Fossil Practice Assessment

A(n) __________ is the preserved or mineralized remains

(teeth, bones, etc.) or imprint of an organism that lived long ago.

• fossil

• index

• mineral

• trace

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-1

Jacob was reading a book about fossils. He read that fish fossils are sometimes found at the top of high mountains. What can Jacob infer about the mountains?

• They are now underwater.

• They were once underwater.

• They moved across the land.

• Fish used to live on mountains.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-2

NGSS.MS-ESS2-3

NGSS.MS-LS4-1

This is a fossil of a dinosaur's footprint. This fossil can give scientists clues about the dinosaur's

• size

• color

• mating habits

• reason for extinction

Two girls were digging in the backyard. They found pieces of flat rock deep in the hole they had dug. Some of the rocks had imprints of fish, like the one you see here. They showed the rocks to their parents. "What do think this back yard once looked like? " asked their father.

What is the BEST answer the girls could have given?

• The backyard was once underwater, maybe the bottom of a lake.

• The backyard was once covered with snow and ice, maybe a glacier.

• The backyard looks like it does now, but there was no house there.

• The backyard was once a tropical jungle filled with trees and other plants.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-4

NGSS.MS-ESS2-2

NGSS.MS-LS4-1

Scientists who study fossils are called

• astronomers

• biologists

• geologists

• paleontologists

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-3

NGSS.MS-LS4-1

Carlos and his family were camping over the summer and came across the fossil pictured above. When school started, Carlos asked his parents if he could share the fossil with his class. Carlos told his peers he discovered the fossil within a particular layer of rock. What type of rock was this fossil most likely found in?

• igneous

• metamorphic

• sedimentary

• obsidian

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-1

Large areas of Virginia were once covered by seawater. The fossil MOST LIKELY found in Virginia is

• dinosaur skeleton

• fern imprint

• fish imprint

• skull

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-3

Which is NOT a factor that affects fossilization?

• age of the organism

• hard or soft body parts

• predators destroying the body

• body decay due to natural elements

If you have 4 layers stacked on top of each other. Which would be the oldest in terms of rocks?

• top

• middle

• bottom

• they are all the same age

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-4

Fossils of a now extinct dinosaur have been found near the east coast of South America and the west coast of Africa. The dinosaur could not swim or fly. What does this suggest about the continents of South America and Africa?

• The continents were once connected.

• A land bridge once connected the continents.

• The same type of animals evolved on both continents.

• Prehistoric man transported the dinosaur between the continents.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-2

NGSS.MS-ESS2-3