Physical Sciences
What to Know
Grade 5 physical science focuses on matter and its properties, energy and its transfer, forces and motion, and simple electric circuits. You should be able to describe matter by its observable properties (color, hardness, texture, state), distinguish mass from weight, and explain that matter is made of particles too small to see. Understand the three common states of matter and how heating or cooling changes state. Know that energy can move from place to place and change form, and that motion is described by speed and direction. Be ready to explain balanced and unbalanced forces, friction, and how a simple closed circuit carries electric current.
Traps to Watch
A common trap is confusing mass with weight; mass stays the same, weight depends on gravity. Another is assuming that heating always changes the substance itself, when it may only change its state. Watch for questions that ask whether a force is needed to keep an object moving at constant speed; the answer is no net force. Also watch for questions about energy: energy is not created or destroyed, only transferred or transformed.
Worked Example
An ice cube melts in a cup of water. Rule of thumb: heating adds energy, which lets particles move more freely, so the solid becomes liquid. The substance is still water; only its state changed. If the water then freezes, energy is removed, and the particles lock back into place.
Rule of Thumb
For circuits: current needs a closed loop. If the path is broken, the current stops.