“Sea to Shining Sea”
1. Geography is the study of the earth and its
people. You are learning about geography when
you study where places are located or how people
live. Geography also includes the mountains,
rivers, oceans, and other features that make up
the earth’s surface.
Based on the above passage, what is geography?
a. The study of animals that live in the ocean.
b. The study of earth and its people.
c. The study of plants found in the mountains.
d. The study of the sun and other planets.
Major Rivers and
Mountains of the United
States
I can identify the major rivers of the United States of
America: Mississippi, Ohio, Rio Grande, Colorado, and the
Hudson.
I can identify the two major mountains ranges in the
United States of America: Appalachian, and the Rocky
Mountains.
The Mississippi River runs from the state of Minnesota to the Gulf
of Mexico. It is the second-longest river in the United States. The
Mississippi River is one of the most important rivers in U.S.
history. It allows travelers and good to travel back and forth
between the Gulf of Mexico to the central United States. Many
major cities are located along the Mississippi. The River serves as a
dividing line between the eastern and western United States.
The Mississippi River runs through 10 states. The
Mississippi River runs through Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri,
Arkansas, Louisiana, Wisconsin, Illinois, KY, TN, and
Mississippi.
The Ohio River runs from Pennsylvania to Illinois. It is a tributary of the
Mississippi River. For many years, the Ohio River served as a boundary
between the British Colonies and Native American territory. It also
served as a boundary between slave states and free states. The Ohio
River played an important role in trade and commerce. People used the
river to travel and ship goods from eastern cities to western territories.
The Ohio River borders West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky,
Indiana, and Illinois before meeting up with the
Mississippi River.
The Rio Grande River separates Texas from Mexico.
It begins in Colorado and runs to the Gulf of
Mexico.
The Rio Grande River runs from Colorado to New
Mexico and then along the border between
Texas and Mexico.
The Colorado River runs from the state of Colorado to the
Gulf of California in Mexico. Over missions of years, the
river’s flow has created the Grand Canyon.
The Colorado River runs through seven states.
Major river of the Southwestern United States
The Hudson River runs through eastern New York. It meets the
Atlantic Ocean in New York City. Native Americans and early
Europeans used the river for travel and trade.
The Hudson River runs through New York and then
forms the border between New York and New Jersey.
Facts to know:
The Missouri is the world's 15th-longest river at
2,341 miles. The Missouri River begins in the
Rocky Mountains of southwestern Montana. …
Draw the Major Rivers on the correct section of the
United States map.
The 2 major mountain ranges of the U.S. are the Rockies
and the Appalachians (the ones outside our door).
Rocky Mountains
• The Rocky Mountains are located in the western United States.
They run from the state of New Mexico to western Canada.
Appalachian Mountains
• The Appalachian Mountains run from Georgia to southern
Canada. Many explorers crossed this mountain range.
Draw the major U.S. mountains on the
correct section of the United States map.
Cut and Paste:
Look at your copy of the blank U.S.
map. Decide where the rivers and
mountains are located. Cut out the
names of the rivers and mountains
and paste them on the map in the
correct section of the map.
Complete the U.S. Major rivers
worksheet.
Latitude and Longitude
How do we find places on maps?
Latitude
What is Latitude?
• Lines of Latitude run horizontally
• Latitude is measured in degrees.
• The Equator is 0 degrees Latitude.
• Lines of Latitude locate places North or
South of the Equator.
Longitude
• Lines of Longitude run vertically.
• The Prime Meridian is 0 degrees Longitude.
• Lines of Longitude locate places East or
West of the Prime Meridian.
Equator
– an imaginary line that separates the Northern
Hemisphere from the Southern Hemisphere.
Primer meridian pole to south pole.
an imaginary line from north
Hemispheres are “half-spheres” and show us half of the earth at a
time.
The earth can be divided into 4 hemispheres.
The equator divides the earth into the northern hemisphere and the
southern hemisphere.
The prime meridian divides the earth between the Western and the
Eastern Hemisphere.
Complete the hemisphere worksheets.
Activity
Use the drawing of the globe to label the
hemispheres.
1.Which river on the map is the Mississippi River?
a.
b.
c.
d.
River A
River C
River D
River F
B
F
E
A
C
D
2. Which river on the map is the Ohio River?
a.
b.
c.
d.
River C
River D
River E
River F
B
F
E
A
C
D
3.
a.
b.
c.
d.
Which river on the map is the Rio Grande River?
River A
River B
River C
River D
B
F
E
A
C
D
4. Which river on the map is the Colorado River?
a.
b.
c.
d.
River A
River B
River C
River D
B
F
E
A
C
D
5.
a.
b.
c.
d.
Which river on the map is the Colorado River?
River C
River D
River E
River F
B
F
E
A
C
D
Major U.S. Mountain Ranges
Rocky
Mountains
Appalachian
Mountains
6. Use the map of the United States to answer the
question below.
Which mountain range is the Appalachian Mountains?
A
C
B
a.
b.
c.
d.
A
B
C
D
D
7.
a.
b.
c.
d.
Where are the Appalachian Mountains located?
Northern United States
Southern United States
Eastern United States
Western United States
A
B
8.
a.
b.
c.
d.
Where are the Rocky Mountains located?
Northern United States
Southern United States
Eastern United States
Western United States
A
B
9.
Which letter represents the Rocky Mountains?
A
C
B
a.
b.
c.
d.
A
B
C
D
D
10. What would be the best title for the list below?
• Hudson River
• Colorado River
• Mississippi River
a.
b.
c.
d.
Major mountain ranges in the United States
Cities in the United States
Major rivers in the United States
Places to buy fish
11. Jane loves the outdoors. She lives in Georgia. The
closest activity would be to
a.
b.
c.
d.
sail on the Hudson River
hike in the Appalachian Mountains
snow ski in the Rockies
swim in the Mississippi River
12. Which geographic feature does the map show?
Texas
a.
b.
c.
d.
Colorado River
Hudson River
Rio Grande River
Mississippi River
13. Which of the following is true?
a. The Ohio River runs from New Mexico to Canada.
b. The Ohio River is the longest river in the United
States.
c. The Ohio River is a tributary of the Colorado River.
d. The Ohio River runs from Pennsylvania to Illinois.
CO
TX
14. Which river divides the eastern and western United
States?
a. Hudson
c. Colorado
b. Mississippi
d. Rio Grande
15. The study of the earth is called
a. history.
c. geography.
b. latitude.
d. meridian.
Which is which?
16. Which Earth shows lines of latitude?
A.
B.
Which is which?
17. Which Earth shows lines of longitude?
A.
B.
18. The equator divides the globe into:
A. Northern and southern hemispheres
B. Eastern and Western hemispheres
C. The United States
D. Lines of longitude
19. The imaginary line which runs north-
south around the middle of the earth is
the:
A. Prime meridian
B. Equator
C. Latitude
D. longitude
20. A______ is half of the globe,
created by the prime meridian or the
equator.
A. Sphere
B. Equator
C. Prime meridian
D. hemisphere