National parks are helping wildlife to return. Large herds of buffalo once roamed freely across prairies but their numbers declined due to hunting and loss of habitat. Now, protected areas in national parks allow wildlife like elk and buffalo to graze and flourish again in their natural ecosystems.

1. Animals Come Home to Our National Parks Vocabulary MacMillan/McGraw-Hill Treasures 4th Grade – Unit 1 – Week 3 Created by Teresa Wilson – Desert Palms Elem. – June 2010

2. Roamed Something that roamed moved around with no purpose. How is “He roamed” different from “He ran a race”? Large herds of buffalo once roamed the prairies.

3. Completed Something is completed when it is finished. What is a synonym for completed? I completed the puzzle quickly.

4. Journey A journey is a long trip. Tell about a journey that you or someone you know took. She went on a journey to Alaska.

5. Natural Something that is made by nature or is not artificial is natural. Do you have any natural talents? Natural can also mean having qualities that are inborn.

6. Wildlife The growth of cities puts wildlife in danger. How might building more houses affect wildlife? Animals living in their natural environment are called wildlife.

7. Ecosystem The park rangers are working to restore the balance of the park ecosystem. An ecosystem is a community of living things that interact in a particular place. What kind of wildlife might you find in a pond ecosystem?

8. Restore The park rangers are working to restore the balance of the park ecosystem. To restore something is to fix it or bring it back. What might be done to restore the park wildlife?

9. Graze People built towns and roads where the elk used to graze. Animals that graze feed on plants throughout the day. What other animals do you know of that graze?

10. Flourish My plants seemed to flourish when I started playing classical music for them. To flourish is to do well; to live and grow.