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Grade 9 · Science · Unit 1 of 11

Think Like a Scientist

Experiments, design and safety

What your child practises

Variables and fair tests, graphs and averages, the engineering design process, simple code that models a change, WHMIS and lab safety, how to check AI-generated answers, and skilled-trade and STEM careers.

Ontario Curriculum expectation: A1.1, A1.2, A1.3, A1.4, A1.5, A2.1, A2.2, A2.5 · scientific experiments and research, the engineering design process, coding models, WHMIS and lab safety, careers and contributions to science

Sample questions

A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.

  1. Question 1

    Chemicals splash into your eyes in the lab. What should you do first?

    • Wait to see if it starts to hurt
    • Finish the experiment, then tell your teacher
    • Go to the eyewash station right away and tell your teacher
    • Rub your eyes with a paper towel
    Show answer

    Go to the eyewash station right away and tell your teacher

    Hint: Rinse right away for a long time, and get help at once.

  2. Question 2

    Which skilled trade installs and repairs electrical wiring in homes and buildings?

    • welder
    • electrician
    • plumber
    • carpenter
    Show answer

    electrician

    Hint: Electricians apply the science of circuits, current and safety every day.

  3. Question 3

    Four trials of a reaction took 17, 25, 17, 25 seconds. What is the mean time, in seconds?

    answer box

    Show answer

    21

    Hint: Add the four times and divide by 4: the total is 84, and 84 ÷ 4 = 21.

  4. Question 4

    In code for a simulation, a loop is used to…

    • hide the output
    • repeat a set of instructions
    • make the program run only once
    • store a value with a name
    Show answer

    repeat a set of instructions

    Hint: Loops let a model repeat a step, such as one day of growth, many times.

  5. Question 5

    On a graph, which axis usually shows the independent variable?

    • the title
    • the legend
    • the horizontal (x) axis
    • the vertical (y) axis
    Show answer

    the horizontal (x) axis

    Hint: Put the variable you change on x and the variable you measure on y.

  6. Question 6

    A student tests how a cart's mass affects its stopping distance. Which is the dependent variable?

    • the stopping distance
    • the mass of the cart
    • the slope of the ramp
    • the surface it rolls on
    Show answer

    the stopping distance

    Hint: Stopping distance is what is measured in response to the change in mass.

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