2014 – 2015 School Year 6th

Grade Science

Summer Assignment

This science summer packet is designed to give you an insight as to how we

will be using our scientific skills to analyze information and make

conclusions based on pure scientific evidences.

Student’s Name: _____________________________

Instructor’s Name: Marjorie Hylton

Class: Comprehensive Science II Advanced and Gifted

Period: _____________________________________

Instructions:

Read each section of the packet carefully and answer every question. The

packet will be worth 5 credit grades for the first quarter of the school year.

Please ensure that your name is written on the packet and once you show up

to class, you will write the period of science in the appropriate area of this

front page. Additionally, the pages should be stapled very neatly and placed

in a folder. You will be expected to have this complete and turned in on the

very first and second days of school August 18th

, and 19th

, 2014. I look

forward to working with you all and I anticipate a very productive and

exciting year. Enjoy your summer break.

Science: Developing a Classification System

The table below lists characteristics of different dog breeds. Use these characteristics to

develop a classification system. The questions that follow will help you develop your

system.

Characteristics of Dogs

Breed Ears Coat Tail Head Shape Size

Beagle long short-haired long round small

Wire fox terrier short wire-haired shortened long small

Chow chow erect long-haired curly round medium

Irish setter long long-haired feathered long medium

Newfoundland short long-haired feathered square large

Boston terrier erect short-haired shortened square small

Pug short short-haired curly square small

Deerhound short wire-haired long long large

Write your answers to the following questions on a separate sheet of paper.

1. What characteristic did you use first to divide the breeds into groups? Why did you

choose that characteristic?

2. What characteristic did you use to make a second division within the groups?

3. Continue dividing the breeds into groups until you have used all five characteristics

listed in the table. When you complete your classification system, diagram the

structure of that system and show how each breed is classified.

4. Classify the following dog breeds using your classification system.

a. Great Dane: long ears, short-haired, long tail, long head, large size

b. Boxer: short ears, short-haired, shortened tail, square head, medium size

c. Shetland sheepdog: erect ears, long-haired, feathered tail, long head, small size

d. Airedale: short ears, wire-haired, shortened tail, long head, medium size

Science: Identifying Dog Adaptations

Dogs have specific adaptations that helped their wolf ancestors to survive in the wild.

Match each adaptation on the left with its advantage to dogs on the right.

Adaptations Advantages ___ 1. keen sense of smell

___ 2. strong, blunt claws

a. catch prey much larger than

themselves

___ 3. long, slender legs b. communicate with other dogs

___ 4. barking, howling c. catch or bite prey while running

___ 5. live in packs with dominant

leaders

d. track prey and identify territories of

other dogs

___ 6. able to see well in dim light e. hunt at night

___ 7. long, powerful canine teeth f. run at a fast pace, with bursts of speed

when necessary

___ 8. long muzzles g. cutting and tearing meat

h. traction and speed on rough ground

Compare the diagrams below. Then answer the following questions on a separate sheet

of paper.

9. W

hich

dog

do

you

think

was

bred

to

chas

e

game

anim

als

out of underground dens? What characteristics of the dog make it well suited for this

purpose?

10. Which dog do you think was bred to chase rabbits and catch them? What

characteristics of the dog make it well suited for this purpose?

Science: Dwarf Rain Forest Animals

Some mammals found in African rain forests are very small. These dwarf animals

include the royal antelope and the pygmy hippopotamus. Read the following passage

about these animals.

Use the information in the passages above to complete the two tables below. Then

answer the questions that follow on a separate sheet of paper.

Antelopes Height Weight Habitat

Royal antelope 1.____________cm 3_____________kg 5.______________

Eland 2.____________cm 4._____________kg 6.______________

Hippopotamuses Length Weight Habitat

Pygmy hippo 7.____________cm 9._____________kg 11._____________

River hippo 8.____________cm 10.____________kg 12._____________

13. What is the royal antelope’s length from nose to rump? What is the length of its

jump? How many times longer than its body length is the length of its jump?

14. In what layer of the rain forest do you think the royal antelope and pygmy

hippopotamus live? Explain your answer.

15. How do you think the small size of the royal antelope and pygmy hippopotamus

make these animals well adapted to their environment?

Science: Bat Adaptations

Bats live in different biomes throughout the world.

But fruit bats—or “flying foxes,” as they are often

called—are found only in the tropical rain forests of

Africa, India, southeast Asia, northern Australia, and

some Pacific islands. The following passage

describes the adaptations of these bats.

Answer the following items on a separate sheet of paper.

1. Describe how a fruit bat’s claws help it survive.

2. Name the three types of teeth the fruit bat has. Describe the function of each type of

tooth.

3. Besides its teeth, how else is the fruit bat’s mouth adapted for eating fruit?

4. What adaptations help the fruit bat feed on flower nectar?

5. How does the fruit bat help the plants it feeds on?

Science: How to Plant Corn

The following instructions can be found on a packet of field corn. Read the instructions

and answer the questions that follow on the lines below.

1. There are 200 seeds in the packet and you plant four rows of seeds. Each seed is

spaced the maximum recommended distance. How long are your rows of corn?

2. Do the seed suppliers expect every seed to sprout? Explain your reasoning.

3. What happens if you plant corn in cold, wet soil?

4. Would you expect corn to mature faster in Indiana or Minnesota? Explain your

reasoning.

5. What is a corn borer? What does it feed on?

Science: How to Plant Corn

The following instructions can be found on a packet of field corn. Read the instructions

and answer the questions that follow on the lines below.

6. There are 200 seeds in the packet and you plant four rows of seeds. Each seed is

spaced the maximum recommended distance. How long are your rows of corn?

7. Do the seed suppliers expect every seed to sprout? Explain your reasoning.

8. What happens if you plant corn in cold, wet soil?

9. Would you expect corn to mature faster in Indiana or Minnesota? Explain your

reasoning.

10. What is a corn borer? What does it feed on?

Science: Gravity on Mars

Sir Isaac Newton first wrote a formula that describes gravity. Newton’s law

established that there is a force of gravity between any two masses. We do not feel

the force of gravity from objects around us because they are so tiny. Only a mass

the size of a moon, a planet, or a star is large enough to have a force of gravity that

we can detect. Newton’s law stated that the force of gravity depends only on the

masses of the two objects and the distance between them. The farther the distance,

the weaker the force of gravity. Using simplified versions of Newton’s law, you will

compare the forces of gravity on Earth and Mars.

Answer the following questions on the lines below.

1. A simplified version of Newton’s law for Earth’s surface is F = 9.8m. In this equation,

F is the force of gravity felt and m is the mass of the person on the surface of Earth.

Calculate what force a person with a mass of 80 kilograms would feel. The unit of

force is the newton.

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2. If the person is 10,000 kilometers above the surface of Earth, the formula changes to F

= 1.5m. Calculate what force a person with a mass of 80 kilograms would feel 10,000

kilometers above the surface of Earth.

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3. A simplified version of Newton’s law for the surface of Mars is F = 4.0m. Calculate

what force a person with a mass of 80 kilograms would feel on the surface of Mars.

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4. If the person is 10,000 kilometers above the surface of Mars, the formula changes to F

= 0.25m. Calculate what force a person with a mass of 80 kilograms would feel 10,000

kilometers above the surface of Mars.

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5. Calculate the forces that a person with a mass of 50 kilograms would feel on the surface

of Earth and on the surface of Mars.

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6. How does the force of gravity on Mars compare with that on Earth?

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7. How high can you jump on Earth? How high do you think you could jump on Mars?

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Science: The Polar Caps of Mars

Read the following passage about the polar caps of Mars. Then answer the

questions on the lines below.

1. What did early scientists assume that the polar caps had in common?

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2. From where in the solar system did scientists conduct their spectral analyses in

1948? How do you know?

________________________________________________________________

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3. What information did the scientists miss in 1948 and 1966 that caused them to

believe that the caps contained water ice?

________________________________________________________________

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4. What can you infer about the results of numerical models in 1966 for polar caps

made of water ice?

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5. Do you think a colony on Mars should be nearer the northern or southern

polar cap? Explain.

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Language Arts: Mississippi River Vocabulary

Each of the words listed below has some association with the Mississippi River. Use the

words to complete the sentences. If you are not sure about the meaning of a word, look it

up in a dictionary.

cargo silt

delta(s) lock(s)

flood plain steamboat(s)

headwaters tributary

keelboat(s) watershed(s)

1. Near its ___________________ in Minnesota, the Mississippi River is only a small,

shallow stream.

2. The lower Mississippi flows through a broad, flat ________________________.

3. Grain from the Midwest is one important ________________________ shipped

downriver on the Mississippi.

4. The Ohio River is an important ___________________of the Mississippi River.

5. Before boats were powered by engines, people used long poles to push narrow

________________ upstream against the current.

6. When the Mississippi River reaches the ocean, it deposits the silt and sand it carries,

forming a ____________.

7. Boats traveling on the upper Mississippi must pass through _____________ that raise

or lower them to a different water level.

8. The Mississippi’s ___________ includes all the land area drained by the Ohio River,

the Missouri River, and other rivers flowing into the Mississippi River.

9. When Mark Twain was growing up in a small town on the Mississippi River, he

wanted to become a _______________ pilot.

10. The Missouri River is nicknamed the “Big Muddy” because it carries a large amount

of __________________

Mathematics: Measuring the Explosiveness of

Volcanic Eruptions

Because volcanic eruptions are so dangerous, a way to measure their explosiveness was

developed. Volcanic eruptions are given a number from 0 to 8. The higher the number

is, the more explosive the eruption. The number is called the VEI, or volcano

explosivity index. Each number on the scale represents an eruption that is about 10

times more explosive than the next lower number. The table shows the VEIs for some

eruptions.

Explosiveness of Some Volcanic Eruptions

Volcano Year of Eruption VEI

Toba, Indonesia about 74,000 years ago 8

Vesuvius, Italy A.D. 79 5

Tambora, Indonesia 1815 7

Krakatau, Indonesia 1883 6

Mount Pelée, Martinique 1902 4

Mount St. Helens, United States 1980 5

1. Which eruption was most explosive? How do you know?

__________________________________________________________________

2. Which eruption was least explosive?

__________________________________________________________________

3. How does the eruption of Vesuvius that destroyed Pompeii compare with the other

eruptions?

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

4. About how many times more explosive was the Tambora eruption of 1815 than the

Mount St. Helens eruption of 1980? How do you know?

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

5. About how many times more explosive was the Toba eruption that occurred about

74,000 years ago than the Mount St. Helens eruption of 1980? Explain.

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Science: Formation of a Pyroclastic Flow Mount Vesuvius had erupted in the past, but laid dormant for hundreds of years. Then,

around noon on August 24, A.D. 79, the volcano suddenly exploded. Volcanic ash and

gases shot 27 kilometers into the air. During the rest of the day and into the night, 3

meters of ash blanketed Pompeii. But the destruction wasn’t over. Around midnight, a

deadly pyroclastic flow poured over the entire area, trapping about 2,000 Pompeians

who had not yet escaped. Afterward, an additional 3 meters of volcanic debris rained

down on Pompeii. This layer

of material sealed the city,

preserving it

nearly intact for centuries.

A pyroclastic flow is a

flow of hot gas, ash, and

pumice that moves rapidly

down the side of a volcano.

Most of the people who died

in Pompeii were killed by

pyroclastic flows. The steps

on this page show how the

pyroclastic flows that

destroyed Pompeii formed.

During an explosive

eruption like the one that

destroyed Pompeii, hot gas,

ash, and pumice are propelled

high into the air. The column

of hot gas, ash, and pumice is

called an eruption column.

The force of the eruption often

is strong enough to cause the

eruption column to move

straight up. Eventually, the

ash and pumice fall back to

the ground.

Sometimes, the amount of

ash and pumice in the lower

part of the eruption column is

very high. When this occurs,

the lower part of the eruption

column can become too dense

to rise. Hot gas, ash, and

pumice flow sideways down

the mountain as a pyroclastic

flow At night, hot pyroclastic

flows often appear to glow.

That is why they sometimes

are called “glowing

avalanches.”

Science: Formation of a

Pyroclastic Flow (continued)

Use the information and figures on the previous page to help you answer the questions

below. Write your answers in the spaces provided.

1. What is an eruption column?

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2. Why do eruption columns often shoot straight up into the air?

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3. Why might part of an eruption column collapse to form a pyroclastic flow?

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4. Why are pyroclastic flows sometimes called “glowing avalanches”?

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5. Pyroclastic flows killed about 2,000 people in Pompeii. Why do you think

pyroclastic flows are so dangerous?

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Science: Volcanic Soils

Read the passage and then answer the questions below in the spaces provided.

1. What benefit of volcanic eruptions is described?

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2. What material makes up ash and pumice?

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3. How does a layer of pumice and ash change through time?

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4. How is soil near Mount Vesuvius unusual in the country of Italy?

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5. Why do people live near active volcanoes in spite of the possibility that the volcano

might erupt again?

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[Note: Quotes were translated by John Bostock (1773–1846) and Henry Thomas Riley

(1816–1878)]

Science: Eureka!

Read the following passage and then answer the questions that follow on a separate

sheet of paper.

1. What was the problem King Hiero presented to Archimedes?

2. What did Archimedes say when he thought of a way to solve the problem?

3. Define density, and then use a chemistry reference book or an Internet resource to

compare the densities of gold and silver.

4. What happened that showed Archimedes how to solve the problem?

5. How did Archimedes know that the crown was not pure gold?

Science: Gold From Start to Finish

Gold is a mineral that occurs naturally in Earth’s crust. Like other minerals, it occurs in

ores, which are rocks that contain a metal or other economically useful material. Ores

must be found, mined, and purified to obtain the useful metal they contain. The steps

shown on the next page should give you a general idea about the processes involved in

making pure gold. Use the figures on page 79 to answer the following questions. Write

your answers in the spaces provided.

1. What other minerals are often found in ore that contains gold?

2. What types of mines are used to mine gold ore?

3. Describe the first process used to separate the gold from its ore.

4. What happens in a grinding machine?

5. Using your own words, describe the processes that gold undergoes from mining

until the manufacture of a gold bar.

A. Prospecting Geologists discover a deposit of gold ore below the surface. Ores that contain

gold often contain quartz and silver.

C. Hauling Large trucks transport the ore from the mine to a mill, where the gold is removed

from the ore.

E. Milling The crushed ore is mixed with water and put into a grinding machine. Steel balls

grind the ore into a pulp.

G. Melting The solid gold is melted in a furnace at a temperature of about 1,150°C.

B. Mining To mine ore from underground, miners drill and blast the rock. Shaft mines are used

for deep deposits. If the ore is near the surface, miners dig an open-pit mine. For placer deposits,

miners use heavy machinery to dig through gravel or lake bottoms.

D. Crushing At the mill, large crushers break apart the ore.

F. Recovery The pulp is sent into a series of tanks, where the gold in the pulp sticks to carbon

grains in a solution. Electric currents and other means are used to separate solid gold from the

solution.

H. Molding The melted gold is poured into molds to make gold bars.