2017 STAAR Grade 5 Science

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Monahans Sandhills State Park in Texas has almost 4,000 acres of sand dunes. Some of the dunes are as tall as a six-story building.

The dunes in the park are formed by —

Fertilizers used on farms near the coast can be carried to the ocean when runoff occurs during rain showers. These fertilizers can decrease the populations of fish and shellfish.

Which other populations most likely decrease as a result?

A student records the following information about a planet.

Which planet is the student studying?

The diagram shows an electric circuit with four bells that a student plans to build.

When the student connects the wires as shown, which of the bells will ring?

Many desert animals depend on the prickly pear cactus.

What role does the prickly pear cactus play in a desert food web?

In an investigation hot water is poured into a clear plastic cup. Another clear plastic cup is placed upside down over the cup of hot water.

Which of these is likely to occur during the next three minutes?

Which of these best explains why the sun appears to move across the sky each day?

The table gives information about four types of fish. These fish all have mouth structures that allow them to eat different types of food.

Which of these fish has mouth structures that allow it to eat algae by taking large bites of the hard coral on which the algae grows?

Some buildings and homes are heated by energy produced from an alternative to fossil fuels. Which of these is an example of a building or home heated using an alternative energy source?

The two pictures show part of an investigation. A magnet, a book, and a paper clip are on a sheet of lined paper. In Picture 1 a student slides a magnet closer to the book. The student holds the book still in both pictures.

Which statement about this investigation can be supported by the result shown?

A student fills two identical beakers with the same volume of water. The student places one beaker in a freezer and the other beaker on a hot plate. After 5 minutes the student observes that the temperature of the water in the freezer is 19°C and the temperature of the water on the hot plate is 42°C.

Which statement best describes the relationship between the two beakers of water and the freezing and boiling points of water?

Green anole lizards are bright-green reptiles native to the southeastern United States and the Caribbean islands. They can be kept in terrariums to study their behavior and how they interact with their environment.

Which observation describes this anole lizard interacting with the living elements in its environment?

The toy oven shown uses a lightbulb to bake small cakes.

What types of energy does the toy oven use to bake the cakes?

Which list contains only processes that must occur in order for fossil fuels to form?

A group of students visited a park and collected leaves from many different trees in order to study them. They recorded their observations about the leaves.

Which of these observations does NOT describe an inherited trait?

This photograph shows a girl using a lab instrument during an investigation on light. A teacher asks the other students in the class to look carefully at the girl’s eye and give reasons for its appearance.

Which table correctly identifies the reasons for the appearance of the girl’s eye through the lab instrument?

A student studying East Africa reads these facts about the Serengeti National Park in Tanzania.

The student thinks that parts of Texas are probably similar to the Serengeti. Based on the following descriptions, which of these Texas animals would be least likely to live in the Serengeti’s grasslands?

A student is asked to design a sleeve for a cup that will insulate thermal energy and not feel hot to the touch when the cup is filled with hot liquid.

The student has four materials to choose from. Which of these materials is least useful as an insulator?

The diagrams show two trials of an experiment in which a spring scale was used to measure force.

This experiment can be used to determine —

The size and shape of a delta can change over time.

The size and shape of this delta over time are NOT likely to be changed by —

Which object requires only mechanical energy to perform its main function?

Big Bend National Park is located in the part of the Chihuahuan Desert that is in southwestern Texas. The table below lists some of the types of animals that live in Big Bend and what they eat.

Based on the information in the table, which of the following food chains shows one way energy flows in the Big Bend ecosystem?

Some ways to separate mixtures are listed below.

A student is given a beaker containing gravel and water. Which of these ways could the student NOT use to separate the gravel from the water?

Which of these correctly describes the relationship between plants and animals in the carbon dioxide-oxygen cycle?

A student builds a model of the solar system that includes a sphere representing Earth. The sphere turns in a full circle on its axis.

By using a model of Earth that spins on its axis, the student can best demonstrate —

One stage in the life cycle of an apple tree is the release of seeds.

Which of these animal activities is most like the stage of the life cycle in which seeds are released?

In some circuits that are used for decorating, one burned-out lightbulb will prevent all the other lightbulbs from lighting. In other circuits, one burned-out lightbulb will have no effect on the other lightbulbs.

In which of these circuits will the other lightbulbs still light even if one bulb is burned out?

Which diagram models the process of compaction leading to the formation of sedimentary rock?

Which of these is a behavior that a person learns rather than inherits?

For an investigation a teacher dropped a bolt into a container of maple syrup and asked students to remove it without touching the syrup. The students first tried to use a strong magnet to remove the bolt, but it remained on the bottom of the container. They finally poured the syrup into another container to get the bolt out.

Which of these best describes some of the bolt’s physical properties?

Newly hatched chicks of many types of birds, such as parrots, are covered in soft, fluffy down feathers. These feathers contain many small spaces where air gets trapped.

In some animal species, such as Arctic foxes, the fur covering the animal’s body consists of hollow strands of hair filled with air.

The primary role of the air trapped in the down feathers and fur is most likely to —

The picture shows an area of Yosemite National Park.

Which statement about light is supported by this picture?

Many gardeners use red worms like the ones shown in the photograph to turn vegetable and fruit scraps into topsoil for plants. The gardeners build a worm farm in a large container lined with old newspapers and filled with moist garden soil. The worms eat about half their body weight daily and produce waste that can be used as plant fertilizer.

The container for a worm farm needs to have a lid, but the lid must be left partially open because worms require which of the following in order to survive?

Which of these shows a person using an alternative energy source to perform a task?

For an investigation a student put 100 mL of water at room temperature into each of three beakers. Then the student added a coin to Beaker R, 3 g of a powdered drink mix to Beaker S, and 10 mL of lamp oil to Beaker T. The student stirred the contents of the beakers and then left them sitting on a lab table for 5 minutes.

Which diagram shows what the student most likely observed in each of the beakers after 5 minutes?

The model below shows where water can be found during different stages of the water cycle.

What should be added to the diagram to better explain the water cycle?

Monahans Sandhills State Park in Texas has almost 4,000 acres of sand dunes. Some of the dunes are as tall as a six-story building.The dunes in the park are formed by —

Fertilizers used on farms near the coast can be carried to the ocean when runoff occurs during rain showers. These fertilizers can decrease the populations of fish and shellfish. Which other populations most likely decrease as a result?

A student records the following information about a planet.Which planet is the student studying?

The diagram shows an electric circuit with four bells that a student plans to build.When the student connects the wires as shown, which of the bells will ring?

Many desert animals depend on the prickly pear cactus.What role does the prickly pear cactus play in a desert food web?

In an investigation hot water is poured into a clear plastic cup. Another clear plastic cup is placed upside down over the cup of hot water.Which of these is likely to occur during the next three minutes?

Which of these best explains why the sun appears to move across the sky each day?

The table gives information about four types of fish. These fish all have mouth structures that allow them to eat different types of food.Which of these fish has mouth structures that allow it to eat algae by taking large bites of the hard coral on which the algae grows?

Some buildings and homes are heated by energy produced from an alternative to fossil fuels. Which of these is an example of a building or home heated using an alternative energy source?

The toy oven shown uses a lightbulb to bake small cakes.What types of energy does the toy oven use to bake the cakes?

Which list contains only processes that must occur in order for fossil fuels to form?

A group of students visited a park and collected leaves from many different trees in order to study them. They recorded their observations about the leaves.Which of these observations does NOT describe an inherited trait?

A student is asked to design a sleeve for a cup that will insulate thermal energy and not feel hot to the touch when the cup is filled with hot liquid.The student has four materials to choose from. Which of these materials is least useful as an insulator?

The diagrams show two trials of an experiment in which a spring scale was used to measure force.This experiment can be used to determine —

The size and shape of a delta can change over time.The size and shape of this delta over time are NOT likely to be changed by —

Which object requires only mechanical energy to perform its main function?

Some ways to separate mixtures are listed below.A student is given a beaker containing gravel and water. Which of these ways could the student NOT use to separate the gravel from the water?

Which of these correctly describes the relationship between plants and animals in the carbon dioxide-oxygen cycle?

A student builds a model of the solar system that includes a sphere representing Earth. The sphere turns in a full circle on its axis.By using a model of Earth that spins on its axis, the student can best demonstrate —

One stage in the life cycle of an apple tree is the release of seeds.Which of these animal activities is most like the stage of the life cycle in which seeds are released?

Which diagram models the process of compaction leading to the formation of sedimentary rock?

Which of these is a behavior that a person learns rather than inherits?

The picture shows an area of Yosemite National Park.Which statement about light is supported by this picture?

Which of these shows a person using an alternative energy source to perform a task?

The model below shows where water can be found during different stages of the water cycle.What should be added to the diagram to better explain the water cycle?

Monahans Sandhills State Park in Texas has almost 4,000 acres of sand dunes. Some of the dunes are as tall as a six-story building.

The dunes in the park are formed by —

Fertilizers used on farms near the coast can be carried to the ocean when runoff occurs during rain showers. These fertilizers can decrease the populations of fish and shellfish.

Which other populations most likely decrease as a result?

A student records the following information about a planet.

Which planet is the student studying?

The diagram shows an electric circuit with four bells that a student plans to build.

When the student connects the wires as shown, which of the bells will ring?

Many desert animals depend on the prickly pear cactus.

What role does the prickly pear cactus play in a desert food web?

In an investigation hot water is poured into a clear plastic cup. Another clear plastic cup is placed upside down over the cup of hot water.

Which of these is likely to occur during the next three minutes?

The table gives information about four types of fish. These fish all have mouth structures that allow them to eat different types of food.

Which of these fish has mouth structures that allow it to eat algae by taking large bites of the hard coral on which the algae grows?

The toy oven shown uses a lightbulb to bake small cakes.

What types of energy does the toy oven use to bake the cakes?

A group of students visited a park and collected leaves from many different trees in order to study them. They recorded their observations about the leaves.

Which of these observations does NOT describe an inherited trait?

A student is asked to design a sleeve for a cup that will insulate thermal energy and not feel hot to the touch when the cup is filled with hot liquid.

The student has four materials to choose from. Which of these materials is least useful as an insulator?

The diagrams show two trials of an experiment in which a spring scale was used to measure force.

This experiment can be used to determine —

The size and shape of a delta can change over time.

The size and shape of this delta over time are NOT likely to be changed by —

Some ways to separate mixtures are listed below.

A student is given a beaker containing gravel and water. Which of these ways could the student NOT use to separate the gravel from the water?

A student builds a model of the solar system that includes a sphere representing Earth. The sphere turns in a full circle on its axis.

By using a model of Earth that spins on its axis, the student can best demonstrate —

One stage in the life cycle of an apple tree is the release of seeds.

Which of these animal activities is most like the stage of the life cycle in which seeds are released?

The picture shows an area of Yosemite National Park.

Which statement about light is supported by this picture?

The model below shows where water can be found during different stages of the water cycle.

What should be added to the diagram to better explain the water cycle?