Grade 8 Science Pretest

1. Which is a chemical property of iron?

a. it can melt
b. it can rust
c. it can bend
d. it can break into pieces

2. Examine the following table to answer the question that follows. Which pair of tests measured chemical properties?

Substance Physical Reaction to Acid Reaction to Reaction to

Description (weak HCI solution) Water Heat
Sugar Small, white, None None Caramelizes
hard crystals (turns brown
and bubbly)
Salt Small, white, None None None
hard crystals
Baking Soda Fine, white, Bubbles and fizzes None None
smooth powder
Flour Fine, white, None None None
smooth powder

a. Physical description and reaction to heat

b. Physical description and reaction to acid
c. Reaction to water and physical description
d. Reaction to acid and reaction to heat

3. Kelley mixes and stirs two chemical solids together. While stirring she notices that the beaker is getting hot. Why is
the beaker getting hot?

a. The reaction of the two chemicals is taking in heat.

b. The beaker is getting hot because of the stirring.
c. The reaction of the two chemicals is releasing heat.
d. The beaker is getting hot because the solids are changing phase.

4. Which of the following is an example of a physical change?

a. Evaporation in a swamp cooler

b. Electricity produced by a dry cell
c. Digestion of hamburger meat
d. Rusting the metal in a car body
5. Heat is energy that causes particles of matter to move faster and farther apart. As particles move faster, they leave
one phase and enter another. Use the diagram below where the dots represent the position of the particles to
answer the following question. At which point is the substance a solid?

a. A
b. C
c. D
d. E

6. Which of the following statements best explains why a liquid changes to a gas when heated?

a. The heat energy causes molecules to move faster and they move farther apart. Some of the molecules have
enough energy to escape the liquid as a gas.
b. Things get bigger when they are heated because the heat causes more motion in the substance. The
substance expands into a gas.
c. The molecules of water change to hydrogen and oxygen. They are gases and escape from the water.
d. A liquid turns into a gas when heated because it expands and the container can no longer hold it. The
molecules spill out the sides of the container.

7. Water is placed over a burner and it boils. The graph below shows the temperature at each 2-minute interval. Using
the graph, answer the following question. At which point do the molecules have the most energy?

a. A
b. B
c. C
d. D
8. The Law of Conservation of Mass states that matter is not gained or lost in a chemical reaction. Which of the
following correctly restates this law in a chemical reaction?

a. The amount of mass of the reactants will equal the mass of the products.
b. The amount of mass is equal to the sum of the reactants and products.
c. Matter is gained and lost depending on how much energy is added.
d. Matter is gained and lost but energy is conserved.

9. The following results were collected during an experiment that involved mixing vinegar and milk. Which variable
was being tested?

Experiment Amount of Amount of Temperature Results

# Vinegar Milk
1a 5 mL 20 mL 30 C Curdles
1b 10 mL 20 mL 30 C Curdles
2a 1 mL 20 mL 30 C No change
2b 5 mL 20 mL 30 C Curdles

a. amount of vinegar
b. amount of milk
c. temperature of the mixture
d. results

10. Acid rain is found in parts of the country where there are many cars and power plants. Water in the form of rain is
chemically combined with sulfur dioxide and oxygen to create sulfuric acid, which becomes acid rain. In this
reaction which substances are considered the reactants?

a. sulfur dioxide, oxygen and water

b. oxygen, water and sulfuric acid
c. water, sulfuric acid and sulfur dioxide
d. sulfuric acid, sulfur dioxide and oxygen

11. In a closed terrarium, more photosynthesis is taking place then respiration. Where are the plants getting the energy
for photosynthesis?

a. air
b. respiration
c. sun
d. the soil

12. Why is respiration important to living things?

a. It releases energy from food.

b. It stores energy from sunshine.
c. It moves blood through the body.
d. It creates new offspring.
13. 1. photosynthesis
2. mechanical energy
3. light energy
4. respiration

Study the list above. Which sequence best shows the path of energy that allows animals to move?

a. photosynthesis light energy mechanical energy respiration

b. mechanical energy light energy photosynthesis respiration
c. light energy photosynthesis respiration mechanical energy
d. respiration light energy photosynthesis mechanical energy

14. Which relationship best describes a fox eating a duck?

a. producer/consumer
b. predator/prey
c. mutualism
d. parasitism

15. Study the food web below. Which of the following plants would be a parasite?

a. dodder plant
b. grass
c. berry bush
d. tree
16. Which organism best fits in the missing area in the diagram below of a food chain?

a. A mouse because an owl eats it

b. A tree because it is larger than the plant shown
c. A deer because it eats the grass
d. A hawk because it is a consumer

17. Various environmental and governmental groups work hard to prevent certain animal and plant species from
becoming extinct. What might be the most serious concern about allowing a species to become extinct?

a. Other species may become fearful that they, too, may become extinct.
b. We will miss seeing that particular species.
c. It will disrupt the food web.
d. We will regret not helping that species.

18. When land is cleared for paving a parking lot, what happens to the ability of that land to support living things?

a. More organisms can live there.

b. Fewer organisms can live there.
c. The number of organisms will not change.
d. The organisms can change into new forms.

19. A newspaper reporter notices that a pair of peregrine falcons has built a nest on her building. Over the next 2
months, she watches them hatch their eggs, feed the chicks and model flying and hunting behaviors. She writes a
weekly report for the newspaper and documents their growth and behavior. How has the reporter used scientific
methods?

a. She has made observations, recorded and reported them.

b. She has asked other people in her office to help watch the falcons.
c. She has appreciated the beauty and wonder of nature.
d. She has written about the things that are important to her.

20. A rock has three minerals in it. One of them, quartz, has a hardness of 7. The second, feldspar, has a hardness of 4.
The third, biotite, has a hardness of 2.5. What is true about the hardness of the rock?

a. The hardness is 13.5 because that is the total hardness of the minerals.
b. The hardness is 4.4 because that is the average hardness of the minerals.
c. The hardness of each mineral in the rock is different.
d. The hardness is 2.5, the hardness of the softest mineral.
21. Which event would most likely produce igneous rocks?

a. deposition of soil
b. earthquake
c. erosion in a flood
d. volcanic eruption

22. Sam made the following key while studying rocks. Pretend you have a rock that has particles stuck together, crystals
and flat layers. According to Sams key, what type of rock is it?

Shiny Air Flat Fossils Particles Glassy Crystals

holes layers stuck
together
Metamorphic X X X X
Igneous X X X X X
Sedimentary X X X X
Mineral X X X

a. metamorphic
b. igneous
c. sedimentary
d. mineral

23. What two rock types are formed by the transfer of heat?

a. Igneous and sedimentary

b. Sedimentary and metamorphic
c. Metamorphic and igneous
d. Sedimentary only

24. Two containers were filled with the same size pieces of gravel and water. Jar A was allowed to sit for one month.
Jar B was shaken several times each day during the same month. The jars below show the results at the end of the
experiment. What process does this experiment model?

A before A after

B before B after

a. ice wedging
b. weathering
c. a landslide
d. a volcano
25. Use this diagram of a road cut to answer the following question. What event most likely created the offset of layers
J and I?

a. erosion
b. an earthquake
c. folding
d. a volcano

26. An excavation exposes the side of a hill. Rock layers of different colors, thicknesses and textures are revealed as
shown in the sketch below. Examine the figure and answer the question; which one of the following assumptions is
made by biologists considering fossils found at various levels?

a. Fossil communities had the same physical environment as the present living community.
b. Each layer contains fossils that are older as you go from layer I to layer VI.
c. Each layer contains fossils that are more recent as you go from layer I to layer VI.
d. An animal could burrow into any layer and become fossilized.

27. Which evidence supports the idea that Earths surface has changed over time?

a. Fossils of rainforest plants in areas that are now deserts.

b. Rocks and fossils that came from outer space.
c. Modern plants and animals that look like ancient organisms.
d. Climates in some places on Earth that are different than other places.
28. Tim studied the amount of energy that came to the surface of the earth from the interior for 16 days. His special
equipment printed the graph below. His notes taken during the study indicate that two earthquakes preceded the
volcanic eruption on the 15th day. Those occurred on the third and seventh days. What would be the most logical
explanation for the pattern of energy transfer from days 9-12?

a. Heat and pressure were building under the surface.

b. Heat and pressure were being released under the surface.
c. Nothing was happening under the surface.
d. Energy was building on the surface of the Earth.

29. Two students make models of earth quakes. Tom slowly bends a popsicle stick, breaking it and notes the sudden
release of energy. Tina drops a rock into a pan of water and watches the waves travel outward. Which model is the
most scientific?

a. Tinas model creates data that is easier to measure.

b. Toms model uses equipment that is more accurate for predictions.
c. Both are good models that show characteristics of earthquakes.
d. Neither model shows the correct scientific methods that are used by scientists.

30. A home is built on several known earthquake faults. After it is built, the owner is told the home cannot be lived in or
resold. Why was the scientific information that was available before building NOT used?

a. Homes are not part of most scientific investigations.

b. People know that scientists are usually wrong so they dont listen.
c. Earthquakes are not known to damage houses built on the fault.
d. People often overlook information that costs them money.

31. Two students wish to measure the speed of sound in water. They go to one end of a swimming pool and strike a bell
with a hammer underwater. They used a timing device to see how long it takes for the sound to reach the other end
of the pool. They repeat their test 10 times. The table below shows their data. How could this data best be
analyzed?

Trial 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Time(s) .12 .15 .08 .11 .12 .09 .10 .18 .13 .10

a. Add together the times for each test to get the total.
b. Measure the length of a sound wave.
c. Find the mathematical average of the trials.
d. Look up information about sound in the dictionary.
32. You can estimate how far away a lightning bolt strikes by counting the seconds between seeing the lightning and
hearing the thunder. Why does this work?

a. Sound waves travel more slowly through air that light waves.
b. Sound waves travel slowly through the ear canal before they can be heard.
c. Sound waves cannot travel through empty space, they need a medium.
d. Sound waves spread out form a source in circles and light does not.

33. An experiment in the 1700s tried to measure the speed of light with a clock by timing how long it took light to travel
from one lighthouse to another, the experiment failed. The speed of light was eventually measured when
astronomers measured the time it took light to travel from a planet to Earth. How did technology limit the first
experiment?

a. Light cannot be measured as it travels through Earths atmosphere.

b. Light travels too fast for a clock to measure in short distances.
c. A clock will slow down when traveling at the speed of lights.
d. A clock cannot be used unless Earths rotation is calculated.

34. Three boys, John, Mario and Brock decided to see how many arm curls they could do without stopping. An arm curl
is performed by holding a barbell with the arm straight down and the hand facing forward, then bending the arm at
the elbow and raising the barbell toward the shoulder. The boys used 3 different barbells of increasing mass. What
would be a good conclusion for this activity?

Mass John Mario Brock

2 kg 35 40 37
4 kg 31 35 33
6 kg 22 26 29

a. Mario is the strongest boy.

b. Brock is the strongest boy.
c. As the mass increased, the number of curls decreased.
d. As the number of curls decreased, the mass increased.

35. Which of the following is an example of how a scientist could help an engineering design and build a bridge to
support a maximum load?

a. Test the forces supported by models of the bridge.

b. Take photographs of existing bridges.
c. Discover what traffic patterns are in the city.
d. Find out what kinds of bridges people find attractive.
36. A student puts out a fire on the stove by dumping baking soda on the flame. How has the student used scientific
knowledge in his daily life?

a. He knew that a chemical property of baking soda is that it doesnt burn.

b. He knew that a physical property of baking soda is that it doesnt melt.
c. He knew that a chemical property of baking soda is that it dissolves in water.
d. He knew that a physical property of baking soda is that it is white in color.

37. A family wishes to build a house on a steep hillside. They call a geologist to ask if this is a good idea. What will the
geologist most likely tell the family about the characteristics of the land?

a. Windstorms will affect the house and yard.

b. The hillside may erode and damage the property.
c. It will be difficult to grow plants on the steep hillside.
d. Earthquakes are more likely on steep hillsides.

38. Which of the following best restates how Earths gravitational force on an object depends upon the distance of the
object from earth?

a. The closer an object is to Earth, the less the attraction of gravity.

b. The further two objects are from one another, the greater the attraction.
c. An object with more mass falls to Earth faster than one with less mass.
d. The further an object is from Earth, the less affect Earths gravity has on it.

39. Why would a lever be used to lift a heavy object?

a. It reduces the amount of time it takes to lift the object.

b. It reduces the effect of gravity on the object being lifted.
c. It reduces the amount of force needed to lift the object.
d. It increases the amount of force needed to lift the object.

40. Students wanted to see the effect different surfaces had on pulling a 500 g wooden block up an inclined plane with
mechanical advantage of 2. They used the same inclined plane and covered it with 4 different materials, one at a
time. Their results are found in the table below. Which substance resulted in the least amount of friction?

Material Used Force Required to Pull

Object Up the Plane (N)
Sand Paper 8.0
Foam Rubber 6.5
Short-Pile Carpet 5.5
Plain Wood 3.5
Linoleum 3.0

a. sand paper
b. foam rubber
c. plain wood
d. linoleum
41. Which of the following describes the mathematical relationship between the length of the arms on a lever?

a. The longer the effort arm, the less the force needed to lift a mass.
b. The longer the effort arm, the greater the force needed to lift a mass.
c. The longer the resistance arm, the less the force needed to lift a mass.
d. The shorter the resistance arm, the greater the force needed to lift a mass.

42. The data in the table below was collected by a group of students as they tested four different types of plastics.
Which of the plastics could be the same?

Plastic Acetone Flame Test Heat Crease Color

Type
1 No effect Green color Softens None
2 Softened No change No change White
3 No effect Red color Softens None
4 No effect Green color Softens None

a. 1 and 2
b. 2 and 3
c. 3 and 4
d. 1 and 4

43. Two students planted 5 seeds, each at a slightly different angle in the soil. All other variables were kept the same.
After 9 days, every plant was 5 or 6 cm tall. If they repeated the experiment with 30 seeds, what would be the most
likely outcome?

a. Most of the plants would be 5 to 6 cm tall.

b. The plants would all be over 10 cm tall.
c. Fewer of the seeds would sprout.
d. The plants would be from 5 to 12 cm tall.
44. A ball is thrown into the air as shown in the picture below. At what point in the path of the ball is kinetic energy entirely
changed into potential energy?

a. A
b. B
c. C
d. D

45. Identify one of the energy changes that takes place as a candle burns.

a. Mechanical to electric energy

b. Electric to mechanical energy
c. Electric to heat energy
d. Chemical to heat energy

Part II

Directions (4655): Record your answers in the spaces provided below each question.

46. The data table below shows a persons heart rate measured in beats per minute (bpm) at five different times in the
beginning of a day.
Change in Heart Rate Over Time
Heart Rate
Time (bpm) Activity

7:00 a.m. 60 sleeping

7:01 a.m. 62 waking up
7:02 a.m. 65 sitting up in bed
7:03 a.m. 68 getting out of bed
7:04 a.m. 75 walking around bedroom
On the grid below, use an X to plot the heart rate for each time shown in the data table. Connect the Xs with a line. [1]

Change in Heart Rate

Over Time
80

75

Heart Rate (bpm)

70

65

60

55
7:00 7:01 7:02 7:03 7:04
a.m. a.m. a.m. a.m. a.m.
Time
 Base your answers to questions 47 and 48 on the information and graphs below and on your knowledge of science.

An antibiotic is a drug prescribed to people who are sick due to a bacterial infection. Streptococcus
bacteria may cause a throat infection in humans. An experiment was designed to test the effects of two
different antibiotics, A and B, on samples of Streptococcus bacteria. The graphs below show the results
of this experiment.

Antibiotic A Antibiotic B No Antibiotic

Number of Bacteria

Number of Bacteria

Number of Bacteria
0 0 0
0 0 0
Time Time Time

47 Describe how the graph for antibiotic B shows that it was the most successful in controlling the number of
bacteria. [1]

48 Explain why no antibiotic was added to one of the bacteria samples. [1]
 Base your answers to questions 49 and 50 on the diagram below and on your knowledge of science. The diagram
represents how easily a student is able to lift blocks of equal volumes that are made of different materials.

Ice

Cork
Iron

49 Describe one way that the student can determine the exact volume of one of the three blocks. [1]

50 Identify the property of the iron block that makes it more difficult to lift than the cork block. [1]

Base your answers to questions 51 and 52 on the information below and on your knowledge of science.

A student dissolved a 40-gram block of a salt in 100 grams of warm water at 45C. The solution
was allowed to cool down to 24C. The student noticed that some of the salt came out of the solution and
settled to the bottom of the beaker. It is later determined that 12 grams of the salt came out of the
solution.

51 How many grams of the salt were dissolved in the solution at 24C? [1]

52 State the general relationship between the temperature of the water and the amount of the salt that will
dissolve in the water. [1]
 Base your answers to questions 53 and 54 on the graph below and on your knowledge of science. The graph shows the position
(distance from home) of a bicycle rider on a 42-minute trip. Letters A through E are time intervals during the trip. The key
defines the length of each interval.

A Bicycle Trip
10
9
Distance from Home (km)

8 Key to Intervals
7
6 A 0-12 minutes
D
E B 12-24 minutes
5
4 C C 24-30 minutes
D 30-36 minutes
3 Begins trip from home
E 36-42 minutes
2 B
1 A

0
0 6 12 18 24 30 36 42
Time (min)

53 Use the equation below to calculate the bicycle riders average speed in kilometers per minute for the first 30
minutes of the trip. [1]

distance (km)
= average speed
time (min)

km/min

54 Describe how the graph shows that the rider stopped during time interval D. [1]
 Base your answers to questions 55 and 56 on the model of the rock cycle below and on your knowledge of science. The
model represents the processes involved in the formation of different types of rocks. Some of these processes are labeled A
through H.

Rock Cycle in Earths Crust

SEDIMENTS

SEDIMENTARY
ROCK

o
M
r
d

IGNEOUS
ROCK
METAMORPHIC
ROCK

55 Complete the table below by writing the letter of the process from the rock cycle diagram that is being
described by each statement in the table. [1]

Letter of Process
Rock Cycle Statement
from Rock Cycle
Diagram

Pieces of igneous rock are compressed and glued

together to form a sedimentary rock.

Metamorphic rock becomes liquid and crystallizes to

form igneous rock.

Sedimentary rock is broken down into sediments

and transported by a stream.

56 Based on the rock cycle diagram, identify one process involved in the formation of metamorphic rock. [1]
 Base your answers to questions 57 through 59 on the information below and on your knowledge of
science.
A student placed three identical plant seedlings in soil in three identical containers
and gave each seedling a different amount of water each day. The student measured the
height of each seedling every day for four days. The results are shown in the data table
below.
Data Table
Amount of Height of Seedling (centimeters)
Water Given
Seedling
Daily
Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4
(milliliters)
1 5 2.0 2.3 2.5 2.8
2 10 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5
3 20 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0

57 Identify the dependent (responding) variable in this experiment. [1]

58 Describe the general relationship between the amount of water each seedling received and its
height on day 4. [1]

59 The plant seedlings and containers were identical. Identify one additional factor that should be
held constant in this experiment. [1]
Answer Key:
1. B
2. D
3. C
4. A
5. A
6. A
7. C
8. A
9. D
10. A
11. B
12. A
13. C
14. B
15. A
16. A
17. C
18. B
19. A
20. A
21. D
22. C
23. B
24. B
25. A
26. D
27. A
28. A
29. C
30. D
31. C
32. A
33. B
34. C
35. A
36. A
37. B
38. D
39. C
40. D
41. B
42. D
43. A
44. C
45. D
46. Short Answer
47. Short Answer
48. Short Answer
49. Short Answer
50. Short Answer
51. Short Answer
52. Short Answer
53. Short Answer
54. Short Answer
55. Short Answer
56. Short Answer
57. Short Answer
58. Short Answer
59. Short Answer