The Culture of the United States

The Culture of the United StatesMs. Tims Super amazing 6th grade World Cultures classPhysical Geography Physical GeographyThe United States stretches 2,807 miles across the middle part of North America. 48 States are contiguous, or joint together with a common boundary. Alaska (the largest state) lies in the Northwestern part of North AmericaHawaii in the Pacific Ocean about 2, 400 miles south west of CaliforniaThe US is the 4th largest country in the world behind Russia, Canada, & China5 Main Physical Regions The Coastal PlainsThe Appalachian MountainsThe Interior PlainsThe Mountains and BasinsThe Pacific*Alaska and Hawaii each has their own set of Physical Landform

The Coastal PlainsLowlands in the Southeast boarder the Gulf of Mexico are called the Gulf Coastal PlainsBoston, New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, & Washington, D.C line in the Atlantic Coastal Plains These cities and their suburbs link together in a continuous line called Megalopolis.

The Appalachian MountainsThe Oldest Mountains on the ContinentThe Highest peak is Mount Mitchell in North Carolina at 6,684 feet

The Interior Plains The Regions are broken into two PartsCentral LowlandsThe Great PlainsCentral LowlandsAre east of the Mississippi RiverYou will find grassy hills, rolling flat lands, & thick forestLands are fertileMajor waterways included Great LakesThe Great PlainsBoarders are the Rocky Mountains, North into Canada, & South to the Mexican BoarderA lot of Farms and Ranches

Mountains and PlateausRocky Mountains which lies on the Continental DividedAll Rivers east flows towards the Mississippi River, all rivers west flows towards the Pacific Coast.Home of the Grand CanyonCanyon is a deep valley with steep sides

The Pacific CoastTwo Main Mountain RangesCascade Range & Sierra NevadaFertile Valleys Willamette Valley in OregonCentral Valley in CaliforniaBoth Valleys are fertile and produce abundant crops

AlaskaMount McKinleyTallest Mountain in North America standing at 20,320 feet tall.Most people live along the Southern Coastal Plains

HawaiiEight Large islands and more than 120 smaller islands make up Hawaii. Volcanoes that erupted and formed islandsSome of the islands have coral reefs, formed by the skeletons of small sea animals

Americas EconomyAmerica has a free trade enterprise system which is build on the idea that individual people have the right to run a businesses to make a profit with limited government interference. In other words, free to start their own business and keep the money they make. World LeaderWorlds largest economy in terms of how much money is made from the sales of its goods and services. Largest economic system next to China and Japan's.Agriculture2% of Americas economy comes from Agriculture of the worlds corn comes from American and 1/10 of its wheat20% of the worlds beef, pork, and lamb comes form American ranchers

Mineral Resources1% of the Countries economy is made up of the mining industry1/5 of the worlds coal and copper comes from America1/10 of the worlds petroleum comes from AmericaThe country also has large amounts of iron, zinc, lead, sliver, and gold.

Manufacturing1/5 of the countrys economyLeading in building cars and airplanes ex. FordMajor computers and appliances manufacturingEx. GE, Dell

Services and Information IndustryLargest part of the U.S. economy and makes up Provides services to people instead of producing goodsExamples include: banks and finances as well as entertainment, tourism, and computer based, online services

America in the Twenty-First CenturyPollutionAmerica burns fossil fuels (coal, oil, & natural gas) to power their factors and run their carsThe burning from the power plants and nitrogen oxides from cars mixed with moisture in the air creates acid rain with harms trees, rivers, and lakesTrashPeople generate huge amount of trash causing landfills and lead the way for prompting recycling

America in the Twenty-First CenturyWorld TradePromotion of free tradeTaking down trade barriers such as tariffs or quotas so goods can flow freely between countries NAFTA: North American Free Trade Agreement with established between Canada, Mexico, and the US in 1994

The People of AmericaMelting PotWith Americas rich history of exploration and colonization led to migration of people from all over the worldFrench colonized around great lakes and interior riversSpanish in Texas, Florida, and California British along the Atlantic coast from Georgia up to MassachusettsWith the mixture of all of the different cultures in American it has became the melting pot of the world

GovernmentFederal RepublicOn July 4, 1776 United States won their independence from Britain and by 1788 they adopt a new constitution creating a federal republicWe vote for a president which is also known as a representative democracyOur government is divided into three branches that provide a check and balance systemWe have a constitution with amendments which create the laws of the land

World LeadersIn the early 1900s, US becoming the leading economy in the World with cars, electricity, and other technologies WWII:US leaders urged people to fight for their freedoms and provided countriesAmerican Factories built tanks and airplanes, while American soldiers helped with the wars Culture of the United States285 million people live in the United States3rd most populated country after China and IndiaMost people live along the east coast and the west coast of the countryAmerica has a high standard of life with people living to the average of 76 years

LanguageThe main language of the US is English but it is not the official language of the country. It has caused great debates on what should be spoken in schools.Many believe they should stay true to their culture as others believe that bilingual education discourages that sense of being American. Religion One of the 1st law pass in American History stated that the government can not tell people what to believe or allow government money to support a specific religionHowever, Religion is still popular in America with 80% of Americans consider themselves religions with 50% regulating attending services Most Americans follow: Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism Mobility of AmericansAmericans have always been mobile, moving from place to place. At one time, our nation was made up entirely of rural, or countryside, areas.Now the majority of the nation live in urban (in the city) or in suburbs, smaller communities surrounding a larger city. Security After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 many Americans did not feel safe in their own country.President Bush resound by creating the Office of Homeland Security to fight terrorism and the Department of Homeland Security was open on Nov. 25, 2002

American CultureArtists: Native Americans craved wooden masks, pottery Georgia OKeeffe paint the colorful cliffs and deserts of the SouthwestThomas Eakins painted scenes of city lifeTwo themes of American literatureFocus on the rich diversity of the people in the USFocus on the landscape and history of particular regionsEx. Mark Twains Huckleberry Finn

American CultureSportsBaseball footballStock-car acingrodeosRecreationWatching TVPlaying video gamesUsing computersRiding bikes and hiking