USA National Parks Comprehension PDF

STAGE 6 Unit focus: USA Text focus: Information Text National Parks In The USA In 1872, Yellowstone National Park was created, becoming the first national park in both the USA and the world. The designation protected a 3400 square mile section of Wyoming, Idaho and Montana in Western United States,...

STAGE 6 Unit focus: USA Text focus: Information Text National Parks In The USA In 1872, Yellowstone National Park was created, becoming the first national park in both the USA and the world. The designation protected a 3400 square mile section of Wyoming, Idaho and Montana in Western United States, ensuring that its landscapes, wildlife and plant life were preserved for future generations. Yellowstone was to be the first of many and today, it is one of 63 national parks in the USA which cumulatively protect an area similar in size to the whole of Great Britain. While all are important in some way, there are those which are the showstoppers and highlight some of the extraordinary natural beauty and variety of the country. Yellowstone The earliest national park is alive with geological activity. More than half of the world’s geysers are located here and they spout water and steam, heated by the magma deep in the earth beneath, up into the air in an extraordinary spectacle. Vividly coloured hot springs and bubbling and gurgling mud pots are other examples of almost other-wordly features which draw visitors to this park. Yosemite Yosemite (pronounced yo-sem-i-tee) is a national park in California where wilderness reigns supreme. Sheer granite cliffs rise up out of lush valleys, waterfalls thunder over the rocks and three-thousand-year-old sequoia trees tower above the forest floors. It should come as no surprise therefore that Yosemite attracts hikers and nature-lovers but there is a special appeal for climbers who test themselves on some of the world’s most iconic walls: El Capitan and Half Dome. The first ascent of the 914 metre El Capitan in 1958 took 47 days; now the record in under two hours! Grand Canyon As the mighty Colorado River winds its way south towards Mexico, it has carved a giant, 1500 metre gorge through the desert plateau in Arizona. The mammoth walls of the canyon are striped with reds and oranges showing how the landscape was built up in layers over millions of years. The area is a UNESCO World Heritage Site as well as a national park because of its spectacular and powerful scenery. all resources ©2022 Literacy Shed http://www.literacyshedplus.com Denali Perched on the north-western corner of the continent of North America beyond Canada is the state of Alaska, a world apart from much of the rest of the USA and famous for glaciers, ice fields, mountains and Arctic tundra. Denali is one of several national parks here and is named for the highest mountain in North America which sits in its borders. But there is much more than that to bring people here. Denali is an untouched and remote place where you can find adventure and peace and wonderful wildlife including golden eagles, grizzly and brown bears, wolves and caribou. Great Smoky Mountains In the southeastern states of Tennessee and North Carolina lies the most visited national park in the USA. A pristine area of mountains, lakes and forest, the park is named after the blue mist that often hangs over the mountains and lends a magical air to the place. The area used to be the home of the Cherokee Indians, a sophisticated and advanced tribe who were removed by European settlers claiming the land for their own. These settlers lived a simple agricultural lifestyle in small communities in the mountains until the start of logging in the area in the 1900s brought an influx of new settlers. The decision to make the area a national park brought a halt to the destruction of the primeval forest here. VOCABULARY FOCUS 1. What does ‘cumulatively’ mean? 2. What does the word ‘sheer’ tell us about the cliffs in Yosemite? 3. Find and copy a word which is closest in meaning to ‘famous’. 4. Find and copy a word which means clean and unspoilt. 5. What does influx mean? R E I R E VIPERS QUESTIONS In which state would you find Denali? The Grand Canyon is famous for its size: what words has the writer chosen to capture this? What evidence is there that Denali might be one of the more challenging parks to visit? Which national park has the greatest number of visitors? How has the writer ensured this text is accessible to a British audience? all resources ©2022 Literacy Shed http://www.literacyshedplus.com