4Th Grade Indicators Assessment

Grade Four Science Assessment Landforms First Quarter

Choose the best answer.

1. Which of the following is an opinion? a. Volcanoes shape the earth by adding new land. b. Landslides and avalanches are examples of erosion. c. The Rocky Mountains are the best mountains because their peaks are so high. d. Geologists study changes in the earth.

2. Which of the following does not directly cause erosion? a. wind b. gravity c. water d. sunlight

3. Water erodes most quickly when it . a. settles in pools b. runs downhill c. is pumped out of wells d. stays in the soil

10/24/08 4. The ocean used to be farther away from this lighthouse. What made it get so close to the lighthouse?

a. An earthquake b. Waves wearing away at the cliff c. A volcano d. Ocean animals digging away at the cliff

5. Which force causes landslides?

a. the tides b. the sun c. gravity d. volcanoes

10/24/08 6. Picture A shows a river and mountains. Picture B shows the same river and mountains many years later. Explain two changes that have occurred and why.

Change 1:

Change 2:

7. What is most responsible for the shapes of these rocks?

a. landslides b. wind c. earthquakes d. gravity 8. What is most likely to help a river wear away its banks? 10/24/08 a. The fish in the river wear away the banks by swimming against it. b. People can wear away the banks when fishing and swimming. c. Material carried by the river wears away the rocks and soil. d. Animals walking along the banks wear away the soil.

9. Which would make a better model for showing what happens during an earthquake: two sponges rubbing together or a bowl of gelatin? Why?

10.There is a crack in the school’s sidewalk. What could you predict to be true over time? a. The crack will be filled with sand. b. The crack will stay the same. c. The crack will be larger. d. The crack will attract insects.

11. Explain your reasons for the question above.

Match each cause and effect.

10/24/08 a. the temperature is low there all year-round. b. they grow in the cracks and make the cracks bigger. c. the plates of the earth’s surface are always moving.

12. Cracks form in the crust of the Earth because… 13. Plant roots help weather rocks because… 14. All snow does not melt in the mountains because…

15. Rock debris carried and deposited by a glacier is called . a. crust b. moraine c. outwash plains d. terminus

16. Glaciers form when

a. icebergs break off. b. temperatures world-wide drop down for short periods of time. c. more snow falls in winter than melts in summer. d. snow falls on top of ice.

17. Which of the following statements is true? a. Rocky shorelines are shaped as sand and small rocks carried by waves crash against them. b. Deposits of sand build up over time on a shallow ocean floor. c. Piles of sand deposited on land are called dunes. d. All of the above.

10/24/08 18. The triangular-shaped deposits formed when a river empties into the ocean is a(n) .

a. erratic b. delta c. terminus d. moraine

19. Use the following phrases to compare erosion by wind to erosion by glaciers. Write the letters in the correct section of the diagram.

WIND GLACIERS

QuickTime™ and a TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor are needed to see this picture.

a. deposits large particles b. deposits small particles c. slow process d. carries sand e. carries boulders f. deposits materials in new places

20. Which of the following statements is true?

10/24/08 a. Weathering is the building up of rock into larger pieces. b. Deposition is the process by which rock is worn away and moved from one place to another. c. Erosion is caused by plants, and weathering is caused by clouds. d. Erosion occurs when rock material is moved from one place to another by moving water, wind, or moving ice.

21. What causes a glacier to move?

a. The force of gravity causes the layers to flow downhill. b. The glacier begins to melt and the water runs downhill. c. Wind pushes the glacier downhill. d. An earthquake causes the glacier to move.

22. Choose the list of actions that are in the correct order.

a. ice pushes against rocks, water fills tiny cracks in rocks and freezes, rocks break apart b. water fills tiny cracks in rocks and freezes, ice pushes against rocks, rocks break apart c. rocks break apart, ice pushes against rocks, water fills tiny cracks in rocks and freezes d. rocks break apart, water fills tiny cracks in rocks and freezes, ice pushes against rocks

10/24/08 23. Changing of the earth’s surface can happen through rapid or slow processes. Categorize these processes by writing them under the correct heading in the table. RAPID PROCESS SLOW PROCESS earthquakes erosion deposition landslides volcanic eruption weathering

10/24/08