STAAR Grade 5 Science — Practice Test 1

Matter & Energy — Properties

Choose the best answer or type the correct number.

1. Which property of matter is measured in grams using a balance?

2. A student tests four small bars to see which one is attracted to a magnet. Which property is the student investigating?

3. An object has a mass of 30 g and a volume of 6 cm³. What is its density (g/cm³)? (Type a number.)

4. A wooden block floats on water, but a steel marble of the same size sinks. The BEST explanation is that the steel marble has a:

5. Which of these materials is the BEST electrical conductor?

Matter & Energy — Changes & Mixtures

Choose the best answer.

6. An ice cube melting into liquid water on a warm counter is BEST classified as a:

7. Burning a piece of wood produces ash, smoke, and heat. The new substances cannot easily be turned back into wood. This is an example of a:

8. A student stirs a spoonful of salt into a glass of warm water until none of the salt can be seen. The result is BEST described as a:

9. Iron filings are mixed with sand. Which method would BEST separate the iron filings from the sand?

10. A cup of saltwater is left in a sunny window for several days. The water disappears and a thin layer of salt is left behind. The water has changed state by:

Force, Motion & Energy

Choose the best answer or type the correct number.

11. A student plays a song through a speaker. Which form of energy is the speaker mainly producing for the student to hear?

12. A solar-powered yard light absorbs sunlight during the day and lights up at night. Which energy transformation BEST describes this?

13. Look at the simple circuit drawn below. A battery is connected by wires to a small light bulb, with a switch in the line.

  +───[ Battery ]───+
  │                 │
  │             [Switch]
  │                 │
  +───( Bulb )──────+

When the switch is OPEN (not connected), what happens to the bulb?

14. In an electrical circuit, which material would be the BEST INSULATOR to wrap around a wire to keep people safe?

15. A flashlight beam is aimed at a flat mirror. The light bounces off the mirror and lands on the wall. The behavior of the light is called:

16. A pencil placed in a glass of water APPEARS to be bent at the surface of the water, even though the pencil is straight. This happens because light:

17. A toaster heats bread when it is turned on. The MAIN energy transformation inside a toaster is:

18. A student rolls a toy car 12 meters across the floor in 4 seconds. What is its average speed in meters per second? (Type a number.)

Earth & Space

Choose the best answer.

19. Which of these is a RAPID change to the surface of Earth?

20. Sedimentary rocks often form in flat layers. A scientist who finds shells and fish fossils in a layer of sedimentary rock can BEST conclude that:

21. Which of the following is a RENEWABLE energy resource?

22. The Moon's appearance changes over about 29 days because:

23. Which sequence shows phases of the Moon in the correct order, starting from a NEW MOON?

24. Day and night on Earth are caused mainly by:

25. A simple weather map shows the symbol "H" for high pressure over central Texas and "L" for low pressure approaching from the west. The L often brings:

26. In the water cycle, water vapor cools high in the atmosphere and turns back into tiny liquid droplets that form clouds. This step is called:

Organisms & Environments

Choose the best answer.

27. Look at this part of a meadow food web:

Grass → Rabbit → Fox
  ↓
Grasshopper → Mouse → Hawk

Which organism in this web is a PRODUCER?

28. In the same meadow food web, the rabbit eats grass. The rabbit is BEST classified as a:

29. Mushrooms and many bacteria break down dead leaves and fallen logs, returning nutrients to the soil. They are BEST classified as:

30. In the same meadow web (Grass → Rabbit → Fox; Grasshopper → Mouse → Hawk), suppose a disease wipes out almost all the rabbits in one year. Which short-term effect is MOST likely?

31. A cactus has thick, waxy skin and stores water in its stem. This is BEST described as a:

32. A butterfly goes through egg → larva (caterpillar) → pupa (chrysalis) → adult. This is an example of:

Investigation: Plant Growth Experiment

Read the investigation and the data table, then answer the questions that follow.

Investigation: How Does the Amount of Sunlight Affect Bean Plant Growth?

A fifth-grade class wanted to find out how the amount of sunlight affects how tall young bean plants grow. They planted 12 bean seeds, four seeds in each of three identical pots filled with the same kind of potting soil. They placed each pot in a different spot in the classroom and gave every pot the same amount of water (50 mL) every other day for two weeks. The temperature in the classroom was kept at about 22 °C the whole time.

After 14 days, the students measured the height of every plant in centimeters and recorded the AVERAGE height for each pot. Their results are shown in the table below.

Pot	Location	Hours of sunlight per day	Average plant height after 14 days (cm)
1	closet (dark)	0	3
2	shelf away from window	3	9
3	sunny windowsill	8	15

33. Which variable in this experiment is the INDEPENDENT variable (the variable the students deliberately changed)?

34. Which variable is the DEPENDENT variable (the variable that the students measured to see the effect)?

35. Why did the students keep the soil, water, and temperature the SAME for all three pots?

36. Based on the data in the table, which CONCLUSION is BEST supported?

37. If the students added a fourth pot in a spot that received about 5 hours of sunlight per day (and treated it the same way), which average height would be MOST reasonable to predict after 14 days?

38. The students placed FOUR seeds in each pot instead of just one, and reported the AVERAGE height. Why is this a GOOD scientific practice?

Matter & Energy — Properties

Matter & Energy — Changes & Mixtures

Force, Motion & Energy

Earth & Space

Organisms & Environments

Investigation: Plant Growth Experiment

Investigation: How Does the Amount of Sunlight Affect Bean Plant Growth?

Love this worksheet? ✨