Is a mountain just a really big hill?

Think of a hill you climbed at the park. Your legs pushed, and your breath went puff, puff. At the top, the grass felt soft and tickly under your hands.

Now picture a mountain, so tall it reaches the clouds. It looks like a hill, only much bigger. So is a mountain just a really big hill?

First, a mountain is much taller than a hill. You can walk up a park hill before your snack is ready. Climbing a big mountain takes a whole day, with strong boots and a backpack.

A mountain's sides are steep, which means they go up very sharply. Climbers hold on with their hands and feet on steep rocks. A hill's sides slope gently, so you can roll down them.

At the very top, many mountains end in a peak, which means a pointy top. A peak looks like the tip of a party hat. A hill's top is round, like a soft bump.

Up on a peak, the air is cold, colder than down in your town. The higher you go, the chillier the wind blows. What do you think sits on top of the tallest peaks?

Snow! On the tallest peaks, the snow stays even in summer, because the air up there is so cold. A hill top sits low, where the air is warmer, so its grass stays green.

Grown-ups do not agree on one exact height where a hill stops and a mountain starts. Still, a hill that is tall and steep, with a pointy peak, is what people call a mountain.

Steep. Peak. A mountain is like a hill, only taller, with steep sides and a pointy peak.

Next time you climb a hill, you can wave to the tall, snowy peaks far away.