Name ______#: _____ Date: ______

Oceans Study Guide

Your test is on Friday, December 8th!!

  1. Geological Characteristics

Fill in the blanks using the word bank below. Use each word one time.

  1. ______cover about 70 percent of the surface of Earth.
  2. The continental shelf, the continental slope, and the continental rise are covered with thick layers of ______(sand, mud, rocks).
  3. The ______of the ocean varies. Ocean ______are very deep, and the ______is relatively shallow.
  4. Fishermen fish in the ______.
  5. There are very ______landforms (such as mountains and volcanoes) on land and in the ocean.

Word Bank
trenches continental shelf similar oceans sediment continental shelf depth

Match each part to its description by writing the correct letter on the line.

a. Continental Shelf _____ flat, underwater plain

b. Continental Slope _____ the drop-off; connect the shelf to the rise

c. Continental Rise _____ deepest part of the ocean

d. Abyssal Plain _____ shallowest part of the ocean; where you swim

e. Trench _____ contains a lot of sediment; connects the continent

to the deepest part of the ocean

Label the parts of the ocean floor.

1: ______

2: ______

3: ______

5: ______

6: ______

II. Physical Characteristics

Fill in the blanks using the word bank below. Use each word one time.

  1. The basic motions of the ocean are ______, ______, and ______.
  2. Currents, including the ______Stream, are caused by wind patterns and the differences in water ______(or how heavy something is) caused by changes in temperature and salinity.
  3. High and low tides are caused by the ______from the moon.
  4. Waves are caused by ______.
  5. Ocean water contains ______.
  6. Salt water is ______than fresh water.
  7. As ocean depth increases, temperature and sunlight ______and pressure ______.

Word Bank
tides Gulf currents gravity waves wind denser salt decrease increases densities

Circle the Gulf Stream on the diagram below.

What do the arrows represent?

______

III. Ecological Characteristics

  1. All energy comes from the ______.
  2. ______are tiny free floating organisms that form the base for most food chains.
  3. A coral reef is considered an ______.
  4. Because phytoplankton carry out most of the photosynthesis on Earth, they provide much of Earth’s ______.

Word Bank
plankton ecosystem sun oxygen

Use the food chain below to answer the questions.

  1. Which organism could be harmed if the mackerel population were to decline?

______

  1. Ms. Palmer tells you that the food chain starts with the large shark. Is she right or wrong? Justify your answer.

______

  1. List two examples of ocean pollution (trash).
  2. ______
  3. ______
  4. What is one negative human impact on our oceans? How does it affect our oceans?

______

  1. What can we do to lessen that impact on the ocean?

______