1. PHYSICAL
CHARACTERISTICS OF
THE UNITED STATES
Images from
Microsoft ClipArt Created by Karen Hirschfield

2. Objectives
Identify physical characteristics as
features that are found in nature, either
made of land or water.
Identify major types of physical
characteristics.
Locate physical characteristics on a map
of the United States.

3. Microsoft ClipArt
Microsoft ClipArt
Physical Characteristics are found in nature.
They are not made by humans.
Physical characteristics can be made of land, called
landforms, or are bodies of water.

4. Connecting Back to What You Already
Know
 Landforms:  Bodies of Water:
 Mountain  Ocean
 Hill  Lake
 Peninsula  Pond
 MountainRange  River
 Sand Dunes  Waterfalls
 Islands
Microsoft ClipArt

5. 2 Categories of Physical
Characteristics
LAND WATER
 Desert  Ocean
 Valley
 Lake
 Mountain Range
 Plain  River System
 Coastal Plain  Gulf
 Plateau
 Basin
 Canyon
Microsoft ClipArt

6. Answering Geographic
Questions
The 5 major  When studying Physical
themes of Characteristics it helps us
geography:
understand the PLACE.
1 – Location
2 – Place
 Remember, PLACE is one of the 5
3 – Human major themes of geography.
and
Environme
nt
Interaction  We can answer the following
s questions:
4 – Movement  What is it like there?
5 – Regions  What are its physical characteristics?

7. Literacy Connection: Noticing
Physical Characteristics in Song
Lyrics
This Land Is Your Land America the Beautiful
“This land is your land, this land is “O beautiful for spacious
my land skies,
From California, to the New York For amber waves of grain,
Island For purple mountain
From the redwood forest, to the gulf majesties
stream waters Above the fruited plain!
This land was made for you and me America! America!
God shed his grace on thee
As I was walking a ribbon of highway And crown thy good with
I saw above me an endless skyway brotherhood
I saw below me a golden valley From sea to shining sea!”
By: Woody Guthrie
This land was made for you and By: Katharine Lee Bat

8. Physical Characteristics
The following slides contain physical
characteristics that may be new to you.
Notice the definition, examples, and photos
to understand each!
Remember: Physical characteristics are not
made by humans, instead they are found in
nature!

9. Mountain Range
Definition:
A row of
connected
mountains
Examples:
Appalachia
n
Mountains
Rocky
Mountains
All images from Microsoft ClipA

10. Plains
Plains Coastal Plains
 Definition: Low-lying  Definition: Low land that
stretch of flat or rolling lies near the ocean
land  Example: The Coastal
 Example: The Great Plain along the Atlantic
Plains Ocean
Microsoft ClipArt Microsoft ClipArt

11. Microsoft ClipArt
Plateau
Definition: Flat land with higher elevation
than a plain
Example: Ozark Plateau

12. Basin
Definition: Low land surrounded by higher land
Example: Death Valley
By Ansel Adams By David Hiser

13. Valley
Definition
:
Low land
between
hills or
mountain Microsoft ClipArt
s
Example:
San
Joaquin
Valley Microsoft ClipArt

14. Taken by MariannaBolognesi
Canyon Taken by Karen Hirschfield
Definition: A deep, narrow valley with steep
sides
Example: The Grand Canyon

15. Bodies of Water
River System Gulf
 Definition: A river and all the  Definition: Part of the ocean
rivers and bodies of water it that cuts into a large piece of
connects to land
 Example: The Mississippi  Example: The Gulf of Mexico
River System
Microsoft ClipArt
Microsoft ClipArt

16. Desert
Definition: A region that gets very little rain
Examples: Mojave Desert, Sonoran Desert, Painted
Desert
Microsoft ClipArt
Microsoft ClipArt

17. Where are some of these physical
characteristics located?
Death Valley Ozark
Plateau
Mississippi River System
Map courtesy of

18. Thinking Ahead… Microsoft ClipArt
There are many characteristics of the
United States that ARE made by humans.
What can you think of that is made by
humans?
Are these human characteristics near
physical characteristics? Why?

19. Resources
Adams, Ansel. “Looking across desert toward mountains, "Death Valley National Monument," California.” 1941.
Online image. Flickr. 8 May 2012. <http://www.flickr.com/photos/usnationalarchives/4309054797/>
"America the Beautiful." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 05 Aug. 2012. Web. 08 May 2012.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/America_the_Beautiful>.
FreeRoamSoul. “The 50 State Challenge.” October 1, 2009. Online Image. Flickr. 8 May 2012.
<http://www.flickr.com/ photos/freeroamsoul/3973489446/in/set-72157623170857124/>
Hiser, David. “Rifle, Southeast of the Piceance Basin.” 1972. Online Image. Flickr. 8 May 2012.
<http://www.flickr.com/photos /usnationalarchives/3815838332/>
MariannaBolognesi. “grand canyon.” August 9, 2009. Online Image. 7 May 2012. <http://www.flickr.com/photos/
mariannabolognesi/3853169156/in/set-72157622040761507>
"This Land Is Your Land." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 05 June 2012. Web. 08 May 2012.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/This_Land_Is_Your_Land>.