Cause and Effect
Wind moves sand from one place to another over a long period of time. What is the most likely effect?
Sand dunes form.
Explanation: When wind keeps depositing sand in the same area, it builds up into piles called dunes.
This type of mixture has evenly mixed parts and looks the same throughout.
Answer: What is a solution
Explanation: In a solution, the substances are evenly spread out, so you cannot see different parts.
A push or a pull on an object is called this.
Answer: What is a force?
Explanation: Forces cause objects to start moving, stop, or change direction.
Earth spinning on its axis causes this daily pattern.
Answer: What is day and night?
Explanation: As Earth rotates, different parts face the Sun (day) or turn away (night).
Organisms that make their own food using sunlight are called this.
Answer: What are plant producers?
Explanation: These organisms use sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to make their own food.
Water flows over rock for many years and slowly wears it away. What is the most likely effect?
Answer: A canyon or valley forms.
Explanation: Moving water erodes rock over time, cutting deeper and wider to form landforms like canyons.
Sand and iron filings can be separated using this tool.
Answer: What is a magnet?
Explanation: A magnet attracts iron but not sand, allowing the two materials to be separated.
When an object speeds up, slows down, or changes direction, it is experiencing this.
Answer: What is a change in motion?
Explanation: Any change in speed or direction means the motion of the object has changed.
The repeating pattern of the Moon’s appearance in the sky is called this.
Answer: What are moon phases?
Explanation: The Moon appears to change shape based on its position relative to Earth and the Sun.
A caterpillar turning into a butterfly is an example of this process.
Answer: What is complete metamorphosis?
Explanation: The organism goes through major life stages that look very different from each other.
A predator is removed from an ecosystem. The population of its prey increases rapidly. What is a likely effect on plants?
Answer: Plant populations decrease.
Explanation: More prey animals eat more plants, so the plant population goes down.
Salt dissolving in water is an example of this type of change.
Answer: What is a physical change?
Explanation: The salt is still there and can be recovered, so no new substance is formed.
This force pulls objects toward Earth.
Answer: What is gravity?
Explanation: Gravity is the force that keeps objects on the ground and causes things to fall.
This tool is used to measure wind speed.
Answer: What is an anemometer?
Explanation: An anemometer spins or measures air movement to determine how fast the wind is blowing.
A trait that helps an organism survive in its environment is called this.
Answer: What is an adaptation?
Explanation: Adaptations improve an organism’s chances of surviving and reproducing.
A student heats a solid substance and it turns into a liquid. What is the effect of adding heat?
Answer: The substance melts.
Explanation: Adding heat increases particle movement, causing a solid to change into a liquid.
A mixture where parts can be seen and easily separated is called this.
Answer: What is a heterogeneous mixture?
Explanation: The different substances are not evenly mixed, so you can see and separate them.
A stretched rubber band stores this type of energy.
Answer: What is potential energy?
Explanation: The energy is stored because of the rubber band’s position or shape, not movement.
Water that seeps into the ground and is stored in spaces between rocks is called this.
Answer: What is groundwater?
Explanation: This water fills gaps in soil and rock below Earth’s surface.
A food chain shows the flow of this between organisms.
Answer: What is energy?
Explanation: Energy moves from one organism to another as they eat each other.
Clouds form and become very heavy with water droplets. What is the most likely effect?
Answer: Precipitation occurs.
Explanation: When clouds hold too much water, the droplets fall to Earth as rain, snow, or other precipitation.
A student mixes sugar and water until no more sugar dissolves. The solution is now this.
Answer: What is saturated?
Explanation: A saturated solution cannot dissolve any more solute because it has reached its limit.
A book sitting still on a table has forces acting on it, but it does not move. These forces are described as this.
Answer: What are balanced forces?
Explanation: The forces cancel each other out, so there is no change in motion.
Over many years, flowing water cuts into rock and forms this landform.
Answer: What is a canyon?
Explanation: Continuous erosion by water slowly carves deep channels into rock.
An organism that breaks down dead plants and animals is called this.
Answer: What is a decomposer?
Explanation: Decomposers recycle nutrients back into the ecosystem by breaking down dead matter.