Landforms, rivers and resources of the United States and Canada

Grade 6 Social Studies Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Use this

   Card A (map key, rivers and the Continental Divide). The Continental Divide runs along the crest of the Rocky Mountains. Rain and snow that fall west of the divide drain toward the Pacific Ocean, as the Columbia River does. Rain and snow that fall east of the divide drain mostly into the Missouri and Mississippi system, which flows south, or toward the Atlantic side. Rivers on both sides begin high in the mountains.

2. 1.

   A stream starts on the east slope of the Rocky Mountains. Where does its water most likely go, Tala asks?

   • Rivers on both sides begin high in the mountains, where snow and rain collect
   • Into the Missouri and Mississippi system, which flows south
   • Uphill toward the crest, because the divide pulls water back toward the peaks
   • Toward the Pacific Ocean, as the Columbia River does
3. 2.

   A snowflake lands just east of the divide and melts. What happens to the water next, Bo asks?

   • It runs downhill and joins streams that drain into the Missouri and Mississippi
   • It crosses the divide and joins the Columbia River on the way to the Pacific
   • It flows toward the Pacific because the divide sends melting snow west
   • It stays on the mountain as snow, since the Rocky Mountains hold their water

4. Use this

   Card B (fact card, the Mississippi River). The Mississippi flows south through the middle of the country to the southern coast. Its watershed, the land that drains into it, covers much of the central United States and a small part of two Canadian provinces. Barges carry corn, soybeans and coal down the river to the port near its mouth, where cargo moves onto ocean ships. St. Louis grew where the Missouri River joins the Mississippi.

5. 3.

   Why do farmers send corn and soybeans by barge down the Mississippi, Noah asks?

   • The Mississippi's watershed covers much of the central United States
   • The river flows north to Canada, where ocean ships take the cargo
   • The river leads to a port near its mouth, where cargo moves onto ocean ships
   • Barges make the river flow south, so grain can travel in that direction
6. 4.

   Why did a big city grow where the Missouri River joins the Mississippi, Pia asks?

   • The Mississippi flows north from St. Louis, so goods must stop there
   • A big city was there first, so the two rivers chose to meet beside it
   • A junction gives boats two routes for goods, so trade and jobs gathered there
   • Any place beside a river grows into a big city, so St. Louis is not special
7. 5.

   A student claims: "The Mississippi only matters to people who live beside it." How does Card B bear on that, Zee asks?

   • It weakens the claim: cargo goes to ocean ships, so far-away buyers depend on it
   • It supports the claim, because the watershed covers just the central states and nowhere else
   • It weakens the claim, because the river brings ocean cargo north to farms along the banks
   • It supports the claim, because Card B says St. Louis grew beside the river and its trade

8. Use this

   Card C (fact card, the Great Plains). The Great Plains are a huge, mostly flat area of grassland east of the Rocky Mountains. Rainfall is lower in the west of the Plains than in the east. The soil is deep and fertile. Farmers grow wheat and corn, mostly in the wetter east, and ranchers raise cattle on the drier grassland in the west.

9. 6.

   Which part of the Great Plains is better for wheat and corn, and why, Esme asks?

   • The wetter east, because it gets more rain and has deep, fertile soil
   • Both, because the Great Plains are mostly flat grassland across their length
   • The Rocky Mountains, because the soil there is deep and fertile
   • The west, because the drier grassland there gives crops the water they need
10. 7.

    Why do ranchers raise cattle on the dry west of the Plains, Kira asks?

    • The west has the wettest soil, so grass grows well there for the cattle
    • The dry land grows grass for cattle even though it has too little rain for crops
    • Grassland can feed cattle but could not feed a crop, so farms avoid it
    • Cattle make rain fall, so ranchers move them to the dry west of the Plains
11. 8.

    A student claims: "Rainfall is the same across the whole Great Plains." How does Card C bear on that, Jun asks?

    • It supports the claim, because Card C says the soil is fertile everywhere
    • It weakens the claim, because the east of the Plains is drier than the west
    • It supports the claim, because flat grassland has the same weather throughout
    • It weakens the claim, because rainfall is lower in the west than in the east

12. Use this

    Card D (fact card, Canada). The Canadian Shield is a vast area of ancient, hard rock around Hudson Bay, with thin soil, many lakes and long, cold winters. Its rock holds metal ores such as nickel and gold. Most Canadians live in the south, near the border with the United States, in the St. Lawrence and Great Lakes lowlands and along the southern edge of the prairies, where winters are milder and the soil is deeper.

13. 9.

    Why do most Canadians live in the south, near the border, Luz asks?

    • Most Canadians live there, so winters are milder and the soil is deeper
    • The Shield stretches across the south, where its thin soil draws farmers
    • The south has milder winters and deeper soil than the cold, rocky north
    • Nothing lives in the north, so people move south for jobs
14. 10.

    A student claims: "The Canadian Shield has nothing of value." How does Card D bear on that, Ari asks?

    • It supports the claim, because thin soil means the land has no value to anyone
    • It weakens the claim, because the Shield's rock holds ores such as nickel and gold
    • It weakens the claim, because the Shield has the deepest soil in Canada and is farmed
    • It supports the claim, because the Shield has thin soil and long, cold winters