Regions of the U.S.
Kids InfoBits. 2020. Lexile Measure: 840L.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Gale, a Cengage Company
Map showing the regions of the United States.
Map by XNR Productions, Inc./Cengage Learning
The United States is made up of 50 states. These states are divided into regions.
Regions are based on location. States that are next to each other may be in the
same region. States in a region might have the same geography. They might
have the same climate, too.
Maps show the regions of the United States. These regions are not the same on
all maps, though. Most maps show five regions, but some show six. Sometimes a
map will show a state in a different region. For example, the state of Maryland is
often in the Northeast region. But on some maps, it is in the Southeast region.
The five regions of the United States are the Northeast, Southeast, Midwest,
Southwest, and West.
Northeast Region
Eleven states are in the Northeast region. They are Maine, Massachusetts,
Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont, New York, Pennsylvania,
New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland.
States in this region have a similar climate. Most have cool or warm summers.
They have cold winters. It snows during the winter.
Many of these states are near the Atlantic Ocean. They are near the Appalachian
Mountains. The states in the North are close to the Great Lakes.
Southeast Region
Twelve states are in the Southeast region. They are West Virginia, Virginia,
Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama,
Mississippi, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Florida.
States in this region have hot summers. Some have warm winters. In the
summer and fall, they might have hurricanes. These are powerful storms.
Hurricanes can cause a lot of damage.
The Appalachian Mountains are in the Southeast region. Most of these states are
near the Atlantic Ocean. Some are near the Gulf of Mexico.
Midwest Region
Twelve states are in the Midwest region. They are Ohio, Indiana, Michigan,
Illinois, Missouri, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota,
and North Dakota.
It is often humid in this region. Most states get snow in the winter.
The Great Lakes and the Great Plains are in this region.
Southwest Region
Four states are in the Southwest region. They are Texas, Oklahoma, New
Mexico, and Arizona.
The climate in this region varies. In some states, it is humid. In others, it is like a
desert. It does not rain often in this region.
The Rocky Mountains are in the Southwest region. The Grand Canyon and
Colorado River are in this region, too.
West Region
Eleven states are in the West region. They are Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho,
Montana, Washington, Oregon, Utah, Nevada, California, Alaska, and Hawaii.
The climate in this region varies. In some states, it does not often rain. Others
have hot summers and cool, wet winters. Some states, such as Nevada and
parts of California, have a desert climate.
The Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada Mountains are in this region. The
Mohave Desert is, too. The Pacific Ocean is near some of these states.
