Academic Vocabulary for Social Studies Grade 4
Teachers created the basic vocabulary list for the Five basic concepts (themes) necessary at a specific Grade level.
Theme #1: People move from place to place for many reasons.
1. culture – the way of life and belies of a group of people.
2. ancestors – a relative that lived in the past.
3. immigration – to move from one country to another.
4. explore -To search into or travel in for the purpose of discovery.
5. migrate - to go from one country, region, or place to another.
6. location- A place of settlement, activity, or residence.
7. transportation - the act of moving something or someone from one location to another.
8. push factors/reason – the negative reason why people moved away from an area.
9. pull factors/reason – the positive reason why people moved into an area.
10. economic - pertaining to the production, distribution, and use of income and wealth.
11. conflict – a disagreement.
12. geography – (location, region) features of the Earth.
13. tourism – the business of serving visitors.
14. civilization –a group of people with forms of religion and ways of governing.
15. expedition – a trip taken with the goal of exploring.
16. society -an organized group of persons associated together for religious, benevolent, cultural, scientific, political, patriotic, or other purposes.
Theme #2: Where we are influences who we are.
1. river – a stream of water that flows across the land.
2. lake – a body of water that has land all around it.
3. mountain – the highest kind of land.
4. desert -a region so arid because of little rainfall that it supports only sparse and widely spaced vegetation or no vegetation at all.
5. plain – land that is mostly flat.
6. valley – low land between hills or mountains.
7. canyon - a deep valley with steep sides, often with a stream flowing through it.
8. plateau - a land area having a relatively level surface considerably raised above adjoining land on at least one side, and often cut by deep canyons.
9. mesa – a flat-topped mountain.
10. lines of latitude – a set of lines that run east and west. They are measured in degrees north or south of the equator.
11. lines of longitude –a set of lines that run or and south. They are measured in degrees east or west of the prime meridian.
12. equator –the imaginary line that divides the Earth into the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.
13. hemisphere – half of the Earth.
14. prime meridian – the imaginary line that is used to divide the Earth into the Eastern and Western Hemispheres.
15. climate – weather patterns over time.
16. precipitation – water that falls to the Earth’s surface as rain, sleet, hail, or snow.
17. vegetation - the type/kind of naturally growing plants in an area.
18. irrigation – the use of ditches or pipes to move water to dry areas.
19. elevation – the height of the land above sea level.
Theme #3: People have unlimited wants and only limited resources.
1. choice- An option that someone has to choose between.
2. decision- An answer or final choice a person can make.
3. taxes- A system in which the government charges citizens to pay for resources. (i.e. - roads, schools)
4. entrepreneurs- A person who sets up a business.
5. consume-to use something.
6. savings- put away and keep, hang on to not exchanged.
7. scarcity- A short supply of a certain good or service.
8. needs- Something that is needed to survive. (i.e. - Water, shelter)
9. desires- Something that is wanted.
10. consequence- The result of something occurring earlier.
11. opportunity cost- The thing a person gives up in order to get something else.
12. supply- The amount of a certain good that is available.
13. demand- The need for a certain good.
14. wealth- Anything with monetary value that can be exchanged or sold.
15. employer- Someone who hires employees to do work for them.
16. employee- A person who is hired to complete a certain job and is paid for their work.
17. standard of living- The quality of life that people live in.
18. import- To bring goods into a certain place to purchase for use.
19. export- To send goods to another place to sell for profit.
20. specialization- To have a special line of work. (i.e. - doctor)
Theme #4: Rules are made to keep order.
1. initiative- A certain number of voters can recommend an amendment.
2. referendum- To refer a proposal to be voted on.
3. recall- To withdraw something that has been voted on.
4. petition- A request for something desired, must be signed by a certain number of citizens.
5. direct democracy- The citizens as a whole make decisions, rather than all elected officials.
6. change- To make something different or show variable difference.
7. executive- A branch of the government which ensures that the law is being followed (i.e. - president)
8. legislative- A branch of the government which creates the law. (i.e. - congress, senate)
9. judicial- A branch of the government which carries out consequences. (i.e. - judges, courts)
10. governor- The head of an individual state (i.e. -Arizona)
11. citizen- A person belonging to a certain area. (i.e. - Citizen of the United States)
12. responsibility- A duty that someone should do.
13. law- A rule that is set by a group of people.
14. constitution- A document created by the governed which contains rules.
15. safety- Having no injury, danger, or loss, and to be safe.
16. freedom- Independence from regulation or being forced into regulation.
17. cession- Something that is given up. (i.e. - such as land)
Theme #5: We are a product of what happened before and what we value will influence the future.
1. timeline- A schedule or line of important events.
2. invention- To create something new.
3. Predict- To make an educated guess on something that will happen in the future.
4. change- To make something different or show variable difference.
5. archeological- The study of historic or prehistoric people or things.
6. cause- The reason why something happens.
7. effect- What happens as a result of a cause.
8. civilization- Any type of culture of society.
9. contribution- A gift or donation that is given or made.
10. revolution- A change in an established government.
11. diversity- Being different or unlike something/someone else.
12. pre-historic- The time before people wrote about events.
13. drought- A time with little or no rain, very dry weather.
14. agriculture- Cultivating and raising crops, as well as livestock.
15. primary source- A firsthand or eyewitness account of an event.
16. secondary source- An account from an event that is not witnessed by the author.