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ANSWERS
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Social Studies Chapter 1 Study Guide
1. An area in which places share similar characteristics is called a region.
2. Name the 5 regions that the United States is divided into. Northeast, Southeast, Midwest,
Southwest, West
3. Name 3 types of landforms for each region:
Northeast- mountains, rivers, lakes, forests, beaches, oceans
Southeast- mountains, plains, caves, beaches, oceans
Midwest- flat grassy plains, forests, rolling hills, rivers
Southwest- deserts, canyons, rivers, mountains, plateau, plains
West- mountains, deserts, valleys, beaches, forests, volcanoes, oceans
4. What is the highest and lowest landform in the United States? Mt. McKinley (Alaska) is the
highest and Death Valley (California) is the lowest
5. How was the Grand Canyon formed? Over time, the Colorado River has slowly carved the red
land into canyons
6. A line or natural feature that divides one area or state from another is called a border.
7. What is the difference between state and regional boundaries? State borders can only be seen on
maps, are legal, and are set by the government.
8. What is the difference between weather and climate? Weather is the condition of the air at a
certain time and place, climate is the weather of a place averaged over a long period of
time.
9. Two factors of both weather and climate are precipitation and temperature.
10. The amount of moisture in the air is called humidity.
11. Describe the process of the rain cycle.
1. Energy from the sun evaporates the water from the ground into the air and changes it into
water vapor.
2. As the water vapor rises, it cools down and forms tiny drops of water.
3. Millions of these tiny drops join together to form a cloud.
4. Inside the cloud, the tiny drops grow into bigger drops. When the cloud is too heavy the
drops fall as rain/snow.
5. The precipitation falls to the ground and the cycle starts over again.
12. List the three causes of climate. Distance from the equator, distance from a large body of
water, elevation of a place
13. Elevation tells how high a place is above sea level.
14. List 5 types of climates and what each is like.
1. Tropical Climate: warm all year.
2. Subtropical Climate: warm all year, but not as warm as a tropical.
3. Polar Climate: coldest climate found at the North and South Poles.
4. Subarctic Climate: warm periods in summer, but covered in snow most of the year.
5. Temperate Climate: warm in the summer, cold in the winter. (Climate we live in)
15. Something in the environment that people can use is called a natural resource.
16. Natural resources that have been processed or change are called raw materials.
Give one example: lumber, wheat, milk
17. A form of business is called an industry.
Making products to sell is called manufacturing.
Things that people make or grow are called products.
18. Name resources or industries for each region in the United States.
Northeast: farming, fishing, coal, factories
Southeast: Agriculture, sugar cane, cotton, rice, soil
Midwest: corn, soybeans, wheat, cows, hogs, soil
Southwest: farming, cattle, cotton, oil, natural gas, factories
West: farming, soil, silver, gold, cattle, timber, fish, fruits, nuts, vegetables
19. What’s the difference between a renewable and nonrenewable resource? Renewable resources
can be replaced and nonrenewable resources cannot
20. Give example of renewable and nonrenewable resources and why should we conserve them.
Renewable resources: cotton, cattle, corn, fish, lumber, sugarcane, rice, wheat
Nonrenewable resources: gold, silver, coal, oil, natural gas
21. What is the difference between conserve and recycle? Conserve is to use resources carefully
and recycle is to use something more than once.
22. People who make products or provide services are called human resources.