Open Up - Grade 3 - ELA - Module 4 - Mid Unit 2 Assessment - Formative Library | Library

Directions: Read “Dry Days in Australia” and answer the questions that follow.

Dry Days in Australia
By Ann Weil in Melbourne, Victoria

Severe drought has millions of Australians coping with water restrictions.

In Australia, most people live within a 30-minute drive of the ocean. For many of them, going to the beach is a part of everyday life. So are severe droughts, and laws that dictate how and when water can be used.

Lachlan McDonald, 14, and his 16-year-old brother, Mitchell, live with their parents and younger sister in Beaumaris (boh-MAR-iss). Their hometown is an attractive suburb of Melbourne, with spacious ranch houses on tree-lined streets. The brothers love to surf. But restrictions on freshwater have changed their routine — including the long hot showers they used to take afterward. “When you go surfing and it’s freezing and you want to have a hot shower, you can’t,” Lachlan tells JS. “When you can, it’s too short to really warm up.”

How Much Longer?

The past decade has been the driest on record for the state of Victoria, which includes Melbourne, one of Australia’s largest cities. Research into Melbourne’s future water supplies is not encouraging. A recent study commissioned by local water officials identified climate trends that include more hot, dry days and less rain overall, but with more flooding during storms.

For Australia — which is a continent as well as a country—drought is nothing new. Its “red center,” or desert, has always lacked enough water to support farming or the needs of large communities. But the current drought is more widespread.

Some experts believe that climate change is contributing to Australia’s dry spell. Others see it as part of the continent’s long-term weather pattern.

More than a century ago, a meteorologist named Clement Wragg persuaded his local government in Queensland to build rainmaking guns and fire them at passing clouds. Wragg was convinced that this would create a whirlwind inside the clouds, resulting in rain. On a cloudy day in 1902, the guns were aimed at the sky, and the mayor gave the order to fire. A few drops of rain began to fall, followed by a light shower. But the next time the guns were fired, they blew up. The experiment was abandoned.

Laying Down the Law

The current drought is affecting people all over the country. Australians no longer take water for granted. “I used to drink water straight from the tap,” Mitchell tells JS. “But now I use a cup. We are always conscious of the amount of water we use.”

Victoria lawmakers introduced water-saving rules in 2005. Additional water restrictions kick in whenever water reserves fall below specified levels. Current restrictions put strict limits on lawn-watering. People may water their gardens only at certain times on certain days, using only watering cans or hoses with trigger-spray nozzles.

Many Australians keep buckets in the shower to catch the cool water while they wait for it to get warm. Then they tip the cool water out in the yard to water plants and trees. They also use a bucket of water to wash their cars, because doing it with a handheld hose is now illegal.

“We used to have a sprinkler on the lawn that we would play in,” recalls Lachlan. “But we couldn’t do that now.”

Using Less

Most Australians — about 90 percent — live in big cities hugging the coasts. The population continues to grow, so farmers must produce more food. Since many of them irrigate with river water, waterways are being reduced to muddy trickles. The price of food has skyrocketed.

“I am scared about the drought,” Mitchell admits. “I think everyone is. When I was much younger, my family and I were down at the beach. I saw a tap that was broken, and we could not turn it off. I went to sleep crying, because I was so scared that we would have no water left.

“If the drought keeps up the way it’s been going, many people will have to move away or we will have no water,” Mitchell adds. “I do think my future will be affected by the drought. I am looking to be an architect, so if I become one, I will have to design houses that are water-saving houses.”

Australians are encouraged to use water-saving showerheads that limit the flow of water. Some have timers in their bathrooms to remind family members to take shorter showers.

Although people may be fined for using sprinklers or washing their cars, the government is not peeking into people’s bathrooms to see how long they are in the shower. So why don’t they cheat?

Lachlan says he feels a moral responsibility. “You see people on the news, and they don’t have water, and they can’t grow stuff. I am not taking all the water for myself. I can use a little less and get by.”

Words to Know
down under: nickname for Australia, so-called because it lies so far south of the equator.
drought: a prolonged, abnormally dry period when there is not enough rainfall to meet normal or expected needs.

Read this sentence under the ‘Laying Down the Law’ subheading in the article:

“Additional water restrictions kick in whenever water reserves fall below certain levels.”

What is the meaning of kick in in the sentence above? Underline the best answer. (RI.3.4, L.3.5a)

to kick or hit hard

to contribute

to start

to die

L.3.5.a

RI.3.4

Read this sentence under the ‘Using Less’ subheading in the article:

“Most Australians-about 90% live in big cities hugging the coasts."

Which sentence below uses the word hugging in the same way it is used in the sentence above? Underline the best answer. (RI.3.4, L.3.5a)

The race car sped around the track, hugging the curve.

The child could not stop hugging his mother.

She grabbed him as he ran by, hugging him to her.

She sat in the corner, hugging her bruised knee.

L.3.5.a

RI.3.4

Read this sentence under the ‘Using Less’ subheading in the article:

“Although people may be fined for using sprinklers or washing their cars, the government is not peeking into people’s bathrooms to see how long they are in the shower.”

Why does the author tell us that the government is not “peeking into people’s bathrooms” in the sentence above? Underline the best answer. (RI.3.4, L.3.5a)

to let the reader know that government officials will not be looking into people’s bathroom windows

to let the reader know that Australians often “cheat” when asked to save water

to let the reader know that the Australian government knows a lot about what goes on in people’s homes

to let the reader know that Australians feel responsible for conserving water

L.3.5.a

RI.3.4

Reread the sidebar, “Teen Diary: A Report from Australia.”

In the text, what is Ellie Vandestadt’s point of view about saving water? (RI.3.6)

Ellie thinks it is very difficult to save water.

Ellie thinks that she should save water and it is not that difficult.

Ellie thinks it is unfair that she was not allowed to take a shower.

Ellie thinks only people in the country should have to save water.

How is Ellie’s point of view about saving water the same as or different from your own? (RI.3.1, RI.3.6)

RI.3.1

RI.3.6

What is the author’s purpose in “Teen Diary: A Report from Australia”? (RI.3.6)

to show that some people in Australia feel it is important to save water

to show how hard it is to live in Australia

to explain many different ways that you can save water

to explain water pollution problems in Australia

RI.3.6

Source: Open Up Resouces (Download for free at openupresources.org.)