What is an Island?

What is an island?

An island is defined as a piece of subcontinent land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands are called islets. Islets are usually defined by their size and lack of vegetation and human habitation.

What is the difference between islands and continents?

An island is surrounded by water on both sides. A continent is larger than an island (in fact, in order for something to be defined as an island, it needs to be specifically classed as smaller than a continent). Australia is an example of a continent.

How are islands formed?

Islands can be formed in a variety of ways:

1. Many islands were formed millions of years ago, with the rise of sea levels separating pieces of land away from the main continent that they were formerly attached to. These are called continental islands.
2. Another way that islands are formed is through volcanoes! Volcanic activity on the seafloor (erupting layers of lava and solidifying) can eventually cause an eruption that pushes it upwards above sea level. When the tops of a volcano appear above sea level, an oceanic island is formed.
3. Coral islands are formed from lots of tiny corals. They make reefs that eventually pile up to create islands over thousands of years.
4. Some places are only islands when the tide is high. This is because the natural or man-made causeway that connects it to the mainland is exposed only in low tides and becomes submerged when the tide gets high. These are called tidal islands.
5. Islands can also be artificial. This means they have been made by humans through means such as flooding valleys.

Did you know?

Islands vary hugely in climate! There are 'hot islands' - such as Hawaii - with warm, tropical climates; sandy beaches and palm trees, as well as 'cold islands' like Iceland that have snow, ice and a cold climate.

What is a group of islands called?

A group of islands is called an archipelago. Examples of archipelagos include New Zealand, Japan, and the United Kingdom.

What is the largest island in the world?

Greenland is the largest island in the world, spanning an incredible 2,166,086 square kilometres!

Based on size alone, Greenland could classify as a continent but is unable to gain continent status because of its population size. Greenland is situated between the North Atlantic and the Arctic Ocean and is an independent territory of Denmark.

There are only around 500,000 people living on the island of Greenland, which is due to the fact that most of the island is inhospitable. The majority of Greenland is made up of huge glaciers and ice sheets, neither of which make for great living conditions. What’s more, there are no roads connecting the main towns on Greenland, meaning that the island’s population must rely on fishing, sealing, and whaling to survive.

Here is a rundown of some of the largest islands in the world:

• New Guinea (785,753 km2)

New Guinea is the second-largest island in the world, with a total surface area of 785,753 km2. This island has a length of 2,414 km and is governed by more than one country. Both Indonesia and Papua New Guinea rule over the island of New Guinea. In terms of location, New Guinea is separated from Australia by the Torres Strait (a strait is a waterway that connects two larger bodies of water). On one side of the Torres Strait is the Coral Sea, and on the other side is the Arafura Sea.

The first signs of human settlement in New Guinea can be traced back to around 40,000 years ago. What’s more, New Guinea is heavily sought-after due to its vast amounts of copper and gold.

Fun Fact: New Guinea is the largest island found within both the Southern Hemisphere and Oceania.

• Borneo (748,168 km2)

Borneo is only slightly smaller than New Guinea, with a total surface area of 748,168 km2. Borneo is almost twice as big as the entire country of Germany, and is also the only island in the world to be governed by a set of three countries. Borneo is ruled by Brunei, Malaysia, and Indonesia, but the majority of the island is Indonesian territory.

In addition to being one of the largest islands in the world, Borneo is home to the oldest rainforest on Earth. This rainforest dates back to a whopping 100 million years ago and is filled with luscious foliage and rich wildlife.

• Madagascar (587,041 km2)

Madagascar is situated in the middle of the Indian Ocean, on the East Coast of Africa. This island is best well-known for its diverse wildlife, boasting around 250,000 species of animals. Amazingly, two-thirds of the wildlife in Madagascar cannot be found anywhere else in the world.

Madagascar is also home to the third-largest coral system in the world. Its coral system dates back 100 million years and is frequently visited by divers in the Indian Ocean.

• Baffin Island (507,451 km2)

Baffin Island is the fifth-largest island in the world and the largest island in Canada. On the surface, this island looks like a great place to live, with beautiful fjords, freshwater lakes, and glacier-filled national parks. However, in reality, Baffin Island is one of the most inhospitable islands on Earth. This is largely due to the fact that the average annual temperature on Baffin Island is -8 degrees Celsius.

Baffin Island was named after the British explorer, William Baffin, who discovered the island in 1616. The island is located very close to the Arctic Circle, which means that, despite its inhospitable conditions, many people still visit this island every year to watch the Northern Lights. If you visit Baffin Island, you may also be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of the Arctic wolves, polar bears, and lemmings that live there.

• Sumatra (443,065 km2)

The island of Sumatra is the second-largest island in Indonesia, situated in the subduction zone of the Indo-Australian and Eurasian tectonic plates. Due to its location, it is frequently subjected to earthquakes and tsunamis.

Sumatra island is surrounded by stunning tropical rainforests, which are home to tons of relatively untouched nature and wildlife. Some of the world’s most endangered species live in Sumatra, including the Sumatran tiger, Sumatran orangutan, and the Sumatran rhino.

• Honshu (225,800 km2)

Japan has four major islands, the largest of which is Honshu. The island of Honshu is technically considered to be part of the Japanese mainland, despite being located between the Sea of Japan and the Pacific Ocean. The island itself has a total surface area of 225,800 km2, and a length of 1,287 km. This makes it more than half the size of Japan.

Honshu contains some of Japan’s most famous cities, including Tokyo, Hiroshima, and Osaka. The island is also home to Japan’s highest mountain, ​​Mount Fuji.

• Victoria Island (217,291 km2)

Victoria Island is the second-largest island in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, with a total surface area of 217,291 km2 and a length of 515 km. The island was discovered in the early 1830s by Arctic explorer Thomas Simpson, who named it after Queen Victoria.

The island is pretty sparsely populated, housing just over 2,000 people. One of the biggest attractions on Victoria Island is the Tunnunik impact crater, which was created by a meteorite that landed there around 350 million years ago.

What is the smallest island in the world?

The smallest island, on the other hand, is Bishop Rock in the Atlantic Ocean. This tiny island is a mere 0.000736 square kilometres!

Did you know?

1 in 6 people in the world live on an island!

Resources to support your teaching on islands:

Here at Twinkl, we have plenty of fantastic resources ready to download across our website to support your teaching on islands! For some ideas on where to begin, check out our list of top-recommended resources below:

• Our visually engaging Islands Information PowerPoint is perfect to use to introduce this topic to your class. Each slide contains useful facts - such as how islands are formed and examples of different islands - alongside a picture. Great for KS2 Geography lessons!
• If you're searching for a resource on islands for KS1 children, look no further than our fantastic Beside the Seaside: Islands Everywhere Year 2 Lesson Pack! This comprehensive pack contains everything you'll need to teach your students all about islands in a fun and engaging way, such as a lesson plan, success criteria grids, and differentiated activity sheets.
• You could also include our resources on islands in your English lessons with our handy Desert Island Postcard Writing Activity Sheet! This writing exercise challenges children to imagine that they are on a desert island and are going to write a postcard to their family that tells them what the island is like. A great activity to encourage imaginative thinking!
• We also have a selection of eye-catching island-themed display resources - such as this lovely bright and colourful Island Display Banner - that are perfect for creating a display board or corner to showcase children's work on this topic.

What's more, all of the above resources are ready to use instantly in class or at home! Simply click on the green 'download' button and print to get started!

Plus, all of our resources have been created with care by qualified teachers, so you can rest assured that the learning material you are providing for your children is high quality, accurate, up to date, and in line with National Curriculum guidance.