Hot deserts are areas on Earth which are very hot and very dry, having less than 25 cm of rain per year.

Soil is the loose upper layer of the Earth’s surface where plants grow, and is formed from tiny particles of rock, dead plants and animals, air and water.

A long term change in the earth’s climate. Overall Earth is getting warmer.

Hot deserts: climate and location

Geography

This unit links to 'Contrasting locality: What is it like to live in (location in) in Jamaica?', as pupils draw on their knowledge of places that are hot and wet, and also to 'The water cycle: why does it matter?'. Pupils apply their beginning thinking about locational differences in rainfall and temperature.

This unit builds on 'Cold places: What is it like at the North and South Poles?', which pupils should have done first. Pupils draw on their knowledge of cold areas of the world to help them consider the location of hot places and what they are like, making comparisons. 

Hot places: where are they and what are they like?

Put these letters in the right order to find the answer to the following question. What is the name of the layer of the Earth's surface where plants grow?

plants such as corn, fruit and vegetables grown by farmers

places that have less than 25 cm of rain each year.

found near the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn.

What is the name of the largest hot desert in the world?

Which of these groups of people live in the Sahara desert?

Which of these plants do you find in the desert?

A place on Earth that is very hot and very dry and has less than 25 cm of rain per year is called a {{}}.

Match the beginnings of these sentences about hot places to the correct endings.

The {{}} of a place is the average weather conditions (e.g. sunny, windy, rainy) taken over a long period of time (e.g. 30 years).

Soil is the loose upper layer of the Earth's surface.

Soil is formed from tiny particles of rock, dead plants, air and water.

Soil is another name for rocks and mountains.

is a large-scale and long-term change in Earth's climate.

means the whole planet is getting hotter.

means one or two countries are getting hotter.

Starter Quiz