Assessment Resource Banks

NMSSA Science Toolkit - Assessment 2

This is an assessment of your learning in science.

In this test there are four different types of questions for you to answer. You might need to:

1. Click on one or more answers to select them.
2. Choose a word from a drop down menu to complete a sentence.
3. Draw and/or label diagrams.

4. Write a response to a question.

When you have answered a question click on the Next button

. To go back to a question you have already attempted click on the grey back arrow button.

You may need to scroll down the page to read all the information.

There are 36 questions in this test. It should take you about 45 minutes to complete. Try to answer all the questions.

Question

Native leaves

Table of some New Zealand native trees
Name of native tree	Leaf shape	Edge of leaf	Arrangement of leaves on stem	Approximate size of leaf
kōwhai	round	smooth	opposite	1 cm
mānuka	oval	smooth	alternate	1 cm
rātā	oval	smooth	alternate	3-6 cm
pōhutukawa	oval	smooth	opposite	3-10 cm

1) Use the table to identify the leaf in the photo above.

- kōwhai
- mānuka
- rātā
- pōhutukawa

Question

Table of some New Zealand native trees
Name of native tree	Leaf shape	Edge of leaf	Arrangement of leaves on stem	Approximate size of leaf
kōwhai	round	smooth	opposite	1 cm
mānuka	oval	smooth	alternate	1 cm
rātā	oval	smooth	alternate	3-6 cm
pōhutukawa	oval	smooth	opposite	3-10 cm

2) Which of these claims can be justified (supported by) using only the data in the table? Choose two.

- Mānuka and kōwhai leaves are smaller than rātā leaves.
- All NZ native trees have leaves with smooth edges.
- Not all NZ native trees have the same shaped leaves.
- Pōhutukawa and rātā both have alternating leaves.

Question

Energy bulbs 2

Energy usage table

Type of bulb	Image	Brightness (lumens)	Electricity (watts per second)
Incandescent bulb	^{KMJ \| CC-BY SA 3.0}	1600	100 watts
CFL bulb	^{© Sun Ladder \| CC-BY-SA 3.0}	1600	25 watts
LED bulb	^{Dinkar.shukla \| CC-BY SA 4.0}	1600	20 watt

All the light bulbs above lose energy as heat. The more heat they lose, the more electricity they need to make the same amount of light.

3) Which light bulb loses the most heat energy?

- The incandescent light bulb.
- The CFL light bulb.
- The LED light bulb.
- They are all losing the same heat energy.

Question

Energy usage table

Type of bulb	Image	Brightness (lumens)	Electricity (watts per second)
Incandescent bulb	^{KMJ \| CC-BY SA 3.0}	1600	100 watts
CFL bulb	^{Sun Ladder \| CC-BY-SA 3.0}	1600	25 watts
LED bulb	^{Dinkar.shukla \| CC-BY SA 4.0}	1600	20 watts

Energy can change from one form to another.

4) What energy changes are correct for the LED bulb?

- electricity to heat
- electricity to light
- electricity to light and heat
- electricity to electricity

Static electricity

Read the information below then click on the Next button to answer some questions.

Students in room 6 were investigating static electricity. They rubbed a balloon on different materials and held it above their hair. When their hair stood up, their teacher said they had made static electricity. Here are the results of their investigation.

800px-Attractive-electric-force-between-hair-and-balloon.jpg

^{© MikeRun | Wikipedia, CC-BY SA 4.0}

Room 6 investigation

Materials tested for static electricity

Materials	Group 1	Group 2	Group 3	Group 4	Group 5
cotton	N	N	N	Y	N
rayon	N	N	N	Y	Y
polyester	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
wool	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
silk	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y

Key:

Y	Hair stood up	Static electricity was made
N	Hair did not stand up	Static electricity was not made

Question

Room 6 investigation

Materials tested for static electricity

Materials	Group 1	Group 2	Group 3	Group 4	Group 5
cotton	N	N	N	Y	N
rayon	N	N	N	Y	Y
polyester	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
wool	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
silk	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y

Key:

Y	Hair stood up	Static electricity was made
N	Hair did not stand up	Static electricity was not made

Some of the students discussed the class results.

5) Whose statement can you be most sure is correct?

- Sienna's
- Tom's
- Georgia's
- Jayson's

Question 2Change answer

Room 6 investigation

Materials tested for static electricity

Materials	Group 1	Group 2	Group 3	Group 4	Group 5
cotton	N	N	N	Y	N
rayon	N	N	N	Y	Y
polyester	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
wool	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
silk	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y

Key:

Y	Hair stood up	Static electricity was made
N	Hair did not stand up	Static electricity was not made

Two groups found that rayon did make static electricity.

Georgia's group found that rayon did not make static electricity.

6) What could the class do to find out which result was correct?

Room 6 investigation

Materials tested for static electricity

Materials	Group 1	Group 2	Group 3	Group 4	Group 5
cotton	N	N	N	Y	N
rayon	N	N	N	Y	Y
polyester	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
wool	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
silk	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y

Key:

Y	Hair stood up	Static electricity was made
N	Hair did not stand up	Static electricity was not made

Two groups found that rayon did make static electricity.

Georgia's group found that rayon did not make static electricity.

6) What could the class do to find out which result was correct?

Question

The teacher said the balloon had been given a charge from the material. A charge can be positive + or negative - .

If an item has more positive charges it is positively charged.

If it has more negative charges it is negatively charged.

static electricity, balloons and material

In the before rubbing diagram the charges are the same so neither the balloon nor the material is charged.

7) After the balloon has been rubbed onto the material, what sort of charge do they each have?

- The balloon is positively charged, and the material is negatively charged.
- The balloon is negatively charged, and the material is positively charged.
- The balloon and the material are both positively charged.
- The material and balloon are both neutral (no charge).

Question

When things have different charges, they move towards each other.

When things have the same charge, they move away from each other.

8) The student's hair stood up because

- the balloon had a different charge to the student’s hair.
- the balloon had the same charge as the student’s hair.
- the balloon and the student’s hair were not charged.

Kea and kākā

Living things change over time. This helps them survive when the conditions of the places they live in change.

Kea and kākā look similar. Scientists think that a long time ago they had the same ancestor.

Kea

^{© J.Fisher | PhotoKete}

found in forests and mountains of the South Island of New Zealand
mostly olive-green with a brilliant orange under their wings
nest in burrows or crevices among the roots of trees
eat dead animals, roots, leaves, berries, nectar, and insects.

Kākā

^{© Rosino | Flickr, CC-BY 2.0}

found in lowland native forest throughout New Zealand
strongly patterned brown/green/grey feathers with orange and scarlet flashes under the wings
make their nests in hollow trees
eat fruits, berries, seeds, flowers, buds, nectar, sap, plants, and insects.

Question

Use the information in the fact file and in the introduction to answer the following question.

9) Which statement best supports why scientists think that the kea and the kākā have the same ancestor?

- Their names are similar.
- They have many similar features.
- They live in New Zealand forests.
- They eat the same types of food.

Question

Kea

found in forests and mountains of the South Island of New Zealand
mostly olive-green with a brilliant orange under their wings
nest in burrows or crevices among the roots of trees
eat dead animals, roots, leaves, berries, nectar, and insects.

Kākā

found in lowland native forest throughout New Zealand
strongly patterned brown/green/grey feathers with orange and scarlet flashes under the wings
make their nests in hollow trees
eat fruits, berries, seeds, flowers, buds, nectar, sap, plants, and insects.

Use the information in the fact file to answer the following question:

10) Which statement best explains why both the kea and kākā changed over time?

- The kea changed to survive in cold mountain climates.
- The kākā changed to survive in lowland forests.
- The kea and kākā changed to survive in different climates.
- The kea and kākā changed because they live in New Zealand forests.

Question

1080

The Department of Conservation (DOC) sometimes uses a poison called 1080 to kill pests such as mice, rats, and possums.

^{© Herb Christophers | DOC, CC-BY SA 4.0}

16) Do you think this is a good thing for DOC to do?

- Yes
- No

Question

Running

^{Source: Dreamstime}

18) When I run fast, I notice that first my breathing gets faster and then my heart beats faster too. This is because:

- running is good for you and keeps you fit and healthy.
- the lungs and heart both work to get more oxygen to your muscles.
- the heart's job is to pump blood around the body.
- when you run, you breathe through your mouth instead of your nose.

Question

19) Which of the questions below could be answered by doing an investigation? Choose all that apply.

- What effect does exercise have on your heart rate?
- Why do we have two lungs and one heart?
- What is the most common season for catching a cold?
- Do grazes heal faster with or without plasters?

Question

Predators

A New Zealand food chain

20) What does the food chain above tell you about moreporks?

- Moreporks eat rats.
- Giant wētā eat moreporks.
- Moreporks eat leaves.
- Rats eat moreporks.

Question

Fact file on Hoiho

^{© Christian Mehlführer | CC-BY 2.5}

Hoiho (yellow-eyed penguins) are endangered.
They build their nests on land and catch their food in the ocean.
Predators attack them at sea and on land.

Some predators of hoiho

Natural predators	Introduced predators
barracudas, sharks, seals, sea lions	cats, stoats, dogs, ferrets

Use the fact file on hoiho and the table of predators to answer the question below.

22) What can introduced predators do that natural predators cannot?

- Eat plants that hoiho eat.
- Eat the chicks and eggs in the nest.
- Eat the adults when they are hunting for food.
- Eat the food the adults catch for their chicks.

Question

Fact file on Hoiho

^{© Christian Mehlführer | CC-BY 2.5}

Hoiho (yellow-eyed penguins) are endangered.
They build their nests on land and catch their food in the ocean.
Predators attack them at sea and on land.

Some predators of hoiho

Natural predators	Introduced predators
barracudas, sharks, seals, sea lions	cats, stoats, dogs, ferrets

Use the fact file on hoiho and the table of predators to answer the question below.

23) What is the most important information from the table when deciding on practical actions to take to protect hoiho?

- The natural predators are bigger than introduced predators.
- The introduced predators all live on land.
- The natural predators are more dangerous.
- The introduced and natural predators both eat penguins.

Question

Letting the light through

A class was investigating which things let light through. They held different objects up to a torch. The table shows the results of all 6 groups in the class.

Object	Transparent (all light passes through)	Translucent (some light passes through)	Opaque (no light passes through)
Glass of water	/ / / / / /
Glass of orange juice	/ / /	/ / /
Leaf	/	/ /	/ / /
Feather	/	/ / / / /
A piece of plastic	/ / /		/ / /
A towel		/ /	/ / / /
A tissue		/ / / / / /
A piece of cardboard		/	/ / / / /

24) Which statement is best supported by the results?

- A tissue is translucent.
- A leaf is opaque.
- Plastic is transparent.
- A glass of orange juice is transparent.

Question

Object	Transparent (all light passes through)	Translucent (some light passes through)	Opaque (no light passes through)
Glass of water	/ / / / / /
Glass of orange juice	/ / /	/ / /
Leaf	/	/ /	/ / /
Feather	/	/ / / / /
A piece of plastic	/ / /		/ / /
A towel		/ /	/ / / /
A tissue		/ / / / / /
A piece of cardboard		/	/ / / / /

25) What might have caused different groups to get different results? Choose all that apply.

- Different groups measured the light getting through in different ways.
- Some groups had brighter torches than others.
- The objects tested by each group were not exactly the same.
- The groups did not test all the objects for the same amount of time.

Question

Water particles

Everything is made up of particles. Particles are so small that we can't see them. Scientists use diagrams to explain how particles move when water changes from a solid to a liquid to a gas.

Diagram of the movement of particles

In the diagram, the different moving particles

symbols are used to show how fast the particles are moving.

26) Which of the following statements describes what is happening to the particles when liquid changes to a gas?

- The particles move faster.
- The particles move at the same speed.
- The particles slow down.

Question 1Change answer

27) Look carefully at the diagram above. A, B and C all show forms of water.

Select the word that describes the form of the water for each letter.

Some words may be used more than once.

27) Look carefully at the diagram above. A, B and C all show forms of water.

Select the word that describes the form of the water for each letter.

Some words may be used more than once.

A. solidliquidgas B. solidliquidgas C. solidliquidgas

Question

Climate summary

^{© NIWA}

^{© NIWA}

29) Use the diagram and the table to decide which one of the statements below is definitely true.

- In July 2020 Hamilton had the highest rainfall in New Zealand.
- July 2020 was the warmest July ever in New Zealand.
- In July 2020 Wellington had less rain than it usually gets in July.
- In July 2020 it was sunnier in New Zealand than usual for July.

Question

Climate summary

30) Whose idea fits the evidence the best?

Question Change answer

Carbon cycle

All living things have carbon in them - Plants take carbon dioxide out of the air to make food - Animals get carbon from plants and breathe out carbon dioxide - Carbon dioxide can be produced when things are burned.

In the diagram below,

31) draw arrows to show how carbon moves from the air into plants and animals then back into the air.

Carbon cycle

In the diagram below,

31) draw arrows to show how carbon moves from the air into plants and animals then back into the air.

Question Change answer

32) Label the dotted lines to show what is happening.

Question 2Change answer

33) Forest fires cause levels of carbon dioxide in the air to increase in two ways.

What are the two ways?

33) Forest fires cause levels of carbon dioxide in the air to increase in two ways.

What are the two ways?

^{© NIWA}

Question

Birdsong

Scientists have done different studies about the songs of city and country birds. They have observed that birds of the same species sing differently if they live in the city or in the country. Here is what they found out.

City birds	Country birds
sing their songs more loudly than country birds	sing their songs more quietly than city birds
sing longer songs than country birds	sing shorter songs than city birds
sing their songs faster than country birds	sing their songs more slowly than city birds

In one study scientists observed that city birds sang more quickly and for a longer time than country birds.

34) What would scientists have been observing to make them think this? Choose two.

- How loudly city and country birds sing.
- The length of time city and country birds sing.
- The different songs city and country birds sing.
- How quickly city and country birds sing.

Question

City birds	Country birds
sing their songs more loudly than country birds	sing their songs more quietly than city birds
sing longer songs than country birds	sing shorter songs than city birds
sing their songs faster than country birds	sing their songs more slowly than city birds

Singing slowly makes a lower sound that carries better over city noise.

Because of this, some scientists thought that city birds would sing more slowly than country birds.

35) Which observation shows their idea is wrong?

- City birds sing their songs more loudly than country birds.
- City birds sing their songs faster than country birds.
- Country birds sing shorter songs than city birds.
- Country birds sing their songs more quietly than city birds.

Question

Shadows

The netball goal post at school is 2 metres high. We measured the length of its shadow at 3 different times during the day, at 4 different times during the year.

**Length of Shadow**
Date	9am	12 midday	3pm
1 February	2.0m	1.0m	2.0m
1 May	4.6m	2.8m	4.6m
1 August	20.0m	7.2m	20.0m
1 November	3.4m	2.2m	3.4m

36) Which of these statements are supported by the data? (Choose all that apply.)

- Shadows are longer in the morning than in the afternoon.
- Shadows are longer in winter than in summer.
- Shadows are shorter at midday than in the morning.
- Shadows are always longer than the object that is blocking the light.
- When the sun is high in the sky, the shadows are shorter.
- The length of a shadow changes during a day.

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NMSSA Science Toolkit - Assessment 2

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