LESSON

Words About Shapes18

122

Word Learning Tip!When you read about a newsubject, you see new contentwords. They are not the wordsthat you read in most otherbooks. Content words may bethe longest and most difficultwords in the text. Usually, theyappear many times. A clue totheir meanings is that theygive you special informationabout the topic you arestudying. For example, allcontent words in this lessontell something about types ofgeometric shapes and figures.

hexagon

octagon

pentagon

rectangle

triangle

Vocabulary Building Strategy

To learn the meaning of anew content word, thinkabout how it relates to themain subject of the text youare reading. The new wordwill tell something specificabout that big idea orsubject. For example, in thislesson, you know that all thecontent words relate toshapes or figures. Use thisbig idea to determine theexact meaning of eachcontent word.

Chapter 3 • Content Words

Vocabulary Words

Learn Words About a New SubjectDirections Look at the storyboard below. Think about how the boldface words are connected to the topic. They work together to give you information about shapes.

Mr. Dobson’s class learned about five different geometric shapes.Then the class went on a scavenger hunt to find items that looked like these figures.

On the corner, Charmaine saw a STOP sign. “I found an octagon,”she said. “The STOP sign has eight angles and eight sides.”

Charmaine saw a boy wearing a t-shirt. “Here’s my hexagon,” shethought. “Just look at his t-shirt. It has a symbol inside a figurewith six sides and six angles. This is the Chinese symbol for joy.”

LESSON

Words About Shapes 18

123Lesson 18 • Words About Shapes

Learn Words About a New Subject

Charmaine needed to find one more geometric shape. She saw a school crossingsign. She counted the angles and sides. “This sign is a pentagon. It has fiveangles and five sides,” Charmaine thought happily.

Charmaine stopped at a new bookstore. “The store sign is a rectangle,” she said.“It has four angles and four sides. Each flag looks like a triangle, which has threeangles and three sides.”

LESSON

Words About Places Where People and Animals Live19

Chapter 3 • Content Words130

Learn Words About a New Subjectdesert environment grasslands habitat wetlands

A camel can survive for months without water. That is why it can live in aplace that is very dry, such as the desert. When food and water are hard tofind, the camel gets its energy from the fat and oil stored in its hump.

Buffalo once roamed American grasslands by the millions.

Everything in the natural world—the land, the sea, the air—makes up our environment. All living things live incertain habitats within the environment. For example, a buffalo needs a lot of grass to eat. It could not live ina desert where the air is dry and the land is without much grass or water. Its habitat is the grasslands.

LESSON

Words About Places Where People and Animals Live 19

131Lesson 19 • Words About Places Where People and Animals Live

Write About a Habitat In your personal journal, write about a habitat that is common where youlive, such as wetlands, a forest, or a desert. First find information about the habitat. Then

describe the animals and plants that live there. Use two content words and three other science wordsthat describe this habitat. Use the Word Learning Tip and Vocabulary Building Strategy as you read aboutyour habitat to learn three new science words.

Connect Words and Meanings

Directions Read each definition below. Write the word that fits the definition on the first blank. Then write this word in the blank to complete the second sentence. You may use a dictionary or theglossary to help you.

1. Definition: land where there is a lot moisture in the soil, such as marshes

and swamps __________________________________

2. __________________________________ are important because they provide

homes to animals such as beavers, cranes, and ducks.

3. Definition: large, open areas of grass, such as pasture or prairie _____________________

4. Prairie dogs who live in the _____________________________________ eat all the grass

around their burrows so that they can see far away.

5. Definition: the natural home of a group of plants and animals ______________________

6. The ocean is the natural __________________________________ for fish and whales.

7. Definition: all of the natural world of land, sea, and air ____________________________

8. It is important to protect our __________________________________ so that people in

the future will have clean air and water.

9. Definition: dry, often sandy land that gets very little rain ___________________________

10. You can find different types of cactuses growing in the ____________________________ .

desert environment grasslands habitat wetlands

LESSON

Words About Places Where People and Animals Live19

Chapter 3 • Content Words132

Discuss the Environment In small groups, discuss why taking care of the environment is important foranimals and people. What are some events or actions that endanger the environment? Write three

sentences to describe what your group wants people to do to protect the environment. Underline the vocabularywords that you use.

Use Content Words

Directions Read the information about each habitat. Write the correct vocabulary word in each blank.

There are many different habitats in our (1) ______________________ . A special

(2) ______________________ can be a desert, grassland, or wetland.

A (3) ______________________ habitat is very dry and gets very little rainfall. It can be

very hot during the day and very cold at night. Because there is little rainfall, many plants

that live in the (4) ______________________ store water. Animals that live in this special

(5) ______________________ are usually smaller, such as jackrabbits and elf owls.

A (6) ______________________ habitat is very grassy, with few trees and shrubs. It can get

very windy on the grasslands. Many different kinds of animals live in this

(7) ______________________ , from large animals such as antelopes and buffalo to smaller

animals such as prairie dogs, to small insects such as grasshoppers and beetles.

A (8) ______________________ habitat is covered with water for part or even all of the

year. Some animals, such as fish and crabs, live in the water. Other animals, such as frogs,

turtles, and birds live near the water. Swamps and marshes make up part of this special

(9) ______________________ .

Animals and plants depend on their habitats for staying healthy. It is important that we

protect our (10) ______________________ , the oceans, the land, and the air, so that

they will survive.

desert environment grasslands habitat wetlands

LESSON

Words About Places Where People and Animals Live 19

133Lesson 19 • Words About Places Where People and Animals Live

Choose a Habitat In your personal word journal, write a paragraph that includes several newenvironment content words. First, choose a habitat. Use at least two vocabulary words along with the

new science words you found that tell something specific about this habitat. If possible, go online or gothrough a science book to find these words.

1. Horses and deer can graze on my grass. What am I? _______________________________

2. Ducks and geese live in my ponds and rivers. What am I? __________________________

3. There are many different kinds of me. Each special type is home to many different plants

and animals. What am I? ____________________________

4. You can see different kinds of plants and animals that don’t need much water living in my

soil. What am I? ____________________________

5. People who care about me fight pollution of the earth. What am I? _____________________

6. I like air that is very dry. I don’t like rain at all. Some animals that like me are camels and

lizards. What am I? ___________________________

7. I am the land, the air, and the sea. I am everything around you. What am I?

_____________________________

8. I like land where there is a lot of water. Some words that describe me are damp, moist, and

humid. What am I? __________________________

9. I am the special place and natural conditions where certain animals and plants live. What

am I? ______________________________

10. I am a place where there is a lot of grass. In fact, I am known for my beautiful prairies

with a lot of wildflowers. What am I? _____________________________

Put Words Into Action

Directions Read each clue. Then write the vocabulary word that answers the question “What am I?”

desert environment grasslands habitat wetlands