HomeMy WebLinkAboutRead Aloud Book Gr. 1-Lesson 22In the springtime, new animals are born all over the country. Baby birds are
born in nests. Baby sheep are born in fi elds. And high above the ground, near
the tops of tall mountains, baby mountain goats are born. There, mother goats
lick their babies’ thick white fur.
Every animal has a special place where it makes its home. For a mountain
goat, this place is a mountain. A mountain is a rugged place. It is not always
comfortable. The ground on a mountain is not fl at. Instead, it is rough, ragged,
and uneven. It can be hard to walk on a mountain. But a baby mountain goat
must learn how. At fi rst, the baby mountain goat’s legs are wobbly. Its knees
bend and shake. But after a while, the baby goat stands up for the fi rst time.
It takes a few steps. It starts to run across the rocks. Very soon, the baby
mountain goat can even climb.
Every baby animal must learn how to live in its home. A baby mountain goat
must learn to climb steep hills that rise straight up toward the sky. It must also
learn to walk among small stones and big boulders that lie on the ground. It’s
a good thing that mountain goats have hard feet with tough pads to help them
walk around their homes.
The baby mountain goat stays close to its mother for one year. The mother
goat teaches her baby what plants to eat. She makes sure her baby does
not fall from a high mountain peak and hurt itself. After one year, the baby
mountain goat is ready to live on its own. It knows how to be safe and strong
on the mountain.
COMPREHENSION Which words help you picture what a mountain is
like? What does a baby mountain goat need to learn before it lives on
its own?
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Do you like to go to the coast, close to the beach and the sea? Do you like
staring through the foggy air at ships far away?
If you go to the coast, you might see a place where the water from a river
meets the water from the ocean. River water is fresh, and ocean water is salty.
At this place, the tide moves in and out. When the tide is high, salt water
comes into the river from the sea. The salt water mixes with the fresh river
water. When the tide is low, the river sends water fl owing back out to the sea.
Take a look at these places between the river and the ocean. The water from
the sea brings lots of food, so these places are full of life. Many different kinds
of animals live here. Some animals live here when they are young and then
move away when they are grown up.
Salmon are a kind of fi sh. Baby salmon are born in fresh water, far from the
ocean. When salmon babies are fi rst born, they live only in the fresh water. But
they must also learn to live in the salty ocean water. That is why this muddy
place between the river and the ocean is important for salmon.
When they are older but not yet grown up, the salmon swim into this place
between the river and the ocean. Here, it is easy for them to fi nd food to eat.
They get bigger, and they get used to the salty water. After a few months, the
salmon are ready to swim into the ocean.
The next time you are near the coast, don’t just look through the blurry mist
at the ships on the sea. Watch the tide as it moves in and out. You might see a
baby salmon in the water!
COMPREHENSION What words help you picture the place where the
river meets the ocean? Why is this place important to baby salmon as
they grow?
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