B. People and Environments · Global Communities

Land and Water Features Around the World

B3.1 B1About 40 minutes

Learning goals

I can name and describe physical features like mountains, plains, rivers, lakes, islands, deserts and forests.
I can name some famous physical features around the world and find their continents.
I can explain how a physical feature can help or challenge the people who live near it.

Words to know

physical feature
A part of the land or water made by nature, like a mountain, river or lake.

mountain
A very high, steep part of the land, much taller than a hill.

plain
A large area of flat land. Plains are often good for farming.

river
Fresh water that flows across the land, usually into a lake, a sea or an ocean.

lake
A body of water with land all around it. Most lakes are fresh water.

island
Land with water all around it.

valley
A low area of land between hills or mountains. Rivers often flow through valleys.

Remember natural features?

In Grade 1 you learned about the natural features in your own community, like a hill, a pond or a river. Geographers call them physical features: parts of the land and water made by nature, not by people.

Today we will see that the same kinds of features are found all around the world, and some of them are enormous!

A bright turquoise lake surrounded by evergreen forest, below a row of tall, rocky mountains with snow on them. — This picture shows two physical features: a lake and mountains. Both were made by nature, not by people. AI-generated image

Some physical features: mountains, a hill, a plain (flat land), a river, a lake, the ocean and an island.

Feature	Famous example	Continent
mountains	the Rocky Mountains (in western Canada and the United States)	North America
tallest mountain	Mount Everest, in the Himalaya mountains. It is the tallest mountain on Earth.	Asia
river	the Nile River, one of the longest rivers in the world	Africa
river and rainforest	the Amazon River and the Amazon rainforest	South America
desert	the Sahara Desert, the largest hot desert in the world	Africa
lakes	the Great Lakes. Lake Superior is one of the largest freshwater lakes in the world.	North America
plains	the Prairies in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta, with huge wheat farms	North America
island	Greenland, the largest island in the world	North America
coral reef	the Great Barrier Reef, off the coast of Australia	Australia

Some famous physical features around the world

How features affect people

Physical features make a big difference to how people live.

Rivers and lakes give people fresh water to drink and to water crops. Boats can carry people and things on them. Many cities are built beside rivers and lakes. Toronto is on Lake Ontario, and Cairo in Egypt is on the Nile River.
Plains are flat, so they are good for farms and easy for building roads and railways.
Mountains are hard to build roads across, and it can be cold up high. But people go there to ski, hike and enjoy the view. Some farmers in mountains grow crops on terraces: flat steps cut into the hillside.
Coasts (land beside the ocean) are good for fishing, ports for ships and beaches.
Deserts have very little water, so fewer people live in the driest parts. Many people in desert countries live near rivers or other water sources.

Canada has many features too

Canada has mountains (the Rockies), plains (the Prairies), thousands of lakes, long rivers (like the St. Lawrence and the Mackenzie), forests, islands (like Baffin Island and Newfoundland), and three ocean coasts. Ontario alone has many thousands of lakes!

Worked example

Let's match the feature to the job

Which physical feature would help most with each job?

growing a huge field of wheat
going downhill skiing
catching fish to sell

Job 1: Wheat farms need lots of flat land. That is a plain, like the Prairies.
Job 2: Skiing needs high, snowy slopes. That is a mountain, like the Rockies.
Job 3: Lots of fish live in the ocean and in big lakes, so a coast is a good place for a fishing community.

a plain 2. a mountain 3. a coast (or a big lake)

Worked example

Let's think about the Nile

Most of Egypt is desert. Why do most people in Egypt live close to the Nile River?

Think about what people need. Everyone needs water to drink and to grow food.
A desert has very little rain, so it is hard to find water or to grow crops there.
The Nile River brings fresh water through the desert. Farmers can water their fields with it, and boats can travel on it.

People live near the Nile because it gives them water for drinking and farming in a dry desert country.

In a dry desert, the Nile River is a ribbon of water. Farms and towns line its banks, so most people in Egypt live close to it.

Hands-on activity

Build a land-and-water model

You need: a baking tray or a big plastic lid, play dough or damp sand, small stones, a cup of water and some toothpicks with paper flags.

Build at least five features: a mountain, a hill, a plain (flat part), a valley and an island.
Make a path for a river that runs from the mountain down through the valley.
Slowly pour a little water at the top of your mountain. Watch where it goes! Does it make a river? A lake?
Label each feature with a toothpick flag.
Decide: Where would you build a farm? A ski hill? A fishing village? Put a small stone on each spot and explain why.

Riddle time

What did the ocean say to the beach?

Nothing. It just waved!

Your turn

What is a physical feature?

What do we call land with water all around it?

What is the tallest mountain on Earth?

Which continent is the Sahara Desert on?

What is a plain?

Name the big lakes that Canada shares with the United States.

Which river flows through Egypt?

More practice: warm-up

Which is taller: a hill or a mountain?

Is a lake surrounded by land or by water?

Which mountains are in western Canada?

Which continent is the Amazon rainforest on?

Name one physical feature near your home.

More practice: on your own

Why are many cities built beside rivers or lakes?

Why are the Prairies good for farming?

Name one way mountains make life harder and one way they are helpful.

What is the largest island in the world? Which continent is it part of?

Why do fewer people live in the driest parts of a desert?

Challenge

How are a river and a lake different?

A town is in a narrow valley between two mountains. Name one good thing and one hard thing about living there.

Farmers in the mountains of Peru grow potatoes on terraces. What are terraces, and why do they help?

Check your understanding

Quiz

Which is a physical feature?

Which is the tallest mountain on Earth?

A large area of flat land is a...

The Sahara is a...

Why do most people in Egypt live near the Nile River?

Which place would be best for a fishing community?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: Physical features (mountains, plains, valleys, rivers, lakes, islands, deserts, forests, oceans) are found all over the world. They affect where people live and how they meet their needs, such as farming on plains, living near rivers for water, and fishing on coasts.

How to help at home:

On drives or walks, name the features you see: "That's a valley. That's a river flowing into a lake."
Look at a physical map or an online satellite view together and find mountains (often brown) and plains (often green).
Read picture books or watch short nature videos about the Amazon, the Sahara or the Himalayas, then find them on a map.

Common difficulties:

Confusing natural and built features. Ask, "Did people make it, or did nature make it?"
Lake vs. river. A river flows; a lake is surrounded by land.
Thinking deserts are empty. Many people live in desert countries; they usually live where there is water, such as near the Nile.