Heat
Rocks/Minerals
Soil/Fossils
Pollution
Habitats
100
Name the 4 heat sources.
Sunlight, Friction, Fire/Burning and Electricity
100
Bobby found a mineral that could be scratched by a copper coin, but could not be scratched by a fingernail. Which mineral could it be?
Calcite
100
I am the soil with the largest particles, I do not retain much water and I feel rough and gritty. What am I?
Sand
100
Name the 3 types of pollution and give one example of each.
Water, Air and Land (examples will vary)
100
Which habitat has the highest elevation and the coldest climate?
The Mountain habitat
200
Your brother has a baseball tournament at the park for 6 hours on a Saturday in May. The high temperature that day is going to be 90 degrees Fahrenheit. You have 2 shirts that you can wear: A white shirt or a dark red shirt. Which shirt is going to be your best choice so you do not get too hot being in direct sunlight all afternoon?
The white shirt would be a better choice because lighter colors do not increase in temperature as quickly as darker colors.
200
Describe the difference between rocks and minerals
Minerals are made of only one material, but rocks are be made up of many different minerals
200
A student was walking on the sidewalk and noticed a large crack. What NATURAL phenomenon could have been the cause of this?
Possible answer: water seeped into the sidewalk and froze. The expanding ice would cause a crack.
Possible answer: a tree root could have grown under the sidewalk and over time caused a crack.
200
Cheyenne decided to start turning off the TV when she leaves her room because she doesn't need it to be on while she's not watching it. Is this an example of reducing, reusing or recycling?
Reducing
200
Name one structural adaptation a hawk may have to help it survive in it's habitat.
Example answers:
Sharp claws/talons, sharp beak, wings
300
Why are hats, gloves and heavy coats a good choice to wear during very cold temperatures?
Because they are a good insulator which keeps body heat from escaping.
300
When determining the name of a mystery mineral, Mei asked the question "What color is it?" is this a good question to ask? Why or why not?
No, this is not a good question because multiple minerals can be the same color, so that will not narrow it down for her enough.
300
A student finds a fossil that looks like the organism had fins and gills. Based on this information, what environment could the student assume the organism lived in?
The organism must have lived in a water environment because it would need fins and gills to live underwater.
300
Yamar noticed that there was a lot of trash in the lake near his house. What possible effect could this have on the animals in the environment?
Example answers:
The fish could eat trash or toxic waste and die
The animals who drink the water could get sick or die
Fish can get stuck in the trash
Animals or humans who eat contaminated fish could get sick
300
Which question would be best to determine the habitat of a mystery plant?
a. does the plant need sunlight?
b. does the plant need rich soil?
c. does the plant grow very tall?
d. does the plant have a lot of leaves?
b. does the plant need rich soil
This is correct because not all habitats have rich soil. Some plants can thrive in sandy soil on the coast.
400
There was a bucket of water sitting on your back patio. You went inside and then came back a few hours later and the water felt much warmer than it had when you left. What is a question you can ask to determine the heat source?
"Was the bucket in direct sunlight?"
- This question best determines the SOURCE of the heat, which would be the sun.
400
Which of these is NOT an attribute of minerals?
a. shape
b. color
c. luster
d. hardness
Shape is not an attribute of minerals because the same mineral can be all kinds of shapes!
400
Describe how you would conduct an experiment to determine which soil (sand, loam or clay) will retain the most water?
Example response: Place soil into coffee filters and put on top of 3 separate graduated cylinders. Pour the same amount of water over each type of clay. Wait until all the water runs through the coffee filter. Measure how much water goes into the cylinder. Whichever cylinder has the LEAST amount of water in it, is the soil that retained the most water.
400
Which question would be the best to ask to determine the source of air pollution in a city?
a. Is there a lot of smoke?
b. Are there a lot of cars on the road?
c. Is there a lot of trash on the ground?
d. Are there many animals that live in the area?
b. Are there a lot of cars on the road?
This is the best answer because the SOURCE of the air pollution could be from exhaust from cars.
400
Why does a pitcher plant need to eat bugs to survive?
It does not get enough nutrients from the soil, so it must get them in other ways.
500
Nolan wants to conduct an experiment to see which of his toys will feel hotter after spending a day in the sun: his yellow plastic baseball bat, his black frisbee, or his red ball. All of the toys are made of the same type of plastic. What steps should Nolan take to conduct a good experiment?
Step 1: Put all the toys in the same spot in the sun all day
Step 2: Measure the temp. of each toy at the beginning of the day
Step 3: Measure the temp. of each toy at the end of the day
Step 4: Determine which toy increased in heat the most
500
Which mineral is metallic and has a hardness of 2?
Mica
500
Name the 5 steps of the fossilization process in order
Step 1: Organism dies
Step 2: Organism is buried in mud/sediment
Step 3: The soft tissue decays and minerals fill in the spaces
Step 4: The minerals turn to rock/stone
Step 5: A fossil is discovered
500
Give an example of a good question to ask to determine the effects of pollution on the environment due to landfills.
Example questions:
Does the trash contain toxic chemicals that can leak into the ground?
Does the trash keep fresh grass/plants from growing?
Do the chemicals from the trash kill the plants and trees around the area?
500
I have thick fur that helps me adapt to the cold, sharp claws for climbing trees, and I like to eat nuts and berries that grow in the thick forests where I live. Which habitat would I be best suited for?
The mountain habitat