Indiana Social Studies IS.3.2

Social StudiesGrades 9–12Geography

The Standard

Map and describe the physical regions of Indiana and identify major natural resources and land use regions.

2026 Indiana Academic Standards: K-12 Social Studies

Teacher's field guide

What Students Need to Do: Students map Indiana’s three main physical regions and describe how the land differs in each. They locate major resources, including limestone and coal, and show where farming, forestry, and mining occur.
What Mastery Looks Like: A student correctly places the northern lakes and moraines, central till plain, and southern hills and lowlands. They locate coal in the southwest and limestone in south-central Indiana, then explain why flat central land supports cropland.
Common Misconceptions: Students may draw the whole state as flat farmland, missing northern moraines and southern hills. They may label farmland as a physical region or put limestone and coal across all of southern Indiana.
How to Assess It: Give students a blank Indiana map. Ask them to label the three physical regions, place coal and limestone, shade one farming area and one forest area, and explain one land use choice.

Lesson moves

Give pairs an Indiana outline, relief map, and resource map; have them trace the three regions and mark coal and limestone.
Show photos of a central Indiana cornfield and a southern Indiana forest; ask, “What about the land helps explain each use?”
Run a map relay: teams place region, resource, and land use cards on an Indiana outline, then check a state atlas.
Have students locate a southern Indiana limestone quarry and the Empire State Building, then trace where the building stone traveled.

Free download

A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to IS.3.2, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.

PDF, US Letter, prints cleanly in black and white.

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