🌍 Continents

🌎 What are Continents?

• Continents are large continuous landmasses on Earth’s surface.
• They are clearly visible on the world map 🗺️.
• But counting them is not so simple — depending on criteria, the number can vary between 4 to 7.

📖 Definition:
Continent → A very large continuous landmass on Earth, usually separated by oceans.

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🔢 Different Ways of Counting Continents

1️⃣ Four Continents

• Africa–Eurasia 🌍
• America 🌎
• Antarctica ❄️
• Australia 🇦🇺

2️⃣ Five Continents

• Africa 🌍
• America 🌎
• Antarctica ❄️
• Australia 🇦🇺
• Eurasia 🌏

3️⃣ Six Continents

• Africa 🌍
• Antarctica ❄️
• Australia 🇦🇺
• Eurasia 🌏
• North America 🌎
• South America 🌎

4️⃣ Seven Continents (most widely used)

• Africa 🌍
• Antarctica ❄️
• Asia 🌏
• Australia 🇦🇺
• Europe 🌍
• North America 🌎
• South America 🌎

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🏅 Olympic Symbol Connection

• The five Olympic rings 🏅 represent the coming together of athletes from all over the world.
• They stand for five inhabited continents:
  • Africa
  • America
  • Asia
  • Australia
  • Europe

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📊 Relative Sizes of Continents

• The diagram in the textbook (block diagram of squares) shows relative sizes, not exact shapes.
• Activity:
  • Largest continent → Asia 🌏.
  • Smallest continent → Australia 🇦🇺.
  • Compare sizes → Africa > North America; South America > Europe; Antarctica > Australia.

📖 Definition:
Eurasia → The combined landmass of Europe and Asia, often treated as one continent by geologists.

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✅ Key Takeaways

✔️ 7 continents model (Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, South America) is most widely used.
✔️ Continental count can vary (4, 5, 6, or 7) depending on grouping.
✔️ Asia = largest, Australia = smallest.
✔️ The Olympic rings symbolise 5 inhabited continents.

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