1. I. Physical Features United States of America = Washington D.C.
Canada = Ottawa
A. Major Landforms
1. The U.S. and Canada form a region that covers most of North America.
a) Arctic Ocean to the north.
b) Atlantic Ocean to the east.
c) Pacific Ocean to the west.
d) Gulf of Mexico to the southeast.
2. Canada occupies most of the northern part of North America.

2. I. Physical Features B. Eastern Lowlands and Highlands
a) Second largest country in area.
b) U.S. is the third largest in area.
c) The 48 contiguous, or joined together inside a common boundary, states are south of Canada.
B. Eastern Lowlands and Highlands
1. The US and Canada have a variety of landforms.
a) Lowlands along the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts.
b) In the Northeast, the thin and rocky soil constrains, or limits, farming.

3. I. Physical Features
c) The piedmont, a hilly fertile area stretches in from the coast.
d) Harbors on the Atlantic coast promote good shipping.
2. The cities of Halifax, Boston, New York City, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington D.C. form a megalopolis.
3. The Gulf of Mexico coastal plain is wider than the Atlantic Coast.
a) Soils are better than the Atlantic Coast.
b) New Orleans and Houston

4. I. Physical Features C. Interior Lowlands
4. West and north of the Atlantic coastal plain spread a number of highland areas.
a) Appalachian Mtns. Are the oldest mtns. in North America.
b) Rich coal deposits are located here.
C. Interior Lowlands
1. West of the eastern highlands are the interior lowlands.
a) To the north lies the Canadian Shield.
b) The Canadian Shield is not good for farming but the land yields huge mineral deposits.

5. I. Physical Features D. Western Mountains and Plateaus
2. South of the Canadian Shield and west of the Appalachian Mtns. lie the Central Lowlands.
a) Good farmland and thick forests.
b) Important waterways like the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River.
3. The Great Plains stretch west of the Mississippi River.
a) Prairie, or rolling inland grasslands with fertile soil cover this area.
b) Great farms and deposits of coal, oil, and natural gas.
D. Western Mountains and Plateaus

6. I. Physical Features
1. West of the Great Plains is a cordillera, which is a group of mountain ranges that run side by side.
a) Eastern edge is the Rocky Mountains.
b) Then the Sierra Nevadas, the Cascades and the Coast Ranges.
c) To the south of these ranges lie deep canyons, or deep valleys with steep sides.
2. To the Pacific Ocean lies the Hawaiian Islands.
a) They were made from volcanoes from the ocean floor.

7. I. Physical Features E. The Great Lakes
1. The Great Lakes – the world’s largest freshwater lakes – lie in the central part of this region.
a) Thousands of years ago, glaciers, or giant sheets of ice, formed Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, Lake Erie, and Lake Ontario. (HOMES)
2. The St. Lawrence River is one of Canada’s most important rivers.
a) The Canadian cities of Quebec, Montreal, and Ottawa developed along the St. Lawrence River.

8. I. Physical Features F. The Mississippi River
3. For many years, rapids, waterfalls, and other obstructions kept ships from navigating the entire route, or journey, from the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean.
a) In the mid 1900s, the United States and Canada built the St. Lawrence Seaway.
b) Great Lakes  Atlantic Ocean
c) Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland, Toronto
F. The Mississippi River
1. The Mississippi River is the longest river in North America.
a) Memphis, St. Louis, and New Orleans

9. I. Physical Features G. The Continental Divide
2. The river system is the major waterway for the central part of the region.
a) 31 states and parts of Canada.
G. The Continental Divide
1. Many rivers like the Colorado and the Rio Grande, flow from the Rocky Mountains.
a) The high ridge of the Rockies is called the Continental Divide.
b) A divide is a high point that determines the direction that rivers flow.
2. Northeast of the Rockies, the Mackenzie River flows from the Great Slave Lake to the Arctic Ocean.

10. I. Physical Features H. Energy and Mineral Resources
1. The US and Canada have major energy resources, such as oil and gas.
a) Texas ranks first in the US.
b) The US uses more oil than it produces.
2. Canada exports both oil and natural gas.
a) Oil and natural gas can be found mostly in the province of Alberta.
b) Oil is mixed with sand.
3. The US and Canada have huge coal deposits.
a) Appalachian Mtns., Wyoming, and British Columbia.

11. I. Physical Features
4. Hydroelectric power can be found along streams and rivers near the coast.
5. Mineral resources are also plentiful in the US and Canada.
a) Eastern Canada and the northern US have iron ore deposits.
b) Rocky Mtns. yield gold, silver, and copper.
c) The Canadian Shield is full of minerals which have spawned manufacturing in the province of Quebec and Ontario.

12. I. Physical Features I. Soil, Timber, and Fish
1. Rich soil in parts of the US and Canada are excellent for farming.
a) corn = central lowlands
b) wheat = great plains
c) dairy, fruits and vegetables = OR and WA
d) 200 crops = CA valleys
2. Timber is another important resource in the region.
a) Canada, Washington, Oregon

13. I. Physical Features
3. Coastal waters are important to the region’s economies.
a) Overfishing has harmed the Atlantic fishing industry especially off the Grand Banks.