STANDARD US1.2b
b) locate and describe the location of the geographic regions of North America: Coastal Plain, Appalachian Mountains, Canadian Shield, Interior Lowlands, Great Plains, Rocky Mountains, Basin and Range, and Coastal Range.
What are some physical characteristics of the geographic regions of North America?
Geographic regionslocations and physical characteristics
Coastal Plain
Located along the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico
Broad lowland providing many excellent harbors
Appalachian Mountains
Located west of Coastal Plain extending from eastern
Canada to western Alabama
Old, eroded mountains (oldest mountain range in North
America)
Canadian Shield
Wrapped around Hudson Bay in a horseshoe shape
Hills worn by erosion and hundreds of lakes carved by
glaciers
Holds some of the oldest rock formations in North
America
Interior Lowlands
Located west of the Appalachian Mountains and east of
the Great Plains. Rolling flatlands with many rivers,
broad river valleys, and grassy hills
Great Plains
Located west of Interior Lowlands and east of the
Rocky Mountains
Flat land that gradually increases in elevation
westward; grasslands
Rocky Mountains
Located west of the Great Plains and east of the
Basin and Range
Rugged mountains stretching from Alaska to Mexico;
high elevations
Contains the Continental Divide, which determines the
directional flow of rivers
Basin and Range
Located west of Rocky Mountains and east of the
Sierra Nevadas and the Cascades
Area of varying elevations containing isolated
mountain ranges and Death Valley, the lowest point in
North America
Coastal Range
Rugged mountains along the Pacific Coast that stretch
from California to Canada; Contains fertile valleys