Mountains - Jolly Phonics Level 4 Readers
Mountains are enormous bits of rock
that stand much higher than the ground
around them. Some are on their own,
while others are part of a chain.
They can be many different shapes with
rounded tops or jagged peaks. It all
depends on how the mountains were
formed and how old they are.
The top layer of the Earth is called the
crust. This crust is made up of several
big chunks. These chunks are called
"tectonic plates", and they are not fixed
in one spot.
The sides of these plates hit against
each other. When this happens, the
layers of rock in the Earth's crust are
folded up to form mountains.
Many mountains are still growing, while
some are getting smaller. As soon as
a mountain has formed, it starts to be
worn away by the weather. Wind, rain,
frost, streams and rivers attack the
rock. Slowly, the mountain gets smaller
and becomes less jagged.
The Himalayan Mountains stretch
across four countries. The two highest
mountains in the Himalayas are Mount
Everest and Kangchenjunga.
The mountains here are so tall because
they are quite young and have not been
worn down yet.
The highest mountain is Mount Everest.
Many mountaineers have died trying to
reach the top of it. Sir Edmund Hilary
and Sherpa Tensing Norgay were the
first men to reach the top on May 29th,
1953.
A high mountain has different zones at
its top, middle and bottom. Trees grow
in the lowest zone at the bottom of the
mountain. They cannot grow higher up.
The part around the mountainside
where the trees stop growing is called
the tree line.
At the top of a mountain is a zone
where there is snow all the time. It is
very cold and very difficult to survive
here.
The part around the mountainside
where the zone begins is called the
snow line. In Antarctica, the snow line
is at the bottom of the mountain!
Some flowers can grow between the
tree line and the snow line of a
mountain. Flowers that grow here are
called "alpines". They tend to be small
and keep out of the wind. They have
long roots to help them grip and hold
on to the mountainside.
Many animals have adapted so that
they can live in the mountains. Sheep
and goats can live high up on steep,
rocky mountainsides. They have
rubbery pads on their hooves to help
them on the slopes.
Many animals have adapted so that
they can live in the mountains. Sheep
and goats can live high up on steep,
rocky mountainsides. They have
rubbery pads on their hooves to help
them on the slopes.
The Rocky Mountains run down from
northern Canada to the southern USA.
They are sometimes called "America's
backbone". When the settlers were
going across America, they found the
Rocky Mountains very difficult to cross.
The Matterhorn is a mountain in
Switzerland. It is easy to recognise
because of its shape. The chain of
mountains that runs across Switzerland
is called the Alps.
In the Alps, farmers live in the valleys
between the mountains and grow crops
there in the summer.
Also in the summer, they send their
cows up the mountainside to graze. In
the winter, they bring the cows back
down into the valleys.
The milk from cows is used to make
cheese and chocolate. Swiss cheese and
chocolate are very well known.
A long time ago, Saint Bernard lived in
the mountains between Switzerland and
Italy. He set up a hostel where
anyone could rest as they went across
the mountains. He gave them free food
and shelter. Sometimes, they would get
lost in the snow.
Saint Bernard trained some dogs to
help him go out and rescue those who
had got lost. The dogs were big and
had thick fur coats. They were strong
and could dig out anyone who had got
trapped in the snow.
Little barrels were hung from the dogs'
collars. Inside the barrels was
something to drink for those who had
been lost or trapped.
The dogs were so big that they could
help those they had rescued back to the
hostel and safety. This sort of dog is
still called a Saint Bernard today.
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