Class 6-8 Academic Vocabulary BuilderBack

Sprint 2.5: Change In Amount

Describe trends, increases, and decreases in data and science experiments using precise verbs like expand, reduce, rise, and fall.

7 lessons

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vocabulary

Up, Down, and the Words That Show It

Introduction to vocabulary for describing change

Think about blowing up a balloon. Does the balloon increase, or does it expand?

While they both mean something is getting bigger, science requires us to be precise:

Use expand when physical size or volume grows.
Use increase when numbers, amounts, or values go up.

Learning to use these words correctly will help you write clear science reports and perfectly describe graphs.

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IMAGE

Doodle Gallery — Increase, Decrease, Expand

Visual anchors for change verbs

An 8-panel educational diagram illustrating verbs of change. Panel 1: 'Increase' shows an upward green arrow climbing a …

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html

Change Direction Cards

Interactive categorization of change verbs

⬆️ Going UP (Growth & Gain)

Increase: To go up in number or amount.
Example (Math): "The value of x increased by 10."

Rise: To move upward or reach a higher level.
Example (Science): "Warm air begins to rise."

Grow: To naturally develop or get larger.
Example (Biology): "The seedling grew two inches."

Expand: To get physically larger in size or volume.
Example (Physics): "Gases expand when heated."

⬇️ Going DOWN (Loss & Reduction)

Decrease: To go down in number or amount.
Example (Math): "The class average decreased."

Fall: To drop down to a lower level.
Example (Geography): "Temperatures fall during winter."

Shrink: To get physically smaller in size.
Example (Chemistry): "The dried cell will shrink."

Reduce: To make smaller in size, amount, or number.
Example (EVS): "We must reduce plastic waste."

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matching

Read the Graph

Match graph trends to change verbs

NoteMatch each real-world scientific observation on the left to the correct verb of change on the right.

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Terms

Definitions

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reading

Describe the Change

Fill in blanks with precise change verbs

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When iron is heated, it begins to . To make a heavy box slide easily across the floor, we must the friction. When more weights were added to the spring, the elongation of the spring . After we added ice to the warm water, its temperature rapidly. During summer, metal telephone wires due to the heat.

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feedback

Narrate a Graph

Write a description of a simple trend

Exercise: Narrating a Rainfall Graph

Data Trend:

June: 10 mm of rain
August: 80 mm of rain
October: 20 mm of rain

Write a brief description of this graph. Try to use at least three of our target words (rise, fall, increase, decrease, expand, shrink).

Describe what happens from June to August:*

Describe the upward trend.

Describe what happens from August to October:*

Describe the downward trend.

Why is it important to use different words for physical size (like shrink) versus data values (like decrease)?*

Reflect on how scientific precision makes your reports clearer.

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flashcard

Change Words Recap

Flashcards for change verbs

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