Social Studies Vocabulary

Grade 4

agriculture / / the raising of plants and animals for food
raising plants and animals for food / Agriculture is important to Texas because it has many farms and ranches.
annexation / / to add or join an existing country or state
joining together / Sam Houston was in favor of the annexation of Texas to the United States.
civil war / / a war between two groups in the same country
the war between the North and the South / My great-great-grandfather fought for the Union in the American Civil War.
colony / / a settlement that is ruled by another country
a place ruled by another country / South Carolina was one of the original 13 colonies.
constitution / / a written plan of government
a written plan of government / The Articles of Confederation was the United States’ first constitution, or written plan of government.
empresario / / a person who had received land as a gift by the Mexican government and could sell it to others
one who received a land grant / Stephen F. Austin received land from Mexico and was the first Anglo empresario to begin gaexico and was the firstland fr bucolony in Texas.
exploration / / to search out and look for new places
discovering a new place / Exploration was an important part of discovering new places in the world.
immigrant / / a person who comes into a country from somewhere else
people coming to country / Many immigrants moved to America in the early 1900s.
independence / / freedom from rule by another country
freedom / March 2, Texas Independence Day, is the day Texans celebrate their freedom from Mexico.
industry / / all the businesses that make one kind of product or provide one kind of service
business / Working in the automobile industry and trying to build cars can be very challenging.
innovation / / a new way of doing something
a new way of doing something / The iPad is a new innovation in the last few years.
mission / / a religious settlement
a religious building in a settlement / Missionaries lived in a mission and tried to convert people to the Catholic religion.
population / / the number of people living in a region
number of people in a place / The population of the students in CFISD is over 100,000.
primary source / / a record made by someone who saw or took part in an event
first-hand knowledge of an event / The Constitution is a very important primary source in our nation’s history.
Reconstruction / / the time during which the South was rebuilt after the Civil War
the time during which the South was rebuilt after the Civil War / During Reconstruction, the United States focused on rebuilding the South after the destruction that occurred during the Civil War.
region / / an area with at least one feature that makes it different from other areas
a specific area / Houston is located in the Gulf Coast region of Texas.
republic
in our nation’s history.
/ / a form of government in which the people choose their leaders
a government in which people elect their leaders / When Texas gained its independence and became a country, it was called the Republic of Texas.
revolution / / a sudden, great change, such as the overthrow of an established government
a sudden change / The American Revolution was the fight for the colonists’ independence from Great Britain.
treaty / / an agreement between groups or countries
an agreement between countries / Texas and Mexico signed the Treaty of Velasco to end the Texas Revolutionary War.
urbanization / / the movement of people into cities
the movement of people into cities / The jobs created by World War II caused urbanization in Texas as people moved to the cities.