The Canadian Shield- Location The Canadian Shield is the largest of Canada's 6 physical regions.  This area completely surrounds the Hudson's Bay in the shape of a horseshoe.   It includes the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, Quebec, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and Newfoundland and Labrador (Labrador only). 

The Canadian Shield- Location Only a few people live in the northern part of the Canadian Shield. Most of the people live in the southern central part.

The Canadian Shield-Landforms It mainly is rock that was once mountains millions of years ago.  Through the process of erosion, water, ice, glaciers from the Ice Age, and wind wore down this rock so that it became flatter.

The Canadian Shield-Landforms Over those millions of years, rivers, rapids, lakes and valleys have been carved out by the forces of nature.

The Canadian Shield-Landforms When all of the erosion was finished, the rock was very close to the surface.  As a matter of fact there isn’t a lot of depth to the soil.  Trees like the fir, pine and spruce love it here but the shallowness of the soil wouldn't work for plants that have a deep root system.

The Canadian Shield-Climate The Canadian Shield is so large that the climate is different in areas at different times of the year.

The Canadian Shield-Climate In the northern part of the Canadian Shield there is less snow. Long cold winters and short cool summers are a fact of life in this area.

The Canadian Shield-Climate The northern part of the Shield gets only about 45 centimeters of precipitation each year and is usually very cold because of its location. Much of the precipitation falls as snow but rain in the summers is also common.

The Canadian Shield-Climate Summers in the far north are brief but the days are very long. Summer days are hot and the nights are cool. Summer months are warm because of gulf air. Long hours of daylight make very hot weather because the sun is out longer.

The Canadian Shield-Climate The region has warmer summers in the south. Also during the summer months, warm gulf air and long hours of daylight produce very hot weather.

The Canadian Shield- Natural Resources The Canadian Shield has many natural resources. The northern section of the Canadian Shield is very rocky meaning there is very little or no farmland due to this poor soil. Most people work in forestry industries.

The Canadian Shield- Natural Resources Most of the cities and towns in the Canadian Shield are close to mines and paper mills.

The Canadian Shield- Natural Resources Furs - from fur bearing animals (hunting and trapping is still a large industry).

The Canadian Shield- Natural Resources Minerals - this  makes a lot of sense because the Shield is solid rock.  Canadians extract copper, gold, nickel , zinc and lead from this area.

The Canadian Shield- Natural Resources Forests are a natural resource and are linked to landforms because the trees root into rock and grow well in the Canadian Shield.

The Canadian Shield- Natural Resources Another important natural resource of this area is water. One third of the Canadian Shield is covered in water.

The Canadian Shield- Industry Hydro Electricity  -Since the Shield  surrounds the Hudson's Bay and there are many rivers in this area, a great deal of electricity is generated for Canadians as well as for our neighbors the U.S.A.

The Canadian Shield- Industry Forestry  - remember those fir, pine and spruce trees. Some of them are turned into newspaper. It is really cool to think that the morning newspaper that you've just read began in the Canadian Shield.

The Canadian Shield- Industry Tourism - of course the rugged beauty of the trees, lakes, rivers, rapids and valleys certainly leads to recreation and tourism.  Many foreigners view Canada as a place to get back to nature -  to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city.  Well in this case .... they are right!!!