Test Booklet Subject: SC, Grade: 04 2008 NECAP 4th Grade Science Student name: Author: Rhode Island District: Rhode Island Released Tests Printed: Wednesday February 03, 2016
1 A teacher buys the package of cookies shown below at a store. The cookies in the package weigh 16 oz. The cookies broke on the way home from the store. What is the weight of the cookies in the package now? A 12 oz B 16 oz C 21 oz D 25 oz Page 1
2 A student wants to compare how heat affects water and sand. He uses a lamp to heat a jar of water and a jar of sand. Which setup is best for the experiment? A C B D 3 A student predicts that the distance an object moves depends on how hard it is pushed. He designs an experiment to test his prediction. The student repeats the experiment 10 times. Which of the following should stay the same each time he does the experiment? A the weight of the object B the temperature of the object C the force used to push the object D the distance the object moves Page 2
4 The table below shows the characteristics of five minerals. 5 Two students designed the experiment shown below to study stream erosion. A student wants to classify the minerals that are shiny and nonmagnetic in the same group. Which minerals belong in this group? A Minerals 1 and 2 B Minerals 2 and 3 C Minerals 2 and 4 D Minerals 4 and 5 A steady stream of water flows from a faucet into a tray holding sand and gravel. The water forms a channel by eroding some of the sand and gravel. How can the students increase the amount of sand and gravel being eroded? A by increasing the water temperature B by adding coarse gravel to the tray C by increasing the tilt of the tray D by reducing the amount of flowing water 6 A student sees pavement that is raised and cracked on her street. She knows that this happens in only the winter. Her mother calls these frost heaves. Which sentence best explains how frost heaves occur? A Ice crystals cover the entire surface of the pavement. B Water trapped under the pavement expands as the water freezes. C The weight of heavy snowfalls puts too much pressure on the pavement. D Shoveling snow damages the pavement. Page 3
7 Aluminum is an earth material. Some useful properties of aluminum are listed below. strong lightweight resistant to rust good conductor of heat easily shaped and bent a) Identify two objects that could be made using aluminum. b) For each object you identified in part (a), choose two properties of aluminum that make it useful for making the object. Explain why these properties are important for the object. Page 4
8 A student puts sunflower seeds in one bird feeder and millet seeds in another bird feeder. He predicts that blue jays like to eat sunflower seeds more than millet seeds. The student watches the feeders for an hour each morning and an hour each evening. Which information is most important for testing his prediction? A the number of blue jays that eat at each feeder B how often the same blue jay eats at each feeder C the number of different kinds of birds that eat at each feeder D. how often the feeders have to be refilled D how often the feeders have to be refilled 9 Plants get energy from which source? A fertilizer B soil C sunlight D water 10 Which characteristic do children inherit from their birth parents? A beliefs B language C manners D skin color Page 5
Directions: Bird Beaks and Survival You will conduct a science investigation called Bird Beaks and Survival. First you will work with your partner(s) and then you will work alone. You will make a prediction on your own. You will set up and conduct the investigation, and you will collect and record your data with your partner(s). Scientists often make models to guide their investigations. You will be using materials that represent bird beaks and kinds of food that birds eat in nature. Follow the directions in this Task Booklet. Please remember that in addition to working with the science materials, you must record your data in the Data Table on page 7. In this task, you will make a prediction on page 5. share one set of materials with your partner(s). work together with your partner(s) to use the materials. record your data and observations in the Data Table on page 7. Note: In the operational test, students were instructed to copy their data from the Data Table to their Student Answer Booklet. The words listed in the table below are used in this investigation. Page 6
The students in Mr. Brown s fourth-grade class are observing different groups of birds outside their classroom. One group of birds is eating from a bird feeder. A second group of birds is eating off the ground, and a third group of birds is pecking at the bark of a tree. The students notice that the three groups of birds have different beaks. They ask Mr. Brown if the shape of a bird s beak has something to do with what the bird eats. Mr. Brown tells his students that they will do an investigation to find out if the shape of a bird s beak is related to what the bird eats. He decides to have the students use different kinds of materials to represent different bird beaks. He asks the students to investigate the following question: Which beak will pick up the most different kinds of food? Mr. Brown gives the students the materials shown below to represent different types of beaks. Mr. Brown gives the students the materials shown below to represent different kinds of food. Setting Up: Page 7
You have the same materials as the students in Mr. Brown s class. Making a Prediction What Do You Think? Which beak will pick up the most different kinds of food? Make a prediction on your own about the question. Use the information from the story about Mr. Brown s class and what you know about birds to make your prediction. Explain your prediction. Write your prediction in the box below. Page 8
Procedure: You and your partner(s) will take turns using the beak materials. You will each record all of the data in your own Task Booklet. Follow this procedure for all three beak types. Use each beak only one time. 1. Carefully pour the food items from the cup onto the paper plate. 2. Choose a beak. 3. Use the beak to pick up as many food items on the plate as you can in one minute. Put the food items you pick up in the cup. 4. Your partner turns over the timer when you begin. Your partner also tells you when time is up. 5. Use only one hand, the hand with the beak, to pick up the food items. Use your other hand to hold the cup on your desk or table. 6. Do not use your fingers to pick up the food items. Use only the beak. 7. Stop when all of the sand drains to the bottom of the timer. 8. Put your beak back on the placemat. 9. Pour the food items you collected from your cup onto your desk or table. 10. Sort these food items by type. 11. Count the number of each type of food item you picked up. Write the number in the Data Table on page 7. Write a zero in the data table if you did not pick up any. You and your partner(s) should each record the data in your own Task Booklet. 12. Return all of the food items to the food plate and mix them up. 13. Choose another beak. Repeat the procedure using each beak only one time. Page 9
When your Data Table is complete, return all of the food items to the cup and replace the beaks on the placemat. Page 10
11 Use the data you collected to graph the number of each food item you picked up with the tweezers. Be sure to title your graph. Page 11
12 How many different kinds of food did you pick up with the tweezers? different kinds of food How many different kinds of food did you pick up with the spoon? different kinds of food How many different kinds of food did you pick up with the toothpick? different kinds of food 13 a) Which type of bird beak was able to pick up the most different kinds of food? Use your data to explain your answer. b) Which bird beak(s) picked up the fewest kinds of food? Use your data to explain your answer. Page 12
14 a) Look at your prediction on page 5 in your Task Booklet. Now look at your data. Did your data support what you thought about what the shape of a bird s beak tells you about the kind of food it can eat? Yes No b) Explain how your data and observations did or did not support your prediction. 15 Use what you learned in your investigation and what you know about what birds eat to explain how the shape of a bird s beak affects its survival. Page 13
16 Planning a New Investigation Mr. Brown s class wants to learn more about the birds in their school yard and the kinds of food that they eat. The students want to answer this question: Which type of food do birds in the school yard eat the most? a) Write a plan Mr. Brown s students can follow to help them answer their question. b) Identify one thing in your plan that will stay the same in the investigation. Page 14
17 Look at the bird and the foods shown below. Based on what you learned in your investigation, predict which food(s) a bird with this type of beak would eat and explain why. Page 15 STOP