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The Journey of a Stream

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The Journey of a Stream
Reading Level

	edHelper's suggested reading level:	high interest, readability grades 4 to 6
	Flesch-Kincaid grade level:	4.19

Vocabulary

challenging words:

bedrock, deepen, formation, tributary, discharge, journey, solution, tends, supplied, easily, material, interesting, beginning, triangle, travels, coastline

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The Journey of a Stream By Patti Hutchison

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¹     Let's take a look at the journey of a stream from beginning to end. It's an interesting story.
 
²     A stream begins high in the mountains. The land is steep. When there is rainfall, or during the spring thaw, water begins to run down the slopes. Soon a channel is carved into the bedrock. A stream is formed. It becomes part of a stream system.
 
³     A stream is ordered by its place in the system. A first order stream has no tributaries. This is the beginning of stream formation. At this point it is small and shallow. It is flowing down a steep slope.
 
⁴     Soon the stream joins another first order stream to form a second order stream. It begins to widen and deepen. The slope is not quite as steep at this point. But the water is still moving quickly.
 
⁵     This second order stream will join a first order stream to form a third order stream. The process of stream formation continues in this way. As the order increases, the stream continues to widen. It becomes deeper. The slope becomes gentler. The discharge of the stream increases. This means that more water is flowing through it.

Paragraphs 6 to 15:
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