Name Class Date

Canada
Section 1

MAIN IDEAS
1. A huge country, Canada has a wide variety of physical features, including
rugged mountains, plains, and swamps.
2. Because of its northerly location, Canada is dominated by cold climates.
3. Canada is rich in resources like fish, minerals, fertile soils, and forests.

Key Terms and Places

Rocky Mountains mountains that extend north from the United States into western
Canada
St. Lawrence River an important international waterway that links the Great Lakes
to the Atlantic Ocean
Niagara Falls falls created by the waters of the Niagara River
Canadian Shield region of rocky uplands, lakes, and swamps
Grand Banks large fishing ground off the Atlantic coast near Newfoundland and
Labrador
pulp softened wood fibers
newsprint cheap paper used mainly for newspapers

Section Summary
PHYSICAL FEATURES
Canada is the second-largest country in the world.
Only Russia is larger. The United States and Canada
share several physical features. Among them are the
mountains along the Pacific coast and the Rocky
Mountains as well as broad plains that stretch
across both countries. The two nations also share a
natural border formed by the St. Lawrence River.
Niagara Falls is another physical feature that the
two countries share. The falls are created by the
Niagara River as it drops over a rocky ledge.
One of Canada’s unique features is the Canadian
Shield. This rocky region covers about 1.8 million
square miles of Canada. Canadian territory extends
north to the Arctic Ocean where the land is covered
with ice all year. Very few people live in this harsh
environment.

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Section 1, continued

CLIMATE
Canada’s climate is greatly affected by its location.
The country is far to the north of the equator. It is
also at higher latitudes than the United States.
Because of this, it generally has cool to freezing
temperatures year-round.
The coldest part of Canada is close to the Arctic
Circle. Both central and northern Canada have
subarctic climates. The far north has tundra and ice
cap climates. About half of Canada has very cold
climates.

RESOURCES
Canada has many natural resources. These
resources include fish, minerals, and forests. One of
Canada’s richest fishing areas is the Grand Banks
near Newfoundland and Labrador, off the Atlantic
coast. Large schools of fish once swam there, but
too much fishing has reduced the number of fish in
this part of the ocean.
Canada has many mineral resources. It also has
oil and gas. Many of Canada’s mineral resources
come from the Canadian Shield, a region of rocky
uplands, lakes, and swamps. Canada has more
nickel, zinc, and uranium than any other country.
Alberta produces most of Canada’s oil and natural
gas.
All across Canada, forests provide lumber and
pulp to make paper. The United States, the United
Kingdom, and Japan get much of their newsprint
from Canada.

CHALLENGE ACTIVITY
Critical Thinking: Drawing Inferences How are
Canada’s natural resources connected to its climate
and physical features? Write two paragraphs
explaining the connections.
Canadian Shield Grand Banks Hudson Bay
newsprint Niagara Falls pulp
Rocky Mountains St. Lawrence River tundra
uplands

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Section 1, continued

DIRECTIONS Read each sentence and fill in the blank with the word
in the word pair that best completes the sentence.
1. The _____________________ forms a natural border between the United States
and Canada. (Canadian Shield/St. Lawrence River)
2. ______________________ refers to softened wood fibers used to make paper.
(Pulp/Newsprint)
3. The ______________________ extend from the western United States into
western Canada. (Grand Banks/Rocky Mountains)
4. The Canadian Shield is a region of lakes, swamps, and rocky
_______________________. (tundra/uplands)
5. ______________________is a physical feature that the United States and Canada
share. (Hudson Bay/Niagara Falls)

DIRECTIONS Choose five of the terms from the word bank. Use these
terms to write a summary of what you learned in the section.

Original content © Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Additions and changes to the original content are the responsibility of the instructor .

108 Guided Reading Workbook