Here are some science questions to help you test your knowledge of the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards.
The questions are chosen randomly, so this quest will be different each time you reload the page.
Back to the Grade 5 standards.
How can there be rain if this area is a desert?
Answer:
It is important to understand the difference between climate and weather. Weather is what is happening now. Climate is determined by looking at the weather data over a long period of time, often several decades. To be classified as a desert climate, the area has an average annual rainfall of 7.87 inches of rain or less. That tells us that it does sometimes have rain, just not very often.
Click to see which state standards this question tests, and which of my videos, experiments, and other resources support that topic.
Florida
SC.2.L.17.2 Recognize and explain that living things are found all over Earth, but each is only able to live in habitats that meet its basic needs.
| Hunting with an Umbrella | video, free, ClosedCaptions, Updated |
| A Walk in the Park | video, checked |
| Review Weather-9 | practice |
SC.5.E.7.6 Describe characteristics (temperature and precipitation) of different climate zones as they relate to latitude, elevation, and proximity to bodies of water.
| Weather and Climate | video |
| Review Weather-7 | practice |
| Review Weather-9 | practice |
SC.6.E.7.2 Investigate and apply how the cycling of water between the atmosphere and hydrosphere has an effect on weather patterns and climate.
| Cloud Types | video |
| Nephoscope | video, checked |
| The Water Cycle | video, checked |
| Weather and Climate | video |
| Pine Cone Weather | text page, free |
| Review Weather-8 | practice |
| Review Weather-9 | practice |
| Review Weather-10 | practice |
SC.6.E.7.6 Differentiate between weather and climate.
| Weather and Climate | video |
| Review Weather-9 | practice |
Utah
UT.4.V.1.a Compare the physical characteristics (e.g., precipitation, temperature, and surface terrain) of Utah's wetlands, forests, and deserts.
| Weather and Climate | video |
| Review Weather-9 | practice |
UT.4.V.1.c Locate examples of areas that have characteristics of wetlands, forests, or deserts in Utah.
| Review Weather-7 | practice |
| Review Weather-9 | practice |
NGSS
MS-ESS2-6 Develop and use a model to describe how unequal heating and rotation of the Earth cause patterns of atmospheric and oceanic circulation that determine regional climates.
| Cloud Formation, part 2 | video |
| Global Science | video, ClosedCaptions |
| Weather and Climate | video |
| Review Weather-9 | practice |
3-ESS2-2 Obtain and combine information to describe climates in different regions of the world.
| Weather and Climate | video |
| Review Weather-9 | practice |
Incandescent light bulbs use electrical energy to produce light energy, but it is not a direct transformation. Instead, the electrical energy is changed to a different form of energy, and then to light.
Electricity → ? → Light
What form of energy does the "?" represent?
-
Sound
No. Electrical energy can be transformed into sound energy, but that would not cause the bulb to light. -
Thermal
Yes. As electrical energy flows through the filament, resistance changes the electrical energy into thermal energy. When the filament gets hot enough, some of the thermal energy is converted into light. -
Radiation
No. The electrical energy is not transformed into radiation. -
Friction
No. The electrical energy is not transformed into friction.
Click to see which state standards this question tests, and which of my videos, experiments, and other resources support that topic.
Florida
SC.2.P.10.1 Discuss that people use electricity or other forms of energy to cook their food, cool or warm their homes, and power their cars.
| Review Energy-3 | practice |
SC.5.P.10.4 Investigate and explain that electrical energy can be transformed into heat, light, and sound energy, as well as the energy of motion.
| Introduction to the LED | video, checked |
| Light a Bulb with a Balloon | video, checked |
| Electricity | video, free, Updated |
| Review Energy-3 | practice |
SC.7.P.11.2 Investigate and describe the transformation of energy.
| The Rollback Can | video, free, Updated |
| High Bounce | video, checked |
| Review Energy-3 | practice |
Utah
UT.3.V.2.c Predict, measure, and graph the temperature changes produced by a variety of mechanical machines and electrical devices while they are operating.
| Review Energy-3 | practice |
UT.8.IV.4.b Trace the conversion of energy from one form of energy to another (e.g., light to chemical to mechanical).
| Measuring Kinetic and Potential Energy | video, checked |
| The Rollback Can | video, free, Updated |
| High Bounce | video, checked |
NGSS
4-PS3-4 Apply scientific ideas to design, test, and refine a device that converts energy from one form to another.
| Ice Cream Science | video, checked |
| Making a Screamer | video, free, Updated |
| Measuring Kinetic and Potential Energy | video, checked |
| The Slow Race | video, free, ClosedCaptions, Updated |
| The Singing Glass | video, checked |
| Whistle Stick | video, text page, blog, free, checked |
| Simple Circuits | video, checked |
| Solar Power | video, checked |
| The Rollback Can | video, free, Updated |
| A Grass Whistle | video, checked |
| High Bounce | video, checked |
| Bottle Tones, part 1 | video, checked |
| Measuring Calories | video, ClosedCaptions, checked |
| Bottle Tones, part 2 | video, checked |
| Why Things Go Bang | video |
| Why We Sweat | video, checked |
| Sunglass Science: Birefringence | video, free, Updated |
| Sunglass Science: Polarized Light | video, free, Updated |
| Noisy String | video, checked |
| Spoon Bells | video, checked |
| Sunlight, Energy, and Crayons | text page, free |
| Review Energy-5 | quest |
| Review Energy-3 | practice |
Which of the following is a major characteristic of hurricanes?
-
Low barometric pressure
Yes. Hurricanes always have very low barometric pressure. -
High barometric pressure
No. Hurricanes always have very low barometric pressure. -
Winds blowing towards the shore.
No. The direction of the winds depends on the location of the storm, relative to the shore. Depending on location, hurricane winds can blow towards shore, away for shore, or parallel to the shore. -
Winds blowing away from the shore.
No. The direction of the winds depends on the location of the storm, relative to the shore. Depending on location, hurricane winds can blow towards shore, away for shore, or parallel to the shore.
Click to see which state standards this question tests, and which of my videos, experiments, and other resources support that topic.
Florida
SC.5.E.7.3 Recognize how air temperature, barometric pressure, humidity, wind speed and direction, and precipitation determine the weather in a particular place and time.
| Nephoscope | video, checked |
| Building a Rain Gauge, part 2 | video, checked |
| Building a Rain Gauge, part 1 | video, checked |
| Pine Cone Weather | text page, free |
| Review Weather-5 | practice |
| Review Weather-4 | practice |
Utah
UT.4.II.1.d Compare the components of severe weather phenomena to normal weather conditions (e.g., thunderstorm with lightning and high winds compared to rainstorm with rain showers and breezes).
| Review Weather-5 | practice |
NGSS
3-ESS2-1 Represent data in tables and graphical displays to describe typical weather conditions expected during a particular season.
| Nephoscope | video, checked |
| Pine Cone Weather | text page, free |
| Review Weather-5 | practice |
| Review Weather-6 | practice |
| Review Weather-4 | practice |
| Review Weather-3 | practice |
| Review Space-5 | practice |
| Review Space-8 | practice |
MS-ESS3-2 Analyze and interpret data on natural hazards to forecast future catastrophic events and inform the development of technologies to mitigate their effects.
| Review Weather-5 | practice |
Which of these processes forms the VISIBLE part of a cloud?
-
Evaporation
No. Evaporation changes liquid water into water vapor. Water vapor is an invisible gas, so it is not the visible part of the cloud. -
Condensation
Yes! Condensation changes water vapor into droplets of liquid water to form the cloud. These are just like the tiny water droplets that form fog, letting you see the cloud. -
Precipitation
No. Precipitation can fall from a cloud, but it is not the process that forms the cloud. -
Convection
No. Convection carries the water vapor upwards so it can cool and condense, but condensation is what forms the visible part of the cloud.
Click to see which state standards this question tests, and which of my videos, experiments, and other resources support that topic.
Florida
SC.3.P.9.1 Describe the changes water undergoes when it changes state through heating and cooling by using familiar scientific terms such as melting, freezing, boiling, evaporation, and condensation.
| Cloud Formation, part 2 | video |
| Making a Solar Still | video |
| Wonderful Water | video, checked |
| A Watched Pot | video |
| Why We Sweat | video, checked |
| Photographing Snowflakes | video, checked |
| Ice Cream Science | video, checked |
| Cloud Formation, part 1 | video, ClosedCaptions, checked |
| The Water Cycle | video, checked |
| A Model of the Water Cycle | video, ClosedCaptions, checked |
| What Really Happens With Evaporation? | text page, free, checked |
| Review Weather-1 | practice |
| Review Weather-2 | practice |
| Review Weather-10 | practice |
SC.5.E.7.1 Create a model to explain the parts of the water cycle. Water can be a gas, a liquid, or a solid and can go back and forth from one state to another.
>>> Teacher Page: Water Cycle
| Cloud Formation, part 2 | video |
| Cloud Types | video |
| Making a Solar Still | video |
| A Watched Pot | video |
| Photographing Snowflakes | video, checked |
| The Water Cycle | video, checked |
| A Model of the Water Cycle | video, ClosedCaptions, checked |
| Review Weather-1 | practice |
| Review Weather-2 | practice |
| Review Weather-8 | practice |
| Review Weather-10 | practice |
Utah
UT.4.I.2.a Locate examples of evaporation and condensation in the water cycle (e.g., water evaporates when heated and clouds or dew forms when vapor is cooled).
| Cloud Types | video |
| Making a Solar Still | video |
| A Watched Pot | video |
| Cloud Formation, part 1 | video, ClosedCaptions, checked |
| The Water Cycle | video, checked |
| A Model of the Water Cycle | video, ClosedCaptions, checked |
| A Cool Experiment | text page |
| Review Weather-1 | practice |
| Review Weather-2 | practice |
NGSS
MS-ESS2-5 Collect data to provide evidence for how the motions and complex interactions of air masses results in changes in weather conditions.
| Cloud Types | video |
| Nephoscope | video, checked |
| Cloud Formation, part 1 | video, ClosedCaptions, checked |
| Pine Cone Weather | text page, free |
| Review Weather-1 | practice |
| Review Weather-2 | practice |
| Review Weather-6 | practice |
| Review Weather-4 | practice |
| Review Weather-3 | practice |
This snow fell when the temperature outside was 39°F. How can you get snow when the temperature is above freezing?
-
The wind made it feel colder, allowing it to snow.
No. While wind chill can make it feel colder, it does not actually make it colder. -
It was colder in the clouds where the snow formed.
Yes. Even when air temperatures at the surface are above freezing, the clouds can be much colder. If the air at the surface is not too warm, the snow can reach the ground without melting. -
Rain froze into snow when it hit the ground.
No. Freezing rain forms ice, not snow. Light, fluffy snow flakes form as they fall through the air, not after they hit the ground. -
This is really hail instead of snow.
No. Hail is made of large chunks of ice, not tiny flakes.
Click to see which state standards this question tests, and which of my videos, experiments, and other resources support that topic.
Florida
SC.5.E.7.4 Distinguish among the various forms of precipitation (rain, snow, sleet, and hail), making connections to the weather in a particular place and time.
| Photographing Snowflakes | video, checked |
| Building a Rain Gauge, part 2 | video, checked |
| Building a Rain Gauge, part 1 | video, checked |
| Snow Rollers | text page |
| Review Weather-6 | practice |
| Review Weather-3 | practice |
SC.6.E.7.3 Describe how global patterns such as the jet stream and ocean currents influence local weather in measurable terms such as temperature, air pressure, wind direction and speed, and humidity and precipitation.
| Nephoscope | video, checked |
| Review Weather-6 | practice |
Utah
UT.4.II.2.a Observe and record effects of air temperature on precipitation (e.g., below freezing results in snow, above freezing results in rain).
| Photographing Snowflakes | video, checked |
| Building a Rain Gauge, part 2 | video, checked |
| Building a Rain Gauge, part 1 | video, checked |
| Review Weather-6 | practice |
| Review Weather-3 | practice |
NGSS
3-ESS2-1 Represent data in tables and graphical displays to describe typical weather conditions expected during a particular season.
| Nephoscope | video, checked |
| Pine Cone Weather | text page, free |
| Review Weather-5 | practice |
| Review Weather-6 | practice |
| Review Weather-4 | practice |
| Review Weather-3 | practice |
| Review Space-5 | practice |
| Review Space-8 | practice |
MS-ESS2-5 Collect data to provide evidence for how the motions and complex interactions of air masses results in changes in weather conditions.
| Cloud Types | video |
| Nephoscope | video, checked |
| Cloud Formation, part 1 | video, ClosedCaptions, checked |
| Pine Cone Weather | text page, free |
| Review Weather-1 | practice |
| Review Weather-2 | practice |
| Review Weather-6 | practice |
| Review Weather-4 | practice |
| Review Weather-3 | practice |
The questions are chosen randomly, so this quest will be different each time you reload the page.
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