Ch. 9 Canada’s Physical, Government, and Economy

Physical Features

Canada is the 2nd largest landmass1. Great Lakes – St. Lawrence River2. Hudson Bay Lowlands3. Canadian Shield4. Rocky Mountains5. Pacific Ocean6. Atlantic Ocean

Great Lakes with St. Lawrence River• Created by glacial movement.• HOMES – (Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie,

and Superior)• along with the St. Lawrence River form one

of the worlds most important shipping routes.

• Connects great lakes with Atlantic Ocean

Hudson Bay Lowlands

• 3rd largest wetland in the world• It’s a flat, low area covered by swampy forests• Difficult for agriculture because it’s frozen most of the year

Canadian Shield• Foundation of Canada’s landmass

• The Shield is an extremely old region, formed during the Precambrian era.

• Region of mostly thin soil lying on top of bedrock, with many bare outcrops of rock & thousands of lakes

• Natural Resources – Timber, Minerals, and Water

• Sparsely Populated

Rocky Mountains

• Located in Western Canada• Stretch a distance of 2,000

miles• Mining is #1 industry, followed

by logging• Minerals: iron ore, copper,

coal, gold• Sparsely populated with few

cities

Pacific and Atlantic Ocean • Important links to other countries

for trade and travel • Provides fishing opportunities

Canada’s Government

* Recognize the British monarchy

* Federal government * 3 branches of govt.

Canada’s Government • Governor General

– Crown’s representative in Canada– Ceremonial office

• Parliament – Legislative Branch

• House of Commons (elected)• Senate (appointed)

– Makes laws– Bills must pass BOTH houses

• Prime Minister– chosen from House of Commons majority

party– Head of Executive Branch– Highest office in Canada

10

Class activity:Using a venn diagram compare the US government and the Canadian government.

United States Canada

Three branches of federal government in Canada & the US and their function within the government.

Economics – Market Economy

• Focus mainly on manufacturing and service industries

• After looking at image to the left, what country is Canada’s most important trading partner?

• The United States – Both have

• Good transportation• Similar business practices

Canada’s Regions- #1 Atlantic Provinces

• Although fishing used to be a major industry, overfishing has weakened the job market.

• Today many people have jobs in manufacturing, mining, and tourism.

Canada Region #2-Central & Eastern

• Ontario– Largest Population– Greatest wealth in Canada– Center for business – manufacturing – Canada’s heartland

• Quebec is well known for:– Paper Industry– Montreal – industrial and financial center– Hydroelectric Power– Many French-speaking people in Quebec want to secede from Canada, and become

their own country.

Canada Region #3-The West

• Farming and ranching- produces large amounts of wheat.• Contains some of the world’s largest reserves of oil and natural

gas.• British Columbia province has deep, rich forests• World’s largest producer of newsprint ( type of paper)

Canada Region #4-The North

• Canada’s north covers about 1/3 of the country. • This area includes the Yukon Territory, the Northwest Territory,

and Nunavut.• Many people who live here are indigenous. • The main resources are minerals like gold and diamonds.• Largest exporter of minerals in the world!