Lamar CISD Social Studies Vocabulary PK-5
Word / Definition / PK / K / Gr1 / Gr2 / Gr3 / Gr4 / Gr513th Amendment / Freed all slaves. Outlawed slavery. / X
14th Amendment / Protects the rights and involvement of citizens in government. / X
15th Amendment / Granted black men the right to vote. / X
1607 / 1st permanent English colony in Jamestown. / X
1776 / Declaration of Independence is written. / X / X / X / X / X / X
1787 / Treaty of Paris is signed. / X
1803 / Louisiana Purchase. / X
1861-1865 / American Civil War. / X
Abolitionist / A person who wanted to end slavery. / X
Adapted to and Modified / People settle new areas they often change their ways of doing things in response to new geographic factors. / X / X
Aesop’s Fables / Greek storyteller who uses animals in stories for moral development. / X
Agriculture / The raising of crops and farm animals. / X / X / X
Alamo / Famous battle of the Texas Revolution. / X / X
Amendment / A change or addition to the Constitution. Article V of the U.S. Constitution outlines the procedures for making changes or amending the document. / X
Ancestor / Someone in a person’s family that lived a long time ago. / X / X / X
Annexation / The process of adding new land or territory to a country. / X
Anthems / Songs or hymns of praise or gladness are called anthems. / X / X
Anti-federalist / A citizen who was against the ratification of the Constitution. / X
Articles of Confederation / Articles of Confederation were adopted in 1781. Provided guidance to government for seven years and gave Congress the authority to make laws and to draw up treaties with other nations. / X
Artifact / An object used by someone in the past. / X / X / X
Authority Figures / Authority figures set standards, enforce the law, or maintain social order in the absence oflaws. / X / X / X / X
Ballot / Shows the choices for voting. / X / X / X / X / X
Barter / People can trade goods and services instead of using money. / X / X / X / X
Bill of Rights / Additions to the U.S. Constitution that names the rights and freedoms of all Americans. / X / X / X
Border / A line on a map that shows where a country or state ends. / X / X / X / X
Boston Tea Party / Colonists angered by parliament’s decision to force a monopoly of the tea trade, dumped British tea into Boston harbor. / X
Cardinal Directions / Main directions of north, south, east and west. / X / X / X / X / X
Cash crops / Agricultural products grown primarily to be sold for profits not for personal use. / X / X / X / X / X / X / X
Cause / What makes something happen. / X / X / X / X / X
Chart / A form to record information quickly and simply. / X / X
Checks and Balances / Constitution authorizes the three branches of government to share power. / X
Chronology / Placing events in order based on time. / X / X / X
Cinco de Mayo / A day celebrating Mexico’s independence. / X / X / X
Citizen / A person who lives in and belongs to a community. / X / X / X / X / X
City / A very large town. / X / X / X
Civic Responsibility / Civic responsibilities include the obligations of citizens to be active, peaceful, loyal and supportive to the community. / X
Climate / The kind of weather a place has over a long period of time. / X / X / X / X / X / X
Colonist / A person who lives in a colony. / X / X / X
Community / Groups of people who live and work in the same place. / X
Compass Rose / A compass rose is a circle or similar design which includes graduated degrees or quarter points (intermediate directions), printed on a chart or map for reference. / X
Competition / A contest between two or more parties. / X / X
Congress / The U.S. Congress is a bicameral legislature including the House of Representatives and the Senate. / X
Constitution / The plan of government that tells what government can and cannot do. / X / X / X / X
Consumer / A person who buys and uses goods and services. / X / X / X / X
Continent / One of the seven main land areas on Earth. / X
Cooperation / To work together for a common purpose. / X / X / X / X / X / X / X
Country / An area of land with its own people and laws. / X / X / X
County / Part of a state. / X / X / X / X / X / X
Courts / A place where a judge decides if a person has broken a law. / X / X
Culture / A group’s way of life and doing things. / X / X / X / X / X / X
Customs / Customs are ways of doing things within a group or society which become habit and are adopted astradition. / X / X / X / X / X / X / X
Declaration of Independence / It declared the 13 colonies as independent states, free from rule by Great Britain. Thomas Jefferson wrote the majority of the declaration. / X
Democracy / Form of government in which control is held by the people of the country. / X / X / X
Deserts / A large dry area of land. / X / X / X / X / X / X
Dictator / A government leader that takes control by force. / X
Direction / The way to go to find something. / X / X / X / X
Diversity / The state of being made up of different kinds of people. / X / X
Division of Labor / Dividing work so that each worker does only part of a larger job is called division of labor. / X / X
Due Process Rights / Principle that guarantees the right to a fair public trial. / X
Effect / What happens because of a cause. / X / X / X / X / X
Election / A time when people vote for their leaders. / X / X / X / X / X
Empresarios / An empresario was a land agent or land contractor. The Mexican government made use of empresarios to settle TX. / X
Entrepreneur / A person who organizes and runs a business. / X / X
Equator / An imaginary line that divides the Earth in half between north and south / X / X
Executive Branch / Branch of government that gives power to the President. / X
Exploration / Exploration involves searching for new things, often in places where no one else has looked. / X
Fact / A piece of information that is true. / X / X / X / X / X
Factory / A building in which people use machines to make goods. / X / X / X
Federal government / The government of an entire nation. / X / X
Federalist / A person in favor of ratification of the Constitution. / X
Flag of Texas / In 1839, approved the LoneStar flag as the official flag of the Republic of Texas. WhenTexas became the twenty eighth state in the United States in1845, the flag of the United States was added but the LoneStar flag remained the official state flag. / X / X / X / X / X
Flag of the United States / In 1818, the U.S. Congress set the number of stripes at 13 but agreed tocontinue to add a star for each new state. / X / X / X / X / X / X / X
Folktales / A folktale is a tale told to friends and acquaintances which is believed to be true but is usually anonymous, timeless, and placeless. / X
Free enterprise / Economic system where there is competition between businesses with little government control. / X / X / X / X
Freedom / The right to make your own choices. / X / X / X / X / X
French & Indian War / War fought over disputed land in the OhioValley. / X
Geography / The study of Earth and its people. / X / X
Goods / Things that can be bought and sold. / X / X / X / X / X
Government / Group of citizens that runs a community, state, or country. Services are provided to the citizens. / X / X / X / X
Governor / A leader of a state’s government. / X / X / X
Graph / A diagram which represents the change of a variable in comparison to another variable. / X / X / X
Grid System / A grid system is a network of horizontal and vertical lines used to locate points on a map or a chart by means of coordinates. / X
Gulf / Large body of water that is partly surrounded by land. / X / X
Hero / A person who has done something brave or important. / X / X / X / X
Hills / Land that rises above the land around it. / X / X / X
Holidays / Holiday is a day when one is free from work or school. / X
Human Characteristics of Places / Human characteristics of places include the types of houses people build, the ways they earn a living, the games children play, the languages people speak, their religious beliefs. / X / X
Immigrant / A person who comes from somewhere else to live in a country. / X / X / X / X
Income / The money people earn for the work they do. / X / X
Indentured Servant / Colonists received free passage to North America in exchange for working without pay for a number of years. / X / X
Independence / The freedom of people to choose their own government. / X / X / X / X
Independence Day / A day to celebrate freedom. / X / X / X
Industrial Revolution / A period of rapid industrial growth resulted, starting in Britain in the 1700s and then spreading around the world as more countries adopted mass production. / X
Interdependent / Relying on each other for goods and services. / X / X / X
Intolerable / Unacceptable. / X
Island / A landform with water all around it. / X
Jamestown / 1st successful colonial settlement in Virginia. / X / X
Joint Stock / Group of people who jointly make an investment and share in the profits and losses / X
Judicial Branch / Branch of government that gives power to the Supreme Court. / X
Juneteenth / On June 19, 1865, General Gordon Granger read the Emancipation Proclamation, thus freeing the 250,000 slaves in Texas. / X
Lake / A body of water that has land all around it. / X / X / X
Landforms / A physical feature such as a mountain, valley, or plain. / X / X / X / X / X / X
Latitude / Lines on a map that run east and west. / X / X
Law / A rule that people in a community must follow. / X / X / X / X / X
Leader / A person who helps a group plan what to do and sees that the group stays together and on task. / X / X / X / X / X / X
Legislative Branch / Branch of government that gives power to Congress. / X
Legislature / A group of citizens chosen to make decisions. / X / X / X / X
LibertyBell / Liberty Bell is an international symbol of liberty. Used to signify the 1st reading of the Declaration of Independence. / X
Limited Resources / When there is a fixed supply of a resource, the resource is limited. / X
Location / The place where something is. / X / X / X
Longitude / Lines on a map that run north and south / X / X
Louisiana Purchase / Bought from France for use of a gulf port in New Orleans. / X
Majority Rule / Rule by more than half of the people in a community. / X / X / X / X
Map / A picture that shows the location of things. / X / X / X / X / X / X
Map Key / Part of a map that shows what the symbols mean. / X / X / X / X / X
Market / A place where things are bought and sold. / X / X / X / X / X
Mass Production / Making many of the same things. / X / X
Mayflower Compact / Outlined a form of government based on a social compact -- essentially an agreement to obey laws passed by the group. / X
Mayor / The leader of a town or city. / X / X
Mechanization of Agriculture / The mechanization occurred as farmers replaced human and animal power on farms and ranches with machines. / X
Memorial Day / Memorial Day is a legal holiday in the United States to honor members of the military killed in war. / X
Migration / Moving from one place to another intending to stay. / X / X
Mottos / A motto is a short expression of a guiding principle. / X
Mountains / The highest kind of land. They form naturally and provide natural boundaries. / X / X / X / X
Museum / A building in which objects from other times and places are displayed. / X / X
Nation / A group of people who share a common land and way of life. / X / X
Natural Hazards / Natural hazards include hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, volcanoes, fires, floods, and insect infestations. / X
Natural resources / Something found in nature that people can use to meet their needs. / X / X / X / X / X / X
Needs / Things people must have to live. / X / X / X / X
Ocean / A very large body of water. / X / X / X / X / X / X
Opinion / A statement of what a person believes to be true but cannot be proven. / X / X / X / X
Origins to U.S. Military / At the start of the American Revolution, male citizens in the colonies volunteered in the state militia. The Minutemen were militia members. The volunteers marched and drilled occasionally but were not well-trained. / X
Past, present, future / Reference of time. / X / X / X
Patriotic Symbol / A picture or object that stands for something the people in a country believe in. / X / X / X
Patriotism / A feeling of pride people have for their country. / X / X / X / X
Patterns of Settlement / Physical features encourage settlement and others discourage it. Humans seek land in fertile river valleys while they tend to avoid inhospitable areas such as deserts or mountains. / X
Physical Characteristics of Places / Characteristics of places are features such as soil, landforms,bodies of water, types of vegetation and climate. / X / X / X
Pilgrims / Puritan separatist group that left England in early 1600 to settle in North America. / X / X / X / X / X / X / X
Plantations / Large farms that usually specialize in one crop. / X / X / X / X / X / X / X
Pledge to the Texas Flag / Governor John Connally approved the Pledge to the Texas Flag: "Honor the Texas flag. I pledge allegiance to thee, Texas, one and indivisible." / X
Point of view / A way of thinking about something. / X / X / X / X
Political Parties / Groups of people who organize to elect a representative to government. / X
Pre-Amble / An introduction. First part to the U.S. Constitution. / X
Predict / To say and think what will happen. / X / X / X / X / X
President / Leader of the United States government. Elected every 4 years. / X / X / X / X / X
President’s Day / A day to celebrate people who have been our President. / X / X / X
Primary Resource / Primary sources are evidence produced by someone who participated in an event or lived during the time being studied. / X
Puritans / Protestants who wanted to reform the church of England / X
Representative Government / A person who speaks or acts for someone else. / X / X
Responsibility / Something that a citizen should take care of or do. / X / X / X / X
Revolution / A complete change in government / X / X
Right / A freedom. / X / X / X / X / X
Rivers / A stream of water that flows across the land. Can be a natural boundary, a natural resource, or used for transportation. / X / X / X / X / X / X
Rules / An instruction telling what must or must not be done. / X / X / X
Savings / Money that people save for later use. / X
Scale / An indication of the relationship between the distances on a map, chart, or plan and the corresponding actual distances. / X
Scarce / Not in good supply, hard to find. / X / X
Science / Science is a branch of systematic study concerned with observation and classification of facts and the establishment of laws based on data. / X
Secede / To leave. / X
Secondary Resource / Secondary sources are descriptions or interpretations prepared by people who were not involved in the events described. / X
Segregation / The separation of people into groups based on race or culture. / X / X
Services / Work done to help the community. / X / X
Settlement / A small community started in a new place. / X / X / X / X
Settler / One of the first people to make a new home in a new place. / X / X / X / X
Slave / A person who is owned by someone else and made to work for no pay. / X / X
Stamp Act / Parliament tax on newspapers, almanacs, legal documents, and other papers. / X
Star Spangled Banner / The U.S. Congress designated "The Star-Spangled Banner" as the national anthem in 1931. / X
State / A part of a country with laws and a government that can establish rules and provide services. / X / X / X / X / X / X
State’s Rights / Idea that state’s have the right to make their own decisions. / X / X
Statue of Liberty / The Statue of Liberty is a symbol of freedom. The statue was a gift from the people of France and is considered symbolic and entitled it "Liberty Enlightening the World." / X
Supply and Demand / Supply is the amount of goods available and demand is the desire to own something and the ability to pay for it. / X
Supreme Court / The highest court in the U.S. 9 justices appointed for life. / X / X / X / X
Tax / Money paid to the government that is used to pay for services. / X / X / X / X
Technology / New inventions that we use everyday. / X / X / X / X / X
Texas Independence Day / On March 2, 1836, Texas declared independence from Mexico. / X
Texas our Texas / The Texas legislature adopted "Texas, Our Texas" as the state song in 1929. / X
Texas Revolution / Residents of Texas joined forces to challenge the rule of Mexican dictator Antonio López de Santa Anna and Mexican military authority in 1835. / X
Timeline / A line that can show when things happened. / X / X / X / X / X
Trade / To give one thing to get another. / X / X / X / X / X / X
Tradition / A way of doing something that has been passed from parents to children. / X / X / X / X / X / X
Transcontinental Railroad / The Union Pacific Railroad started construction in Omaha, Nebraska, and headed west while the Central Pacific Railroad began in Sacramento, California and headed east. / X
Treaty of Velasco / Santa Anna signed treaty recognizing Texas’ independence. / X
U.S. Constitution / American system of government rests on the use of a written constitution defining the principles of government and establishing the limits of power. / X
Urbanization / Urbanization occurs when the percentage of people living or working in cities increases compared to the percentage living in the country. / X
Virginia House of Burgesses / Assembly of elected representatives from the Virginia settlement. It was the first representative assembly in the colonies. / X
Voting / Making a choice and having it counted. / X / X / X / X / X / X
Wants / Things people would like to have but do not need. / X / X / X / X
WashingtonD.C. / The United States’ capitol. / X / X / X
Weather / What the air is like outside. / X / X / X / X
Westward Movement / The lands to the west lured explorers, farmers, businessmen and others interested in expanding the United States. / X
White House / Hub of the U.S. capital city, Washington, District of Columbia, and the official residence and work area of the President of the United States. / X
Women’s Rights / Women's rights are economic, social, legal, and political rights for women equal to those granted men. / X
Bolded words are tested on TAKS.
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