geographic regions

Broad lowland providing many excellent harbors. Located along the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico.

• Rocky Mountains

• Canadian Shield

• Coastal Range

• Coastal Plains

Flat land that gradually increases in elevation westward; grasslands. Located west of the Interior Lowlands and east of the Rocky Mountains.

• Basin and Range

• Great Plains

• Rocky Mountains

• Interior Lowlands

Rugged Mountains stretching from Alaska almost to Mexico; high elevations.The Continental Divide is located in this region. Located west of the Great Plains and east of the Basin and Range.

• Rocky Mountains

• Coastal Range

• Canadian Shield

• Coastal Plains

Old eroded mountains (the oldest in North America). Located west of the Coastal Plain extending from eastern Canada to western Alabama; including the Piedmont.

• Appalachian Mountains

• Coastal Range

• Rocky Mountains

• Interior Lowlands

Areas of varying elevations containing isolated mountain ranges and Death Valley, the lowest point in North America. Located west of the Rocky Mountains ans east of the Coastal Range.

• Great Plains

• Coastal Range

• Basin and Range

• Canadian Range

Wraps around the 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.

• Canadian Shield

• Coastal Range

• Basin and Range

• Interior Lowlands

Rolling flatlands with many rivers, broad river valleys, and grassy hills. Located west of Appalachian Mountains and east of the Great Plains.

• Rocky Mountains

• Great Plains

• Appalachian Mountains

• Interior Lowlands

Rugged Mountains along the Pacific coast that stretch from Canada to California. Contains fertile valleys and includes the Sierra Nevadas and Cascades.

• Coastal Range

• Coastal Plain

• Great Plains

• Appalachian Mountains

Determines the directional flow of rivers in the U.S.

• Gulf of Mexico

• Continental Divide

• Canadian Shield

• Basin and Range

This Region is shaped like a horseshoe - 

• Canadian Shield
• Interior Lowlands
• Appalachian Highlands
• Coastal Range