TCAP Science

A student sets up the cardboard tube shown. The student holds the tube at an angle. The student drops a ball into each hole, then measures how fast the ball travels when it comes out of the tube. 

Dropping the ball into which hole will cause the ball to travel the fastest?

• Hole 1, because the ball will have the most potential energy

• Hole 2, because the ball will have the most kinetic energy

• Hole 3, because the ball will have the least potential energy

• Hole 4, because the ball will have the least kinetic energy

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-2

NGSS.MS-PS3-1

NGSS.MS-PS3-2

NGSS.MS-PS3-5

The graph shows population growth and water usage for the world. Which statement is correct based on the data shown?

• The amount of water used is not related to the human population.

• The amount of water used is higher when the human population is lower.

• The amount of water used is lowest when the human population is highest.

• The amount of water used is higher when the human population is higher.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS3-4

Which three statements correctly describe materials plants need?

• Plants need sunlight to grow.

• Plants need water to grow.

• Plants need soil to photosynthesize.

• Plants need carbon dioxide to photosynthesize.

• Plants need oxygen to photosynthesize.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-6

Students took turns rolling a ball across a classroom floor. A sensor measured the speed of the ball at the one-meter mark. The students recorded the speed in a data table. Which conclusion is supported by the data?

• The ball had the most energy on roll 1.

• The ball had the least energy on roll 4.

• The ball had less energy on roll 1 than on roll 2.

• The ball had more energy on roll 2 than on roll 3.

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS3-1

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of matter?

• It has mass.

• It occupies space.

• It is always visible.

• It can exist in different states.

Tags

DOK Level 2: Skill/Concept

The diagram shown is a model of the different layers inside Earth. Which two statements best compare the crust to the rest of the layers?

• The crust surrounds all the other layers and is solid.

• The crust is the innermost layer and is liquid.

• The crust is the thinnest layer and is solid.

• The crust is the outermost layer and is liquid.

• The crust is the thickest layer and is solid.

The diagram shows a V-shaped valley. The valley did not exist thousands of years ago. This valley is most likely the result of

• sediment being deposited by slow-moving water.

• riverbanks being eroded by fast-moving water.

• earthquakes causing the ground to split open.

• glaciers moving sediment to a new location.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-2

A beaver is a mammal that builds its home in a stream or river. The beaver’s home is called a lodge. The beaver builds the lodge in the middle of a pond it creates by building dams in the stream. The picture shows a model of a stream ecosystem with two beaver dams and a beaver lodge. Based on the model, what would most likely happen to the ecosystem if the beavers and their dams were removed?

• The trees would have more water to use as the stream water moves more slowly through the ecosystem.

• The stream would be wider and deeper as the stream water moves more slowly through the ecosystem.

• The banks of the stream would have less erosion as the stream water moves more quickly through the ecosystem.

• The water used by plants on the banks of the stream would be reduced as the stream water moves more quickly through the ecosystem.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-1

NGSS.MS-LS2-3

NGSS.MS-LS2-4

A student saw a rainbow outside after school. The next day the student decided to model how rainbows form. The student shines white light through a glass prism and sees how the light splits up into many colors. Which two ways does the student’s model need to be changed to better show how rainbows are formed?

• The prism should be as high in the air as rainbows are.

• The model needs to be outside because rainbows only form outside.

• The prism should have a round shape because raindrops are round.

• The prism should be made of water instead of glass because rain is made of water.

• Sunlight should be used instead of white light because sunlight and white light are made of different things.

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS4-1

On a forest field trip, a student is assigned a list of observations to make. One observation the student looks for is evidence of mechanical weathering. Which activity would allow the student to check mechanical weathering off the list?

• an acorn falling out of a tree

• an ant placing a soil particle on an anthill

• a puddle getting smaller as the sun shines on it

• a stone becoming smooth in a flowing riverbed