The world’s rivers

We are learning to:

• name the world’s major rivers

• develop research skills using atlases, websites and other sources.

Rivers of the world

A river is a long body of water that flows in a naturally formed channel along the Earth’s surface until it reaches the sea.

A river always begins at its source, which is in the higher ground such as mountains or hills. Many rivers have their source in icy places where melting snow gathers to form little streams. The streams join together to form larger streams. The smaller streams that feed into the larger rivers are known as tributaries.

The table below shows the names and lengths of some of the longest rivers on each continent.

ContinentRivers (length in km)

Asia Yangtze (6,300 km), Yenisei (5,539 km), Yellow River (5,464 km), Lena (4,400 km)

AfricaNile (6,853 km), Congo (4,700 km), Niger (4,200 km)

North AmericaMissouri (3,767 km), Mississippi (3,730 km)

South AmericaAmazon (6,992 km), Paraná (4,880 km)

EuropeVolga (3,645 km)

AustraliaMurray (2,508 km)

Exercise

1. Name the longest river in: a) Asia b) North America c) South America.

2. Why do you think none of the world’s longest rivers are located in the Caribbean?

3. Use the map opposite. Identify the sea into which each of the following rivers flow: a) Nile b) Yangtze c) Mississippi d) Amazon

4. Use the map opposite. Name a river in: a) Asia b) North America c) Africa d) South America.

5. Use the internet. Find out about the rivers of Trinidad and Tobago, as well as any two other islands in the Caribbean. Find out the names of at least five rivers in each country.

6. Research a country you would like to visit. Write two paragraphs about this country. Include its location (on which continent it is located), the highest mountain peak and the longest river.

Geography for Trinidad and Tobago: The world’s rivers

Activity

In groups, make up a jingle of two stanzas entitled ‘Our World’ about the continents, their mountain peaks and rivers.

Activity

Make a world globe out of papier mâché. You can use the internet to help you find out how to make papier mâché. On your globe you must show the main continents and oceans, mountain ranges, three major rivers and three deserts.