Reading Comprehension • Saddleback Educational Publishing ©2002 124 3 Watson, Irvine, CA 92618•Phone (888)SDL-BACK•www.sdlback.com
Na m e : ___ _
Directions:Date:Read the story. Think about each question, then answer YES or NO.Don’t be fooled by what you read. Is it informative
or is it trying to persuade you in some way?- A river can carve out rock.
- The Colorado River is an example of an
“old” river.
- “Old” rivers do not cause erosion.
- The Mississippi River drains into the Gulf
of Mexico.
- The Colorado River has created a broad,
flat valley.
- It takes many years for a young turbulent
river to reduce a boulder to mud.
- The Mississippi River can flood in the
spring.
- The Colorado and Mississippi Rivers are
about the same age.
Rivers—Young and Old
Among the forces that sculpt the landscape
of the earth, rivers and streams do more to
shape the land than all others combined.
Running water from melting snow and ice
scrapes the exposed rocks of mountains.
Loose bits of stone dig at the sides and create
steep-walled canyons. Though it takes a long
time to carve a canyon, a young, turbulent
river can break apart a six-foot boulder and
reduce it to mud in just a few short years.
The Colorado River is such a force.
More mature rivers create broad, flat valleys.
But even an “old” river like the Mississippi
can be a formidable force of erosion. During
a spring flood, the Mississippi carries about
10 million tons of earth from North America
to the Gulf of Mexico each day!