Think of a road that cuts through a mountain. You would see many layers of rock. Scientists can tell the age of mountains by looking at these layers. The Appalachian Mountains are hundred of millions

of years old.

It is located between the Atlantic Ocean and the Great Lakes.

Canada borders the northern part.Our nation’s capital, Washington, D.C., is at

the southern tip.

The East is divided into two regions. These regions are the New England Region and the Mid-Atlantic region.

6 states1. Maine2. New Hampshire3. Vermont4. Massachusetts5. Rhode Island6. Connecticut

5 States1. New York2. Pennsylvania3. New Jersey4. Maryland5. Delaware

Coast: land that borders an ocean

Look at a map, which 9 states of the East border an ocean?

MountainsThe Appalachian Mountains

Coastal PlainFlat, level land along a coast

How they were formedOver millions of years, two moving continents came together. The land between them slowly buckled and rose up to form the huge piles of rocks that became the Appalachian Mountains.

Wind, weather, and the water flowing in rivers slowly wore them down. Glaciers also changed the mountains’ shape. They carved out valleys or leveled the land with the rocks and dirt they left behind.

The coastal plain lies east of the Appalachians. In northern New England,

this plain lies mostly underwater. It is wider from Massachusetts to Florida.

Here, the plain has major cities, farms, and factories. Rock and sand left from

glaciers formed islands with sandy beaches, such as Long Island. They also

formed capes, such as Cape Cod.

More people live on the coastal plain than in the mountains. The land is less rugged

and closer to water routes.

Rivers, Oceans, & Bays Rivers flowing down the mountains to

the plains caused waterfalls. Although the waterfalls made early travel

along the rivers difficult, people did learn to use the power from the water to power machines in mills and factories.

People built settlements near the best harbors along the Atlantic coast. These settlements grew into cities. Bays played an important role in

shipping. A bay is a body of water partly surrounded by land but open to the sea.

Water powers machinery; harbors and bays are used as shipping centers.

The East

Landforms Bodies of Water