The Solar System (Strand 6.1)
This is the name of the force that pulls all objects toward each other. It keeps the planets orbiting the Sun.
What is gravity?
This is the process where liquid water heats up and turns into a gas called water vapor.
What is evaporation?
This is the layer of gases that surrounds the Earth like a giant blanket.
What is the atmosphere?
Everything in the world that has mass and takes up space is made of this.
What is matter?
These organisms, like plants, make their own food using sunlight.
What are producers?
This star is at the very center of our solar system and is the main source of energy for Earth.
What is the Sun?
This happens when water vapor cools down and turns back into liquid water, forming clouds.
What is condensation?
This tool is used by scientists to measure how hot or cold the air is.
What is a thermometer?
These tiny particles are the building blocks of all matter; they are too small to see with just your eyes.
What are atoms (or molecules)?
These living things must eat other plants or animals to get the energy they need.
What are consumers?
These two movements explain why we have a 24-hour day and a 365-day year.
What are rotation and revolution?
This is the main source of energy that keeps the water cycle moving.
What is the Sun?
When a large body of air has the same temperature and moisture level, it is called this.
What is an air mass?
In this state of matter, molecules are packed tightly together and only vibrate in place.
What is a solid?
Fungi and bacteria play this role by breaking down dead plants and animals to return nutrients to the soil.
What are decomposers?
Because Earth’s axis is tilted as it orbits the Sun, we experience these changes in weather throughout the year.
What are the seasons?
This is the word for water falling from the sky as rain, snow, sleet, or hail.
What is precipitation?
This is the boundary where two different air masses meet, often causing a change in weather.
What is a front?
When you add this type of energy to a substance, the molecules start to move faster and spread apart.
What is heat (or thermal energy)?
This diagram shows many overlapping food chains to illustrate how energy moves through an entire ecosystem.
What is a food web?
This event happens when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth, casting a shadow on Earth’s surface.
What is a solar eclipse?
This is the name for the process where plants release water vapor into the air through their leaves.
What is transpiration?
This describes the long-term patterns of weather in a specific area over many years.
What is climate?
This law states that matter cannot be created or destroyed, only changed from one form to another.
What is the Law of Conservation of Mass?
This is a struggle between living things for the same limited resources, like food, water, or space.
What is competition?