ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Atlantic coastal plain

The Atlantic coastal plain is a big area along the east coast of the United States. If you go to the beach and see the ocean, chances are you’re on the coastal plain!

Imagine you’re at the beach and walk towards the water. At first, the sand is hard and easy to walk on. This is called the beach ridge. As you get closer to the water, the sand gets softer and starts to slope down towards the ocean. This is called the beach or the surf zone.

Now let’s imagine walking further down the beach and eventually making it to the land that’s not covered by water anymore. This is called the backshore.

If you look behind you away from the water, this is the area that usually has more plants and trees. This is called the coastal plain. It’s a big area that extends a long way inland and goes through lots of states on the east coast.

There are lots of different parts of the coastal plain. For example, there are swamps, which are wet areas with lots of trees and water. There are also areas with really sandy soil that make it easy to grow crops like peanuts and cotton.

The coastal plain is really important for people and animals that live there. There are lots of different ecosystems and habitats, so there are lots of different animals to see and creatures to learn about!