3 5 25 a sherpa guide (social studies)

H O UG H T O N MIF F L IN


by Geoffrey C. Saign

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ISBN-13: 978-0-547-02190-4
ISBN-10: 0-547-02190-9
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Mount Everest
The wind is so cold on Mount
Everest your toes and fingers can freeze.
The air is so thin that you’ll find it hard
to breathe. And if you’re not careful,
avalanches can bury you! Meet the
people who live in this harsh place.

Apa (in the blue and black jacket), a Sherpa guide,

has climbed Mount Everest 17 times!

2


A Sherpa village lies near the mountains in Nepal.

Nepal, Home of the Sherpas
The Sherpa people live in Nepal,
a small country with many high
mountains. Mount Everest is the highest
mountain in Nepal and in the world.
Many Sherpas live in villages near
the mountains. This is one reason
Sherpas are great climbers. They live in
the hills at a high altitude and are used
to the thin mountain air.
3


Yaks carry heavy loads for farmers and climbers.

The Sherpa Community
Many Sherpas are farmers. They
use strong animals called yaks to help
them on the farm. Yaks look like big,
hairy cows.
Children go to school, but they also
help on the farm. Many children have
to walk a long distance to go to school.

4


Sherpa Guides
Many Sherpas are guides in the
mountains. Climbers from other places
hire Sherpa guides to help them climb
Mount Everest.
The climbers hike to base camp,
which is far up the mountain. Yaks and
guides carry the equipment. Climbers
rest in tents at base camp for a few
weeks to get used to the thin air.
Each part of the climb must be approached
with care.

5


Mount Everest can be a very dangerous climb.

The groups climb one section of the
mountain at a time. At each camp they
sleep in tents. Near the top, climbers
use oxygen tanks to help them breathe.
Some climbers have to halt their
climb if they get sick or hurt.

6

Famous Sherpas
Many Sherpas have climbed the high
slopes of Mount Everest. The most
famous Sherpa is Tensing Norgay. He
reached the top of the mountain with
Sir Edmund Hillary.
Babu Sherpa also set a record on
Mount Everest. He slept in a tent on top
of the mountain. He stayed on the top
for almost a whole day. This is hard to
do because it is bitterly cold at the top,
and the air is thin.
Tensing Norgay was
part of the first pair of
climbers to reach the
top of Mount Everest.

7


Sherpa Records
Some Sherpas are fast climbers.
One guide climbed from base camp to
the top in less than nine hours. Most
climbers take a week to climb to the top.
Lhakpa Sherpa climbed to the top of
the mountain four times. She was the
first woman to do this. Her younger
sister, Ming Kipa, was the youngest

person ever to climb Mount Everest.

Lhakpa Sherpa
and her sister,
Ming, both set
climbing records
on Mount
Everest.

8


The Sherpa Community
More and more people want to climb
Mount Everest. They need guides, food,
and a place to sleep. This increases the
number of jobs for Sherpas.
Some Sherpa climbers work to help
children in their villages. For example,
some Sherpas helped to pay for new
schools in their villages.

Many Sherpa guides give money to their
community.

9


Sherpas and the Mountains
Sherpas respect the mountains and

want to take care of them. In the past,
climbers left garbage on the slopes.
Now Sherpas are cleaning it up.
Sherpas are strong climbers and
gentle people. They hope people keep
climbing their mountains. If they do,
you can bet a Sherpa guide will be there
to help them succeed.

Sherpas will keep helping climbers reach
the top of the mountain.

10


Responding
Word Builder
What words or phrases do you know that
have the same meaning as succeed? Copy
this word web and add more words.
TARGET VOCABULARY

succeed
triumph

excel at

Write About It
Text to Self Sherpas succeed at mountain
climbing. What have you succeeded at?

Write about a time you succeeded at
something. Use words from the web in your
writing.

11


TARGET VOCABULARY

altitude
approached
avalanches
equipment
halt

increases
section
slopes
succeed
tanks

Question Ask questions
before you read, while you read, and after
you read.
TARGET STRATEGY

This piece of equipment is used in
mountain climbing and in SCUBA diving.

12

Level: N
DRA: 34
Social Studies
Strategy:
Question
Word Count: 610

3.5.25 Build Vocabulary

HOUGHTON MIFFLIN

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ISBN-13: 978-0-547-02190-4
ISBN-10: 0-547-02190-9

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