5th Grade Science Quiz
Questions: 16 · 10 minutes
1. A mixture contains dry sand and iron filings. Which method would separate the iron filings most effectively?
Passing a magnet over the mixture
Heating the mixture until the sand melts
Adding water so the iron dissolves
Pouring the mixture through a paper filter
2. A mushroom grows on a fallen log and helps break the dead wood into simpler materials. What role does the mushroom have in this ecosystem?
Decomposer
Producer
Herbivore
Pollinator
3. A student plucks two identical rubber bands. One is stretched more tightly than the other. How will the tighter band's sound most likely compare?
It will have a lower pitch because it moves less air
It will have the same pitch because both bands are identical
It will have a higher pitch because it vibrates faster
It will make no sound because tight bands cannot vibrate
4. Most of the material a growing plant uses to build its stems and leaves ultimately comes from which source?
Carbon dioxide from the air
Minerals absorbed from soil
Sunlight absorbed by leaves
Water stored in the roots
5. A student moves an object closer to a flashlight while keeping the wall in the same place. What will most likely happen to the object's shadow on the wall?
It will become smaller and sharper
It will change to a different color
It will disappear completely
It will become larger
6. After heavy rain, a stream carries loose soil from a hillside to a new location. Which process is being described most directly?
Deposition, because rock is being formed
Erosion, because sediment is being moved
Weathering, because soil is breaking into smaller pieces
Evaporation, because rainwater is disappearing
7. Which characteristic is most clearly inherited rather than learned?
Preference for a favorite song
Ability to ride a bicycle
Natural eye color
Skill at solving a puzzle
8. Four students place equal amounts of sugar in equal amounts of water. Which setup will most likely dissolve the sugar fastest?
Cold water left still
Cold water stirred once at the beginning
Warm water left still with sugar at the bottom
Warm water stirred continuously
9. Why does the Moon appear to have different shapes, or phases, during a month?
Earth's shadow covers a different part of the Moon every night
We see different portions of the Moon's sunlit half as the Moon orbits Earth
Clouds in Earth's atmosphere hide changing parts of the Moon
The Moon produces different amounts of light during its orbit
10. A battery, wires, and bulb are connected, but the bulb does not light. The student notices that one wire is not touching the battery. What is the best explanation?
The battery is producing too much light energy
The gap leaves the circuit open, so current cannot follow a complete path
The wire is preventing the bulb from using electricity
The bulb can light only when two batteries are used
11. A sealed container holds 100 grams of ice. After the ice melts completely, what should the total mass of the water and container be?
Less than before because solids contain more matter
More than before because liquid water takes up space
The same as before because melting does not create or destroy matter
Impossible to predict because temperature always changes mass
12. A book rests motionless on a level table. Which statement best describes the forces acting on it?
No forces act because the book is not moving
Gravity acts only when the book falls off the table
The table pushes up more strongly than gravity pulls down
Gravity pulls down while the table pushes up with an equal force
13. Why does one location on Earth experience a repeating pattern of day and night?
Earth travels around the Sun once each day
The Sun travels around Earth once each day
Earth rotates, turning the location toward and away from the Sun
Clouds regularly block sunlight from half of Earth
14. Water droplets form on the outside of a cold glass on a humid day. Where did this liquid water come from?
Water leaked through tiny spaces in the glass
The cold glass produced new water
Ice inside the glass passed through the glass wall
Water vapor in the air cooled and condensed
15. A student wants to complete a simple circuit by placing a material between two wire ends. Which object would be the best electrical conductor?
A wooden craft stick
A metal spoon
A rubber eraser
A plastic drinking straw
16. In a food web, hawks eat rabbits and rabbits eat grasses. If the number of hawks suddenly decreases, what is the most likely short-term change?
The rabbit population increases
The grass population increases because rabbits eat less
The rabbits immediately begin eating hawks
The hawk population increases because more food is available