SOCIAL STUDIES –Review Sheet
Unit 4 – Chapters 8 and 9: The Middle West
Be
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able to define, explain, and/or give examples of the following *key* vocabulary words:
plains–flat areas of land that are the main physical feature of the Midwest
drought–a long period of little or no rain
assembly line–a line of workers along which a product moves as it’s put together one step at a time
Northwest Ordinance–a set of laws that described how the territory’s government would work
Louisiana Purchase–In 1803, the United States purchased a huge territory from France. This doubled
the size of the United States!
Chicago, IL-a Midwest city that became one of the world’s busiest railroad centers
Gary, IN-a Midwest city that was a “steel-making center” in the early 1900s
Great Migration–a movement when many African Americans moved from the south to the north to
work in cities
Be able to locate the following physical features on a map and know their locations:
 Interior Plains–flat, fertile plains that cover the entire Midwest region; eastern part is made up of
the Central Plains that gets a lot of rain and grows a lot of corn; the western part is made up of
Great Plains that is very dry and grows a lot of wheat (pages 246-247).
 Northwest Territory–The northern Central Plains became known as the Northwest Territory; the
Ohio River, the Mississippi River, and the Great Lakes formed its boundaries (page 256).
Be able to read a map using the following map skill:
 Historical map–book pages 260-261
Be
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able to explain the following concepts:
Why buffalos were important resources for Native Americans on the Great Plains
Where the European traders built the first forts in the Midwest
Ways in which pioneers adapted to living on the Great Plains
Why tourism is the most recent industry to grow in the Great Lakes states
How modern farm machines help farmers
Why droughts and tornadoes cause extreme weather changes in the Midwest
How the words “ordinance” and “survey” relate to the Northwest Territory
Early river transportation methods in the Midwest
Why assembly lines and mass production are part of an industrial economy
How the words “frontier” and “sod” relate to the early life in the Midwest
Ways that life changed for the Sioux once they moved to the Great Plains?
Why pioneers built different kinds of homes in different parts of the Midwest
How railroads affected the Midwest
Why fewer Americans live and work on farms today than 100 years ago
Where most immigrants to the Great Lake states come from today