| Vocabulary Word | Definition |
| Weathering | processes that crumbles, cracks and breaks down rocks |
| Earthquake | a sudden movement of rocks that make up of Earth's crust, can cause landslides, begins far below the surface of the Earth |
| Flood | a huge flow of water over land that is usually dry |
| Hurricane | a violent storm with strong winds and heavy rains; happens along coastlines |
| Erosion | this occurs when weathered materials are carried away, this usually occurs slowly |
| Glacier | huge heap of moving ice |
| Landform | a feature of the Earth's surface |
| Plain | a wide, flat land; The Great Plains are in the midwest |
| Mountain | the highest landform, occurs when rocks buried deep below the Earth's slowly rise to the surface |
| Sand dune | a mound of sand |
| Plateau | flat land with steep sides, it is higher than the land around it |
