Science STAAR Released Questions

A student wearing skates rolls down a ramp. What force pulls the student down the ramp?

• gravity

• friction

• magetism

• mass

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-2

NGSS.MS-PS2-4

A student wearing skates rolls down a ramp. What force causes the student to slow down and stop rolling?

• gravity, which acts against the direction of motion

• friction, which acts against the direction of motion

• magnetism, which acts against the direction of motion

• mass, which increases with motion

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-2

The picture shows an athlete who is about to hit a baseball.

Which statement is true?

• The force of the bat will cause the baseball to change direction.

• The force of the bat will not change the direction of the baseball.

• The baseball will continue in the same direction after being hit by the bat.

• There will be no force applied to the baseball, because the baseball is moving faster than the bat.

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-1

Four students stand facing a box. The diagram below shows an overhead view of the box. The numbered circles represent the positions of the students. What do the students need to do to slide the box to the southwest? (The compass shows you which way each direction is. Southwest is the direction midway between south and west.)

• Students 1 and 2 push, Students 3 and 4 pull.

• Students 1 and 4 push, Students 2 and 3 pull.

• Students 2 and 3 push, Students 1 and 4 pull.

• Students 3 and 4 push, Students 1 and 2 pull.

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-1

NGSS.MS-PS2-2

The diagram shows a view of a ball from above a table. The ball is rolling across the table. A student lightly taps the rolling ball in the direction show.

In which direction does the ball most likely move after the student taps the ball?

• 
• 
• 
• 

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-1

NGSS.MS-PS2-2

Students drop the same heavy ball onto identical blocks of soft clay from different heights. For each height they measure the depth of the dent the ball makes in the clay. Which question is the student most likely trying to answer with this investigation?

• Does the height of the release affect the force of the impact?

• Does the mass of the ball affect the force of the impact?

• How does the mass of the ball change?

• How does the mass of the ball increase?

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-1

NGSS.MS-PS2-2

A student designs an experiment to test the force of a spring launcher and four spheres with the same diameter (same size) but with different masses. Which question is the student most likely trying to answer with this investigation?

• How does the mass of an object affect the height reached by that object?

• How do different surfaces affect the height reached by an object?

• How can you reduce the mass of each object?

• Which surface creates the most friction?

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-2

A student uses a spring scale to pull a 50 gram block horizontally across a wood desk. Then the student pulls the block the same distance across surfaces of carpet, sandpaper, and glass. Which question is the investigation designed to answer?

• How do blocks of different sizes react to force?

• How to different surfaces affect the amount of force needed to move a block?

• How do blocks affect spring scales?

• How does the mass of a block change when it is pulled across a desk?

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-2

Four students stand facing a box. The diagram below shows an overhead view of the box. The numbered circles represent the positions of the students. What do the students need to do to slide the box to the northeast? (The compass shows you which way each direction is. Northeast is the direction midway between north and east.)

• Students 1 and 2 push, Students 3 and 4 pull.

• Students 1 and 4 push, Students 2 and 3 pull.

• Students 2 and 3 push, Students 1 and 4 pull.

• Students 3 and 4 push, Students 1 and 2 pull.

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-1

NGSS.MS-PS2-2

What do the students need to do to slide the box to the northwest? (The compass shows you which way each direction is. Northwest is the direction midway between north and west.)

• Students 1 and 2 push, Students 3 and 4 pull.

• Students 1 and 4 push, Students 2 and 3 pull.

• Students 2 and 3 push, Students 1 and 4 pull.

• Students 3 and 4 push, Students 1 and 2 pull.

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-1

NGSS.MS-PS2-2