1. Australia’s Geography
SS6G12a. Locate on a …map: the Great Barrier Reef, Coral Sea, Ayers Rock, and Great Victoria Desert

2. E.Q.
How have Australia’s location, climate, and natural resources impacted it?

3. Vocabulary Outback: dry interior in Australia
Reef: area underwater built up by coral
Bush: remote outback
Coral: small sea animal that lives in colonies
Monolith: single, large rock
Aborigines: indigenous people of Australia
Life expectancy: average # of years a person in a country is expected to live

4. Vocabulary _______: dry interior in Australia
______: area underwater built up by coral
_______: remote outback
______: small sea animal that lives in colonies
__________: single, large rock
_________: indigenous people of Australia
_____ ___________: average # of years a person in a country is expected to live

6. Australia
Is the only country on the world’s smallest, flattest continent
Has the oldest, least fertile soils
Has less rain than everywhere but Antarctica
Includes mainland, island of Tasmania, & several other islands
Is surrounded by the Indian & Pacific Oceans

7. 4 Important Physical Regions
Great Barrier Reef
Coral Sea
Ayers Rock
Great Victoria Desert

8. Great Barrier Reef World’s largest coral reef
Off NE coast of Queensland, Australia
In the Coral Sea
Has world’s largest collection of coral
400 kinds of coral, 1500 species of fish, 4000 types of mollusks

9. Coral Sea Part of Pacific Ocean Plate tectonics created Coral Sea
Important source of Great Barrier Reef’s coral
Lots of uninhabited islands in Coral Sea claimed by Australia

10. Ayers Rock Large single rock 12 stories tall (1100 feet)
6 miles in circumference
Made of sandstone – grey but rusts due to iron in rock
Sacred to Aborigines who call it Uluru

11. Great Victoria Desert SW of Ayers Rock Gets 8-10 inches of rain/year
Some grasslands, sand hills, & salt lakes
Named after Britain’s Queen Victoria
160,000 square miles
Mostly uninhabited

12. Australia’s Climate Dry across middle
North: tropical – rain forests, mangrove swamps, grassland, desert
Milder climate on SE & SW coasts – most people live here

13. Outback
Largest part of Australia
Mainly open country
Mining

14. Natural Resources: 1/3 of Australia’s Economy
Mining – exports more coal & iron ore than any other country; leads in mining bauxite, titanium, industrial diamonds; gold & silver
Arable land – grow enough grain, cotton, cattle to sell surplus
Tourism – mostly locals – too expensive to go to Australia - summer is December to March

15. Australia’s Official Language: English
Colonized by British after James Cook 1768 claimed lands for England
1788 – England sent prisoners to E. Australia
to keep French out, Great Britain built towns in western Australia
Gold brought settlers – mostly English speakers
After independence, Australia passed laws to stop immigration from Asia & Africa
Nowadays some people come from other countries but English is the official language

16. Religion in Australia 1788 – Christianity was introduced
Irish convicts mostly Catholic
Other convicts & guards mostly Anglican & Methodist
European settlers – Anglican, Methodist, Catholic, Presbyterian, Congregationalist, & Baptist
Most today are Catholic or Anglican
Less than 5% are Muslim, Hindu, Jewish, or Buddhist

17. Australia’s Literacy and Standard of Living
99% literacy rate
One of highest standards of living in the world
But – worse for Aborigines – many are very poor, have poor health care, and lower life expectancy