Teach with HistoryLink

Introduction

Long before highways, cities, and farmland, powerful natural forces shaped the land we now call Washington. In this inquiry, students explore the dramatic Ice Age floods that swept across the Pacific Northwest thousands of years ago, and were some of the largest floods in Earth’s history. Using maps, images, and scientific explanations, students investigate how the floods carved out canyons, left behind giant rocks, and created the unique landscape of eastern Washington. This inquiry encourages students to see the land as a storyteller and to make connections between ancient events and the landforms they see today in their own communities.

HistoryLink Articles

• Ice Age Floods in Washington
• Bretz, J Harlen (1882-1981)
• Elementary Level: How the Land in Washington Was Formed
• Steamboat Rock State Park

Maps