Here are some science questions to help you test your general science knowledge. They will also show you which of the Florida, Utah, and NGSS science standards each question is testing.
The questions are chosen randomly, so this quest will be different each time.
Get 5 more random questions.
Would you rather see the most recently added questions?
This is called Fluorite. It is used in making many important chemicals. What kind of rock is it?.
-
Igneous
No. Igneous rocks formed from magma or lava. Fluorite is sometimes found as a mineral in igneous rock, but it is not an igneous rock. -
Sedimentary
No. Sedimentary rocks are deposited by wind, water, ice, or gravity, and they often contain fossils. Fluorite is not a sedimentary rock. -
Metamorphic
No. Metamorphic rocks have been changed by heat and pressure from a different kind of rock. Fluorite is not metamorphic. -
Fluorite is not a rock.
Yes! Fluorite is a mineral, not a rock. It is not found in large layers in the Earth.
Click to see which state standards this question tests, and which of my videos, experiments, and other resources support that topic.
Florida
SC.4.E.6.1 Identify the three categories of rocks: igneous, (formed from molten rock); sedimentary (pieces of other rocks and fossilized organisms); and metamorphic (formed from heat and pressure).
| Evaporites | video, learnalong, checked |
| Igneous Rocks and Bubbles | video, free, learnalong, Updated |
| Sedimentary Rocks | video, learnalong |
| What is a Rock? | video, learnalong, checked |
| Bioclastics: Rocks With No Minerals | video |
| Light and Dark Minerals | text page, learnalong |
| Homemade Fossil Dig | text page |
| Foliated and Unfoliated Rocks | text page, learnalong |
| Identifying Igneous Rocks | text page, learnalong |
| Intrusive and Extrusive Igneous Rocks | text page, learnalong |
| Review Rocks-2 | practice |
| Review Rocks-3 | practice |
| Review Rocks-4 | practice |
| Review Rocks-5 | practice |
| Review Rocks-6 | practice |
| Review Rocks-8 | practice |
| Review Rocks-9 | practice |
| Review Rocks-7 | practice |
| Review Rocks-10 | practice |
| Review Rocks-10 | practice |
| Review Rocks-10 | practice |
| Review Rocks-1 | practice |
SC.7.E.6.2 Identify the patterns within the rock cycle and relate them to surface events (weathering and erosion) and sub-surface events (plate tectonics and mountain building).
| Evaporites | video, learnalong, checked |
| What is a Rock? | video, learnalong, checked |
| The Rock Cycle | video, learnalong |
| Change: Fast and Slow | video |
| Erosion | video, checked |
| Continuous Change | video, checked |
| Bioclastics: Rocks With No Minerals | video |
| Weathering and Erosion | video, learnalong, checked |
| Review Erosion-4 | practice |
| Review Erosion-5 | practice |
| Review Rocks-4 | practice |
| Review Rocks-5 | practice |
| Review Rocks-6 | practice |
| Review Rocks-8 | practice |
| Review Rocks-9 | practice |
| Review Rocks-7 | practice |
| Review Rocks-10 | practice |
| Review Rocks-10 | practice |
| Review Rocks-1 | practice |
| Review Erosion-1 | practice |
| Review Erosion-2 | practice |
| Review Erosion-3 | practice |
Utah
UT.4.III.1.a Describe the differences between minerals and rocks.
| What is a Mineral? | video, checked |
| Identifying Minerals | video, learnalong |
| What is a Rock? | video, learnalong, checked |
| Bioclastics: Rocks With No Minerals | video |
| Definition of a Mineral | video, checked |
| Review Rocks-1 | practice |
| Review Rocks-4 | practice |
| Review Rocks-5 | practice |
| Review Rocks-6 | practice |
| Review Rocks-8 | practice |
| Review Rocks-9 | practice |
| Review Rocks-7 | practice |
| Review Rocks-10 | practice |
NGSS
4-ESS1-1 Identify evidence from patterns in rock formations and fossils in rock layers to support an explanation for changes in a landscape over time.
| Evaporites | video, learnalong, checked |
| Igneous Rocks and Bubbles | video, free, learnalong, Updated |
| Sedimentary Rocks | video, learnalong |
| Reading the Rocks: Law of Superposition | video |
| Reading the Rocks: Law of Crosscutting | video |
| What is a Rock? | video, learnalong, checked |
| Reading the Rocks: The Present is the Key to the Past | video, ClosedCaptions |
| Paleo Cookies | video |
| Homemade Fossil Dig | text page |
| Review Geologic Time-2 | practice |
| Review Rocks-5 | practice |
| Review Rocks-6 | practice |
| Review Rocks-8 | practice |
| Review Rocks-9 | practice |
| Review Rocks-7 | practice |
| Review Rocks-10 | practice |
| Review Geologic Time-3 | practice |
| Review Rocks-1 | practice |
| Review Geologic Time-1 | practice |
| Review Rocks-4 | practice |
MS-ESS2-1 Develop a model to describe the cycling of Earth’s materials and the flow of energy that drives this process.
| Evaporites | video, learnalong, checked |
| Definition of a Mineral | video, checked |
| Igneous Rocks and Bubbles | video, free, learnalong, Updated |
| What is a Mineral? | video, checked |
| Identifying Minerals | video, learnalong |
| Sedimentary Rocks | video, learnalong |
| What is a Rock? | video, learnalong, checked |
| The Rock Cycle | video, learnalong |
| Bioclastics: Rocks With No Minerals | video |
| Light and Dark Minerals | text page, learnalong |
| Review Rocks-2 | practice |
| Review Rocks-3 | practice |
| Review Rocks-4 | practice |
| Review Rocks-5 | practice |
| Review Rocks-6 | practice |
| Review Rocks-8 | practice |
| Review Rocks-9 | practice |
| Review Rocks-7 | practice |
| Review Rocks-10 | practice |
| Review Rocks-10 | practice |
| Review Rocks-10 | practice |
| Review Rocks-1 | practice |
I used this piece of quartz to scratch a piece of glass. What was I testing?
-
Streak
No. To test streak, you rub the mineral on a white tile, to see its color when it is powdered. -
Fracture
No. Fracture is one way that minerals can break. I am not breaking the mineral. -
Hardness
Yes. Hardness is measured by scratching other substances, such as your fingernail, copper, and glass. This quartz scratches the glass, which tells us it has a hardness or 5.5 or more. Actually, the hardness of quartz is 7, quite a bit harder than glass. -
Cleavage
No. Cleavage is one of the ways that minerals can break. I am not breaking the mineral.
Click to see which state standards this question tests, and which of my videos, experiments, and other resources support that topic.
Florida
SC.4.E.6.2 Identify the physical properties of common earth-forming minerals, including hardness, color, luster, cleavage, and streak color, and recognize the role of minerals in the formation of rocks.
| What is a Mineral? | video, checked |
| Identifying Minerals | video, learnalong |
| Definition of a Mineral | video, checked |
| Minerals Around You | text page, learnalong, checked |
| Review Minerals-1 | practice |
| Review Minerals-2 | practice |
| Review Minerals-3 | practice |
| Review Minerals-4 | practice |
| Review Minerals-5 | practice |
| Review Minerals-6 | practice |
| Review Minerals-7 | practice |
| Review Minerals-8 | practice |
Utah
UT.4.III.1.b Observe rocks using a magnifying glass and draw shapes and colors of the minerals.
| What is a Mineral? | video, checked |
| Identifying Minerals | video, learnalong |
| What is a Rock? | video, learnalong, checked |
| Definition of a Mineral | video, checked |
| Review Minerals-3 | practice |
| Review Minerals-4 | practice |
| Review Minerals-5 | practice |
| Review Minerals-6 | practice |
| Review Minerals-7 | practice |
| Review Minerals-8 | practice |
UT.8.III.1.b Observe and describe the minerals found in rocks (e.g., shape, color, luster, texture, hardness).
| What is a Mineral? | video, checked |
| Identifying Minerals | video, learnalong |
| What is a Rock? | video, learnalong, checked |
| Definition of a Mineral | video, checked |
| Review Minerals-1 | practice |
| Review Minerals-2 | practice |
| Review Minerals-3 | practice |
| Review Minerals-4 | practice |
| Review Minerals-5 | practice |
| Review Minerals-6 | practice |
| Review Minerals-7 | practice |
| Review Minerals-8 | practice |
NGSS
5-PS1-3 Make observations and measurements to identify materials based on their properties.
| Raw Egg or Boiled? | video, checked |
| Making Turmeric Paper | video, checked |
| Testing for Tannic Acid | video |
| Definition of a Mineral | video, checked |
| Floating Bubbles | video, checked |
| Finding Fat in Foods | video, ClosedCaptions, checked |
| Fireworks Colors | video |
| Iron Cereal | video, ClosedCaptions, checked |
| Density: Ice, Oil, and Water | video, checked |
| Wax and Wood, part 1 | video, checked |
| Wax and Wood, part 2 | video, checked |
| What is a Mineral? | video, checked |
| Identifying Minerals | video, learnalong |
| A Cool Change | text page |
| Acid Hunt | text page |
| Review Minerals-2 | practice |
| Review Minerals-3 | practice |
| Review Minerals-4 | practice |
| Review Minerals-5 | practice |
| Review Minerals-6 | practice |
| Review Minerals-7 | practice |
| Review Minerals-8 | practice |
Which of the following observations is NOT scientifically testable?
-
Butterflies have pretty wings.
Yes! Pretty is an opinion, and can vary from person to person, so it is NOT scientifically testable. -
Butterflies have six legs.
No. This could be tested by counting the legs of a variety of butterflies. -
Butterflies can sting like bees.
No. A claim does not have to be true to be testable. Examination of a variety of butterflies would show that they do not have stingers. -
Most butterflies drink nectar from flowers.
No. This could be tested by observing the feeding habits of butterflies.
Explain more about it.
If I said that butterflies did not have six legs, you could show me physical evidence by counting their legs. After counting the legs, the physical evidence would show that butterflies have six legs.
If I said that I don't think butterfly wings are pretty, you could show me wings that you think are pretty, but I might not agree with your opinion. "Pretty" is not something that we can measure. What is pretty to one person might not be pretty to another, so it is not a testable property.
Click to see which state standards this question tests, and which of my videos, experiments, and other resources support that topic.
Florida
SC.5.N.2.1 Recognize and explain that science is grounded in empirical observations that are testable; explanation must always be linked with evidence.
| My Position on Science and Religion | video |
| What is Science?: Objective | video |
| Mobius Strip | video |
| Is Your Project Scientifically Testable? | text page |
| Is Your Project Scientifically Testable? Part 2 | text page |
| Review Scientific Process-3 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-4 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-8 | practice |
SC.8.N.2.1 Distinguish between scientific and pseudoscientific ideas.
| What is Science? | video, ClosedCaptions |
| Feeding Bread to Birds | text page |
| Fact checking GMOs | text page |
| I Saw It on the Internet, part four | text page |
| I Saw It on the Internet, part three | text page |
| I Saw It on the Internet, part two | text page |
| I Saw It on the Internet, part one | text page |
| Review Scientific Process-3 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-4 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-8 | practice |
Utah
NGSS
Cannonball Jelly fish are excellent swimmers, and Portly Spider Crabs often hitch a ride on them. What type of relationship is that?
-
mutualism
No. In mutualism, both organisms benefit. The jellyfish gets no benefit from the crab's hitchhiking. -
commensalism
Yes. In commensalism, one organism (the crab) benefits, and the other (jellyfish) is not affected. The crab gets free transportation, and the jellyfish is not helped or harmed. -
parasitism
No. For parasitism, one organism benefits, and the other is harmed. Neither the crab nor the jellyfish is harmed by this relationship. -
predation
No. In predation, one organism eats another. Neither the crab nor the jellyfish gets eaten in this relationship.
Click to see which state standards this question tests, and which of my videos, experiments, and other resources support that topic.
Florida
SC.7.L.17.2 Compare and contrast the relationships among organisms such as mutualism, predation, parasitism, competition, and commensalism.
| Secondary Consumers | video, free, ClosedCaptions, Updated, checked |
| Review Food Web-11 | practice |
| Review Food Web-12 | practice |
Utah
UT.8.II.2.a Categorize the relationships between organisms (i.e., producer/consumer/decomposer, predator/prey, mutualism/parasitism) and provide examples of each.
| Secondary Consumers | video, free, ClosedCaptions, Updated, checked |
| Producers | video, free, Updated, checked |
| Primary Consumers | video, ClosedCaptions, Updated, checked |
| What is a Food Web? | text page, free, checked |
| Review Food Web-6 | practice |
| Review Food Web-7 | practice |
| Review Food Web-8 | practice |
| Review Food Web-9 | practice |
| Review Food Web-10 | practice |
| Review Food Web-11 | practice |
| Review Food Web-12 | practice |
| Review Food Web-2 | practice |
| Review Food Web-1 | practice |
| Review Food Web-3 | practice |
| Review Food Web-4 | practice |
| Review Food Web-5 | practice |
NGSS
MS-LS2-2 Construct an explanation that predicts patterns of interactions among organisms across multiple ecosystems.
| A Walk in the Park | video, checked |
| Review Food Web-11 | practice |
| Review Food Web-12 | practice |
The large cracks in this rock are called expansion cracks. As the overlying rock erodes away, the rock expands, causing the cracks. The cracks are an example of:
-
Erosion
No. Erosion means that the pieces of rocks are being carried away. The overlying rocks have been eroded, but the cracks are not carrying the pieces to a new location. -
Weathering
Yes! As the rocks expand unevenly, tension builds up. When there is enough stress, the rocks break. That breaking of large rocks into smaller pieces is called weathering. -
Both erosion and weathering
No. The rocks are being broken (weathering), but the pieces are staying in place, so there is not erosion. -
Neither erosion nor weathering
No. The cracks show that the rocks are breaking, which is weathering..
Click to see which state standards this question tests, and which of my videos, experiments, and other resources support that topic.
Florida
SC.4.E.6.1 Identify the three categories of rocks: igneous, (formed from molten rock); sedimentary (pieces of other rocks and fossilized organisms); and metamorphic (formed from heat and pressure).
| Evaporites | video, learnalong, checked |
| Igneous Rocks and Bubbles | video, free, learnalong, Updated |
| Sedimentary Rocks | video, learnalong |
| What is a Rock? | video, learnalong, checked |
| Bioclastics: Rocks With No Minerals | video |
| Light and Dark Minerals | text page, learnalong |
| Homemade Fossil Dig | text page |
| Foliated and Unfoliated Rocks | text page, learnalong |
| Identifying Igneous Rocks | text page, learnalong |
| Intrusive and Extrusive Igneous Rocks | text page, learnalong |
| Review Rocks-2 | practice |
| Review Rocks-3 | practice |
| Review Rocks-4 | practice |
| Review Rocks-5 | practice |
| Review Rocks-6 | practice |
| Review Rocks-8 | practice |
| Review Rocks-9 | practice |
| Review Rocks-7 | practice |
| Review Rocks-10 | practice |
| Review Rocks-10 | practice |
| Review Rocks-10 | practice |
| Review Rocks-1 | practice |
SC.7.E.6.2 Identify the patterns within the rock cycle and relate them to surface events (weathering and erosion) and sub-surface events (plate tectonics and mountain building).
| Evaporites | video, learnalong, checked |
| What is a Rock? | video, learnalong, checked |
| The Rock Cycle | video, learnalong |
| Change: Fast and Slow | video |
| Erosion | video, checked |
| Continuous Change | video, checked |
| Bioclastics: Rocks With No Minerals | video |
| Weathering and Erosion | video, learnalong, checked |
| Review Erosion-4 | practice |
| Review Erosion-5 | practice |
| Review Rocks-4 | practice |
| Review Rocks-5 | practice |
| Review Rocks-6 | practice |
| Review Rocks-8 | practice |
| Review Rocks-9 | practice |
| Review Rocks-7 | practice |
| Review Rocks-10 | practice |
| Review Rocks-10 | practice |
| Review Rocks-1 | practice |
| Review Erosion-1 | practice |
| Review Erosion-2 | practice |
| Review Erosion-3 | practice |
Utah
UT.4.III.2.b Distinguish between weathering (i.e., wearing down and breaking of rock surfaces) and erosion (i.e., the movement of materials).
| Change: Fast and Slow | video |
| Erosion | video, checked |
| Weathering and Erosion | video, learnalong, checked |
| Review Erosion-1 | practice |
| Review Erosion-2 | practice |
| Review Erosion-3 | practice |
| Review Erosion-4 | practice |
| Review Erosion-5 | practice |
UT.5.II.1.a Identify the objects, processes, or forces that weather and erode Earth’s surface (e.g., ice, plants, animals, abrasion, gravity, water, wind)
| Change: Fast and Slow | video |
| Erosion | video, checked |
| Continuous Change | video, checked |
| Weathering and Erosion | video, learnalong, checked |
| Review Erosion-1 | practice |
| Review Erosion-2 | practice |
| Review Erosion-3 | practice |
| Review Erosion-4 | practice |
| Review Erosion-5 | practice |
UT.8.III.2.b Describe the role of energy in the processes that change rock materials over time.
| Igneous Rocks and Bubbles | video, free, learnalong, Updated |
| Sedimentary Rocks | video, learnalong |
| Change: Fast and Slow | video |
| Erosion | video, checked |
| Continuous Change | video, checked |
| Weathering and Erosion | video, learnalong, checked |
NGSS
4-ESS2-1 Make observations and/or measurements to provide evidence of the effects of weathering or the rate of erosion by water, ice, wind, or vegetation.
| Change: Fast and Slow | video |
| Erosion | video, checked |
| Continuous Change | video, checked |
| Weathering and Erosion | video, learnalong, checked |
| Review Erosion-1 | practice |
| Review Erosion-2 | practice |
| Review Erosion-3 | practice |
| Review Erosion-4 | practice |
| Review Erosion-5 | practice |
The questions are chosen randomly, so this quest will be different each time.