6
The Prime Meridian