The Arctic Ocean

Summary
A lesson on the geography of the Arctic Ocean. The reading is accompanied by true/false questions.

Objectives
• To introduce students to the geography of the Arctic Ocean.

Suggested Grades
5th Grade
6th Grade
7th Grade

Excerpt
It is difficult to visualize the map of the Arctic Ocean because it surrounds the North Pole of the earth. Maps are two-dimensional but the Arctic Ocean caps the top of the earth in three dimensions like an empty circular shell. It?s easy to view the Arctic Ocean as a small stretch of water to the north of Alaska and Canada but that viewpoint ignores huge areas of the sea next to other points of the North Pole. Even though it is the smallest and shallowest of the world?s oceans, the Arctic Ocean covers over 5 million square miles; compare that to the land area of the United States which is 3.5 million square miles.

Location
The Arctic Ocean borders on the northern areas of the continents of North America, Europe, Asia, and the island of Greenland, the world?s largest island.

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