Vocabulary for unit 1 of the MC3 curriculum for 3rd grade

1. The Geography of Michigan vocabulary

2. geography The study of places Example: communities, states, countries

3. geographer Someone who studies places

4. Natural Characteristics Things that are not made by man Example: trees, soil, animals

5. Human characteristics Parts of a place made by people Example: bridge, roads

6. County A division of a state Example: Oceana, Newaygo There are 83 counties in Michigan

7. State One of the 50 parts of our country Example: Michigan

8. Border The place where one area ends and another area begins.

9. Government A group of elected citizens who make and carry out the rules for a community, state or country.

10. Location Where a place is found An address helps describe the location of a house.

11. Absolute location Where the exact location of a place is Your address shows the absolute location of your house

12. Relative location Where a place is in relation to other places Michigan is north of Ohio

13. Direction words Words that tell the direction Example: North, south, east, west

14. Map An illustration/diagram that shows the location of something A map could show a city, river or country

15. Landforms The different kinds of land on Earth Ex) mountains, hills, plains

16. Peninsula Land surrounded by water on three sides

17. Island Land surrounded by water

18. Sand dune Ridges or hills of loose sand piled up by the wind

19. Bay A body of water that is partly blocked off by land A body of water with land on three sides.

20. Mountain range A row of connected mountains

21. Glacier Giant sheets of slowly moving ice

22. The Great Lakes Five huge lakes located in the northern part of the United States. Lake Michigan Lake Huron Lake Erie Lake Superior Lake Onterio

23. Elevation How high a place is A mountain has a higher elevation than a hill

24. Special Purpose Maps Maps that show characteristics of an area such as landforms, climate or forests

25. Vegetation The plants of an area. Michigan has many trees-white pine, apple Dune grass grows on the dunes

26. Climate The weather over a long period of time Michigan’s climate has four different seasons.

27. Temperature How hot or cold the air is. The Upper Peninsula is usually colder than the Lower Peninsula

28. Precipitation Water that falls to the ground from the sky Example: rain, sleet, snow, hail

29. Natural Resources Things in nature that people find useful Example: water, fertile soil, oil, trees

30. Fertile soil Soil that is good for growing things Michigan has a lot of fertile soil in the lower peninsula.

31. Minerals Natural resources found in the ground such as iron ore Minerals are removed from the ground by mining

32. Iron ore A mineral used to make steel Iron ore is mined in the Upper Peninsula

33. Copper A mineral used to make things such as pipes for plumbing It is found in the Upper Peninsula For many, Michigan was world leader in copper mining

34. Limestone A stone used to make steel and cement It is mined in Rogers City, Michigan

35. Renewable resources Natural resources that can be replaced Example: trees, water

36. Nonrenewable resources Natural resources that CANNOT be replaced Example: oil, iron ore