Grade 6 · Science · Unit 11 of 11
Think Like a Scientist
Fair tests, design and coding
What your child practises
Planning a fair test, working safely, design criteria and constraints, simple coding ideas such as conditions and variables, and how science and technology connect to careers and communities.
Ontario Curriculum expectation: A1.1–A1.5, A2.1, A2.2, A3.1, A3.3 · investigation skills, design challenges, coding, careers and diverse contributions
Sample questions
A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.
Question 1
What should you do first if you spill something in the lab?
- Wipe it with your hand
- Hide it
- Tell your teacher
Show answer
Tell your teacher
Hint: Report spills right away so they can be cleaned up safely.
Question 2
A student wants to test if warm water dissolves sugar faster. What should she keep the same?
- The temperature of the water
- The amount of sugar and water
- The result she hopes to see
Show answer
The amount of sugar and water
Hint: Only the temperature should change.
Question 3
A robot vacuum uses sensors and code. How do they help?
- Humans steer from inside
- The robot guesses randomly
- Sensors gather data and the code decides how to move
Show answer
Sensors gather data and the code decides how to move
Hint: Sensors and code work together.
Question 4
A student measures a plant's height every week. Which tool is best?
- A clock
- A thermometer
- A metric ruler
Show answer
A metric ruler
Hint: Length is measured with a ruler.
Question 5
A design team builds a first model to test its idea. This is a…
- hypothesis
- constraint
- prototype
Show answer
prototype
Hint: Prototypes can be improved after testing.
Question 6
A bug in a program is…
- an insect in the computer
- a mistake that stops the program from working as planned
- a type of loop
Show answer
a mistake that stops the program from working as planned
Hint: Fixing bugs is called debugging.