5th grade Science practice sheet
New York State Learning Standards · from Gradelings · Name: ______________________
Question 1
How can you get pure water back from salt water? Put the steps in order.
- 💧Drops of pure water drip into a clean cup
- ❄️The vapor touches a cold surface and condenses
- 🔥Heat the salt water
- ♨️Water evaporates and the salt stays behind
Heat the salt water → Water evaporates and the salt stays behind → The vapor touches a cold surface and condenses → Drops of pure water drip into a clean cup
Hint: Heat makes the water evaporate and leave the salt behind. Then the water vapor cools, condenses and drips into a clean container.
Question 2
Bicycle tires are filled with air. Which property of a gas makes this useful?
- A gas can be squeezed, so the tire cushions bumps
- A gas is much heavier than a solid
- A gas keeps a fixed shape
A gas can be squeezed, so the tire cushions bumps
Hint: Gas particles are far apart, so a gas can be compressed.
Question 3
What happens to particles of a liquid as they are heated and become a gas?
- They disappear
- They move faster and spread far apart
- They slow down and pack together
They move faster and spread far apart
Hint: More thermal energy means faster-moving particles.
Question 4
A banana peel turns brown. What kind of change is this?
- Change of state
- Physical change
- Chemical change
Chemical change
Hint: A color change that you cannot undo shows a new substance.
Question 5
Which tool measures mass?
⚖️- a measuring cup
- a balance scale
- a thermometer
- a ruler
a balance scale
Hint: A balance compares masses. It gives grams or kilograms.
Question 6
Thin, wispy clouds high in the sky are called…
- cumulonimbus
- nimbus
- cirrus
cirrus
Hint: Cirrus clouds are high and feathery.
Question 7
Plants make their own food using sunlight, water and…
- salt
- soil only
- carbon dioxide from the air
- sugar from animals
carbon dioxide from the air
Hint: Photosynthesis.
Question 8
Which tool helps compare designs against criteria?
- A table with a score for each criterion
- A microscope
- A compass
- A thermometer only
A table with a score for each criterion
Hint: Score each one.
Question 9
Water at Niagara Falls drops because of…
- magnetism
- sound
- friction
- gravity
gravity
Hint: Earth pulls the water down.
Question 10
An animal that eats only other animals is a…
- producer
- herbivore
- decomposer
- carnivore
carnivore
Hint: Meat eater.
Answer key
- 1. Heat the salt water → Water evaporates and the salt stays behind → The vapor touches a cold surface and condenses → Drops of pure water drip into a clean cup (Solutions & Mixtures)
- 2. A gas can be squeezed, so the tire cushions bumps (Solid, Liquid, Gas)
- 3. They move faster and spread far apart (Changes of State)
- 4. Chemical change (Physical or Chemical?)
- 5. a balance scale (Measuring Matter)
- 6. cirrus (Weather and the Water Cycle)
- 7. carbon dioxide from the air (Energy from the Sun)
- 8. A table with a score for each criterion (Engineering Challenges)
- 9. gravity (Gravity Pulls Down)
- 10. carnivore (Food Webs & Ecosystems)
Want more than 10 questions?
In Gradelings the questions change every time and adjust to your child, with hints and kind feedback. See all science units.