From a human point of view, a habitat is where you live. It might be your city, town, or neighborhood. Your habitat can be altered. Most people move a few times in their lives. But a plant cannot move. An animal may not be suited to live in another area. A habitat is the natural home or environment of an organism. Humans often destroy the habitats of other organisms. The loss of habitat can cause the extinction of species. Extinction is when a species disappears forever. Once a species is extinct, it can never be brought back. Humans cause habitat destruction in many ways. There are two common ways this happens. Land may be cleared. Another way is when an animal or plant is brought to an area where it does not belong.

Question: "How many common ways do humans cause habitat destruction?"

OPTIONS:
- no
- yes

Answer: "two"

Response: yes

How can you describe your location? You might use a familiar system. You might say, 'I live at 1234 Main Street, Springfield, Ohio.' You could also say, 'I live right behind the Elementary School.' This method uses the school as a point of reference. Another example is, I am at the corner of Maple Street and Main Street. Both streets may be a good reference for anyone living in your town. Scientists must be able to pinpoint a feature they are studying. Scientists use a special system to describe locations. They use latitude and longitude as a reference. Lines of latitude and longitude form a grid. You may have used a grid system while doing graphing. This grid is centered on a reference point. Zero latitude is the equator. Lines of latitude run east to west. They divide the Earth from North to South. Lines of longitude run from north to south. They divide the Earth from East to West. Zero longitude runs through Greenwich, England. You may have heard the term, Greenwich Mean Time, or GMT. The system of latitude and longitude works well for objects that do not move.

Question: "What two major ways do scientist divide the Earth to pinpoint location?"

OPTIONS:
- no
- yes

Answer: "By street"

Response: no

Josie started planning her new garden in the winter. She chose flowers and vegetables that could grow in her area. She looked through the seed magazines. She ordered the tastiest kind of each vegetable and the prettiest kind of each flower. She talked to a friend about her plans. It seemed like the snow would never melt. But Josie didn't have to wait for spring to get started. Six weeks before the last frost, Josie planted seeds indoors. The tiny seedlings pushed up through the soil and began to grow. Finally spring arrived. Each day, Josie moved the seedlings outside for a few hours so they could get used to the cooler temperatures. Josie worked in her garden, digging the soil. She added a special growing mix from the garden store to make the soil better. When everything was ready, she removed the seedlings from their trays and planted them in her garden. The warm sun and rich soil helped her vegetables and flowers grow.

Question: "What helped Josie's plants to grow?"

OPTIONS:
- no
- yes

Answer: "Wind"

Response: no

Jenny was a 13 year old girl with blond hair and blue eyes. She had gotten out of her last day of school and was free for the summer. Two of her friends were going to the nearby beach to do some swimming and enjoy the sun. Jenny went with them and when they got there the beach was very full and there were people everywhere. They changed into their bathing suits and went to the water. The water was very cold. They chose not swim and walked to the sand. Then they laid down on some towels and enjoyed the sun. After several hours Jenny and her friends fell asleep. They woke up and the sun was beginning to set. When Jenny sat up she found that it was painful to touch her skin. When she looked down she saw that she had a very bad sunburn. Her friends were also very badly sunburned so they went home. Jenny's mother gave her a cream to put on the sunburn. Afterwards she felt a lot better and went to sleep.

Question: "Who went to the beach?"

OPTIONS:
- no
- yes

Answer: "Jenny and her two friends"

Response:
yes