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like tissue that is able to hold water, so that the plant can soak up any moisture that appears. The plants have no real leaves, and photosynthesis takes place in the stems. In the equatorial regions of the world, there is warmth and constant moisture. Rain falls almost every day. In such regions—as in the Philippines—rainforests grow. Broad-leaf evergreens such as mahogany and teak are most common trees. Their upper branches and leaves form a dense layer called the canopy about 18-21 meters high. This layer blots out most of the sunlight, making the forest floor dark. Fungi abound, living on the decaying vegetation but flowering plants are scarce. (Let’s Investigate Science: Plant Life) But high up on the trees of the forest, flowers grew from plants, which grow on crevices in the bark. These plants use the trees for support, but they made their own food by photosynthesis and by obtaining moisture directly from the humid air. The most spectacular of these air plants are the epiphytes or orchids which send out roots that dangle into the air. They take in water directly from the damp atmosphere. (Let’s Investigate Science: Plant Life) The Arctic is the region of continuous cold around the North Pole. Long ago, people believed that the Arctic was nothing but a cold barren place where human beings could not live. But today, it is known that nine-tenths of the Arctic lands (except Greenland) have no snow and ice in summer. The sun never shines on much of the Arctic during the winter months. However, it shines on the entire region for at least part of the day from March to September. Because animals adapt to their environment, the Arctic animals are covered with thick fur. This protects them from extreme cold. (World Book Encyclopedia, Vol. 1) Firefly is called so because of the cold light emitted from its abdominal glands. The light is actually a mating signal. Each species has a distinctive signal pattern, thus enabling fireflies to find mates of the same species. Fireflies are also called lightning bugs. Some species have wingless females
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that stay only on the ground. These, along with firefly larvae, are often called glow worms. (Lexicon Universal Encyclopedia, Vol. 8; Time Life Illustrated Encyclopedia of Science and Nature; Insect Life) The electric eel is a long narrow fish that can produce a strong electric discharge. It uses its electric discharges to detect underwater objects, to signal other electric eels, and to stun their prey. Although it resembles other eels, it is not a true eel but is related to catfish and carp. Tadpoles are baby frogs. Like butterflies and moths, tadpoles undergo a metamorphosis (transformation) or change in their life cycle.
G. Sharpen Your Reading Skills • Identifying Homonyms Tell the pupils that some words sound the same but do not have the same meanings or spelling. These words are called homonyms. Examples of homonyms are the words horse and hoarse. Ask them if they know the meanings of the two words. Have the pupils work on the exercise on page 98. Then, have them give the meaning of each word in each pair of homonyms in the list. The expected answers are: 1. heir – air 9. course – coarse 2. scent – sent 10. one – won 3. pare – pair 11. seen – scene 4. stares – stairs 12. due – dew 5. write – right 13. ate – eight 6. main – mane 14. banned – bond 7. groan – grown 15. site – sight 8. come – calm •
Deducing the Meanings of Words Through Context Tell the pupils that the meaning of a word can be deduced by considering how the word is used in a sentence. At times, the surrounding words would “give away” the meaning of the new word.
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