Cliff
Hanger
by Jean Craighead
George
Vocabulary,
Spelling, and
Skills
belay
being tied to a person or a rock
with a rope for safety
“On belay,” Axel’s father called
out to him.
descent

A trip down into or from
something, such as a mountain
They reached the top and
were ready for their descent.
harness
•a set of straps that can
attach to a safety rope
Axel took a dog harness
and slipped it over Grit’s
head.
ledge
a shelf of rock
Half way up the mountain
he reached a ledge to hold
on to.
rappel
to come down a cliff by
sliding down a rope
I took a deep breath and
began to rappel down the
ridge.
trekked
made a slow and difficult journey
on foot.
Axel and Dag trekked
steadily up the rocky
trail.
Other Vocabulary
Cathedral – a large or important church
registration book – a book used to record the
names of guests at a hotel, club, or school
climbing nuts – rock climbing tools that are
jammed into cracks in the rock and used to
anchor ropes
carabiners – metal rings used by rock climbers
to attach ropes to themselves or to climbing
nuts
avalanches –areas of rock, snow, or earth that
fell down a mountain
bracing – making firm, steadying
plunging – falling suddenly and quickly
splats – short splashing noises
void – a large, empty space
handhold – something to hold on to for
support
foresaw – knew something before it happened
vertical – straight up and down
free climb – to climb without being attached
to anything
concentration – the act of thinking hard,
staying focused.
Spelling Words
Words with short vowel patterns
mix
thin
left
last
test
glance
milk
stick
smell
head
empty
thick
send
class
friend
dish
Comprehension
Cause and Effect - T49A
Cause and effect is when one event
brings about another event
Cause – makes something happen
Ask yourself, “Why does this
happen?”
Effect – the event that happens
Ask yourself, “What happened?”
Look at Practice Book page 12.
Structural Analysis/
Vocabulary: Base Words T49C
Many words are made by adding
beginnings and endings to smaller words
called base words.
 In climbing, the ending –ing has been
added to the base word climb.
When you come to a new word look for the
base word.
washer washable washing washed
Base Words
Write the base word on your white
board.
planned
shivering
counted
comfortable drummed
wrapped
stopping
slipping
unhappy
Practice Book page 16
Short Vowel Patterns
a, e, and i T49D
A short vowel sound is usually
spelled with one vowel followed by
a consonant.
Find the short vowel patterns in the
following phrases.
The planned route
Split open the black cloud
Roped himself to them
his left
hand
Vocabulary: ABC Order in a
Dictionary T49G
Words in a dictionary are arranged in ABC
order.
 Start with the first letter.
 When words begin with the same letter,
move on to the second letter.
friend harness hand
flash
Since f comes before h in the alphabet, friend and flash
come before harness and hand.
Friend and flash begin with the same letter so we will
look at the second letter.
flash
friend
hand
harness