LIVING IN DESERTS My View Literacy Third Grade Unit 1 Week 4 Read Aloud

living in deserts chapter 1 welcome to the desert the air is hot and dry sand blows in your face rocks and sand are all you can see for miles and miles you are thirsty you will not have much luck finding water because rain has not fallen here for more than year where are you you are in desert desert is an extreme place to live no other place on earth is as dry as desert fewer than 10 inches 25 centimeters of rain fall in deserts each year the soil is dry and rainfall can cause flash flood in the world's deserts more people have drowned in desert rainstorms that have died from thirst flash floods happen when desert's dry ground cannot soak up water quickly deserts are almost everywhere in the world you can find deserts in south america north america asia australia africa and antarctica deserts cover about one quarter of all land on earth many deserts are hot there are not enough clouds to shield the ground from the sun's heat one of the hottest temperatures ever recorded was in death valley california the temperature reached 132 degrees fahrenheit 56 degrees celsius not all deserts are hot however most of antarctica is cold desert temperatures there can be as low as negative 128 degrees fahrenheit negative 89 degrees celsius that is way below freezing one of the coldest places on earth antarctica is desert chapter 2 people of the desert deserts can be filled with danger people can get heat stroke from extreme temperatures lack of water can lead to dehydration too much exposure to the sun can cause sunburn some people however are able to live in deserts to them deserts are home for hundreds of years people have found ways to protect themselves against the extreme conditions of deserts they build shelters for shade during the day they travel at night the nomadic people of asia's gobi desert move from place to place to find resources they live in tent-like structures called yurts which they carry with them yurt is easy to put up take down and move it will stay standing even in winds of 90 miles 145 kilometers per hour different groups of people live in deserts around the world each group has its own way of life they build different types of shelters to suit their ways of life some build homes with bricks they make for mixing mud with straw some people live underground the people of cooper petty australia dig underground rooms to make their homes miners in cooper petty on the edge of australia's great victoria desert escape the sun's heat in their underground homes the town's name means white man and hole long ago the only people who lived in deserts lived traditional lifestyles today many kinds of people live in deserts they use modern technology to build air-conditioned buildings and to pump water into their cities las vegas nevada for example is in the mojave desert some modern cities such as las vegas are in the middle of deserts chapter 3 living in the desert harsh weather and climate make it hard for people to live in deserts over many years people have learned ways to find enough water to survive the sand people of the kalahari desert in africa for example know which plants store water they also use long reeds to suck up water from underground they then store the water in ostrich eggshells dates grow on palm trees people can eat them or trade them for money or other goods most people who live in deserts live near an oasis an oasis has enough water to grow crops many people have palm trees fruit called date grows on these trees people can also grow olive trees wheat and other crops for food if an oasis is big enough people can build villages towns or even cities around it very few plants grow in deserts often deserts go on for hundreds of miles of land with no shade strong winds blow through the barren landscape dust storm can strike at any moment without warning desert people wear layers of loose-fitting clothes to protect themselves from the sun and blowing dust these turreg people live in the sahara desert they cover their faces with long flowing cloaks their clothes keep sand out of their eyes hair mouths and skin some people who live in deserts do not stay in one place the touareg people live in the sahara desert in africa for hundreds of years they have traveled across the desert they carry items for trade such as gold and spices from one side of the desert to the other the tuareg people raise goats to provide milk and meat and to carry water across the desert for hundreds of years many people have used camels to travel through the desert camels are built to survive desert weather and climate their thick woolly hair protects them from the hot sun their wide feet stop them from sinking in the sand they can drink 25 gallons 95 liters of water in minutes and they do not need to drink again for days fewer than 100 years ago many people could not cross desert without camel today camels are less important than they once were people now drive cars and trucks through deserts deserts are easier to cross today but you would not want to get stranded you may not get help for long time camels have often been called ships of the desert they can live for long time off the fat stored in their homes strong winds blow sand through deserts blowing sand makes it hard for drivers to see the road chapter 4 people in the desert today every year more people live on the edges of deserts they cut down trees for fuel and farm the land they bring animals such as goats to graze on the land the areas surrounding deserts cannot support all the people who live in them humans use up lots of water as people use the land the soil loses its nutrients and becomes weak most kinds of plants cannot grow in weak soil without plants to hold the soil in place it can dry out and blow away in heavy winds dry earth can cover smaller plants and stop them from growing every year more land turns into desert and the world's deserts grow bigger the spreading of desert edges is called desertification the yellow areas on this map show the current desert areas in africa the red shows areas of risk for desertification some people harm deserts they have found valuable resources in the desert large companies mine deserts for precious metals such as gold others drill for oil some nations test bombs and other weapons and deserts such use of deserts causes pollution which can spread to the rest of the world pollution of the desert can harm the whole planet desert mines cause pollution that can spread to other parts of the world some people however aren't trying to save deserts conservation scientists are trying to replant areas that have become desert they build plastic covers over healthy crops which stops plants from drying out some governments restrict the way people can use the land other deserts are protected as national parks protecting deserts can help the planet scientists hope to stop the spread of deserts by planting new crops and trees they cover the plants with plastic covers that look like tunnels you