Theme 1 Vocabulary 4th Grade
Akiak
Page 30
Rugged: having a rough, uneven surface
Page 33
Musher: the driver of a dogsled team
Page 34
Vowed: promised
Page 37
Checkpoint: a place along a route where a check or count is made
Page 39
Volunteer: someone who helps free of charge
Blizzard: a long, heavy snowstorm with strong winds
Whiteout: heavy clouds over snow, leading to completely white conditions that make it
impossible to see
Refuge: a safe or covered place out of bad weather
Burrowed: dug a hole like small animal
Page 40
Experienced: having the knowledge or skill from having done a particular thing in the
past
Page 44
Layover: a brief stop on a trip
Page 46
Squinted: looked with eyes partly open
Page 50
Courageous: having or showing courage, brave
Go Team GO
Page 55
Remote: distant, far from towns or cities
Pages 56-57
Momentum: the force and speed of a moving object
Purebred: animals coming from many generations of the same breed or kind
Trailhead: a place where a trail begins
Grandfather’s Journey
Pages 64-65
Reminded: made someone remember
Bewildered: greatly puzzled, confused
Marveled: filled with surprise or wonder
Longed: wished for, wanted very much
Page 68
Surrounded: put all around
Homeland: country where one was born or lived a long time
Page 71
Warblers: small gray or brown songbirds
Silvereyes: small greenish birds with a ring of white feathers around the eyes
Page 74
Still: to make quiet
Homesick: missing one’s home to the point of pain or sickness
Finding the Titanic
Pages 83 and 85
Shipwrecks: wrecked or ruined ships
Unsinkable: impossible to sink
Voyage: long journey to a distant place
Hull: the main frame or body of a ship
Bow: the front of a ship
Steward: an assistant on a ship or an airplane
Pages 86 and 87
Third-Class: having food and shelter on board of the least quality and price
Second-Class: having food and shelter on board at a quality just below the highest of
first class
Iceberg: a huge floating piece of ice broken off from a glacier
Page 90
Distress: needing immediate help
Stern: the rear of a ship
Page 92-93
Survivors: people who have stayed alive
Drenched: soaked
Page 95
Wreckage: the remains of something that has been destroyed
Funnels: smokestacks
Page 96
Loomed: came out from mist or darkness
Portholes: small, round windows in a ship
Page 99
Crow’s nest: a small lookout structure at the top of a ship
Plaques: flat markers that are engraved with words in honor of an event
Page 100
Monument: a structure in memory of people who have died
Iceberg Right Ahead
Pages 104-105
Electrify: excite
Frigid: freezing cold
Patrol: a lookout or protective force
Page 106
Current: a flow of water or wind moving in a specific direction
Conveyor Belt: a mechanical, moving strip that transports items from one place to
another
Buoys: floating markers
By the Shores of the Silver Lake
Pages 111 and 112
Satchels: small bags used for carrying books and other small items
Platform: a raised floor or surface
Delaine: a light fabric used for women’s dresses
Calico: a rough, brightly printed cloth
Craned: stretched the neck in order to see better
Pages 118 and 119
Jolting: moving in a jerky, bumpy way
Depot: a train or bus station
Conductor: a person in charge of a train or subway
Page 121
Stubble: the short, stiff stalks of grain or hay left on a field after harvesting
Pages 122-123
Callused: having patches of thick skin; tough
Bristly: covered with stiff hairs
Bobs: moves up and down
Page 124
Lurching: moving unsteadily from side to side
Suspected: guessed
Page 126
Shanties: shacks; poorly built houses
Finding Her Way
Pages 130-131
Texture: the feel or look of an object’s surface
Layout: an arrangement or plan
The Case of the Earthenware Pig
Pages 140-141
Chattering: talking quickly
Detectors: things that tell you when something is happening
Earthenware: pottery made out of clay that has been baked and made hard
Page 143
Slick: well-done; clever
Alibi: an account of a person’s whereabouts during a crime
The Sticks of Truth
Pages 144-145
Innkeeper: a person who runs an inn or hotel
Confessed: told the truth or admitted to a crime