ANSWERS………………………..

Sample Formative Assessments

1. Describe the characteristics of the mesosphere and its role in protecting Earth from meteoroids.
Answer: The mesosphere is the third-lowest, or middle, layer of the atmosphere (50 to 80
km). Its outer part is very cold, approaching –90°C. Meteoroids burn up in the mesosphere,
so this layer protects Earth’s surface from being hit by most meteoroids.

2. You plan to hike to the top of Mount Shasta, where you will measure the air pressure. Which type of
barometer will be more practical to take? Answer: An aneroid barometer would be more practical.
Because an aneroid barometer does not have an open container of liquid mercury, it is more
portable for a hiking trip.

Sample Formative Assessments

1. What are four ways in which natural processes add harmful particles to the air?
Answer: Possible answers include: The wind blows particles of molds and plant pollen; forest
fires, soil erosion, and dust storms add particles of smoke and dust; erupting volcanoes spew
out clouds of dust, ash, and poisonous gases.

2. How do nitrogen oxides form acid rain and how does it form photochemical smog?
Answer: Nitrogen oxides can combine with water in the air to form nitric acid, a major
component of acid rain. Nitrogen oxides can combine with hydrocarbons and other air
pollutants in the presence of sunlight to form photochemical smog.

3. Burning coal can cause a harmful change to the environment known as

_________________________.
Answer: Air pollution

4. What are some air pollutants produced by burning fossil fuels? ________________________________
Answer: Carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides particles of dust, smoke, or soot

5. Why does the daytime sky appear blue and sunsets often appear red?
Answer: Dust particles and gases in the atmosphere reflect light in all directions in a process
called scattering. When you look at the sky, the light you see has been scattered by gas
molecules in the atmosphere. Gas molecules scatter short wavelengths of visible light (blue
or violet) more than long wavelengths (red and orange). Scattered light therefore looks
bluer than ordinary sunlight, which is why the daytime sky looks blue. But when the sun is
rising or setting, its light passes through a greater thickness of the atmosphere than when
the sun is higher in the sky. More light from the blue end of the spectrum is removed by
scattering before it reaches your eyes. The remaining light contains mostly red and orange
light. The sun looks red, and clouds around it become very colorful.

Sample Formative Assessments

1. Describe the effect of Earth’s rotation on the direction of global winds.
Answer: Earth’s rotation from west to east makes it seem as if global winds follow curved
paths in what is called the Coriolis effect. In the Northern Hemisphere, winds curve toward
the right. In the Southern Hemisphere, winds curve toward the left.

2. What kind of weather can you predict from clouds that look like rows of cotton balls very high in the
sky?
Answer: The clouds are cirrocumulus clouds, which are high clouds made mostly of ice
crystals. They often indicate that a storm is on the way.

3. How is maritime tropical and continental tropical air masses compared and contrasted?
Answer: Both are warm air masses that form in the tropics and have low air pressure.
Maritime tropical air masses form over oceans, so they are humid. Continental tropical air
masses form over land, so they are dry.

4. How has technological improvements in gathering weather data improved the accuracy of weather
forecasts?
Answer: (Possible answers) Weather balloons are able to travel high into the troposphere
and lower stratosphere, carrying instruments that measure temperature, air pressure, and
humidity. The National Weather Service has established a network of over 1,700 surface
weather observation sites that automatically gather data about temperature, air pressure,
relative humidity, rainfall, and wind speed and direction. Weather satellites orbit Earth in the
exosphere and carry cameras that create images of Earth’s surface, clouds, storms, and
snow cover. Some satellites also collect data on temperature, humidity, solar radiation, and
wind speed and direction. Computers quickly process the information gathered by these
instruments to help forecasters make predictions.

5. Why are weather forecasts not always accurate?

Answer: One reason for this is the butterfly effect. In the butterfly effect, a small change in
the weather today can cause a larger change in the weather a week later. A small,
unpredictable event can cause a large disturbance that throws off a weather forecast.

Sample Formative Assessments

Musculoskeletal

Age in Years Male Bone Density mg of Ca/cm2 Female Bone Density mg of Ca/cm2
25 1050 950
35 1040 940
45 1010 925
55 1000 875
65 990 825
75 950 750
85 875 675
Graph the above data and then complete questions 1-4.

(Age = x-axis, Bone density = y-axis)

1) Does the bone density of males or females fall the fastest with increase in age? Females;
their density fall by 275 mg, while men only fall 175 mg.
2) From this graph, what can you tell about bone density and exercise? Nothing can be
determined about the effects of exercise on density, that data is not included.
3) At what age does the males bone density appear to drop the most? Between 75 and 85

4) Name the nutrient required to build strong bones. Calcium

5) Which muscles would you use to lift a box? a) involuntary muscles b) skeletal muscles c)
cardiac muscles d) smooth muscles

Cardiovascular
1) Trace a red blood cell (RBC) from the leg back to the heart. Include the chamber of the heart
in which the RBC will enter. The cell will move through the branching arteries, into
capillaries, and then into a vein. The cell will enter the right atrium of the heart.

Excretory
1) Explain how kidneys help us maintain homeostasis. Kidneys allow the body to
reabsorbed water, so the body can maintain balance. Waste from cells is
transported to the kidneys for removal. This waste would be toxic to the body if not
removed.

Reproductive
Students complete a flowchart to give steps of development from egg to birth.
Prentice Hall Science Explorer Grade 7-p. 505
.
Students can complete Applying Skills to better understand fetal development.
Prentice Hall Science Explorer Grade 7- p. 506

Respiratory
1) You have just inhaled. Make a flowchart that explains how a molecule of oxygen that you
have just inhaled will get from you nose to your bloodstream. flowchart should include
nose, pharynx, trachea, bronchi, lungs, alveoli, and cappillaries.

Immune
What is the function of white blood cells? To fight foreign substances, such as
microoganisms that try to enter the body.

Nervous
Complete a concept map about neurons and their function. See Organizing Information,
Prentice Hall Science Explorer Grade 7- p. 473.

Sample Formative Assessments

For each of the following descriptions, give the correct body system.

1. The system that breaks down food and drink in to the smallest parts so that the body can
use them for energy and to build and nourish cells. digestive

2. The system that carries nutrients and oxygen to cells throughout the body and picks up
waste and carbon dioxide from those same cells. circulatory

3. The system that exchanges gases, bringing oxygen into the body and taking away carbon
dioxide. respiratory

4. The system that filters blood and removes nitrogen waste from the body. excretory

5. The system that recognizes and destroys foreign invaders that try and enter the body.
immune

6. The system that regulates the body and consists of the brain, the spinal chord, and neurons.
nervous

7. The system that controls movement and support for the body. musculoskeletal

8. The system responsible for producing hormones. endocrine

Sample Formative Assessments

1. What is the purpose of the thick muscular walls of the ventricles of the heart? Give
muscular strength to pump blood out of the heart

2. What are two unique characteristics of the lining of the stomach that protect it from being
damaged by digestive enzymes and acids? The lining produces a mucous that protects
the tissue and cells in the lining reproduce quickly to replace damaged cells

3. Why is it important that the walls of the alveoli sacs found in the lungs are very thin?
Oxygen and carbon dioxide can readily diffuse between the lungs and the capillary
blood vessels.

Sample Formative Assessments

1. How is homeostasis important to survival? If living organisms cannot maintain a stable

environment, body functions could not take place.
2. Using the diagram above, explain how two hormones, insulin and glucagon, can work
together to maintain homeostasis in the body. When the amount of sugar in the blood
increases above normal, the pancreas will release insulin into the blood, which
brings down the blood sugar into a normal range. When the blood sugar drops too
low, the pancreas will release glucagon, which causes the blood sugar to increase to
normal range

Sample Formative Assessments

1. In diabetes, a person often does not make enough insulin. How would this disrupt
homeostasis in the body? Without insulin, the blood sugar can continue to increase.
Vital organs can be damaged and even death can occur.

2. In sickle cell anemia, red blood cells can change shape and are unable to carry oxygen to the
cells. How can this disrupt homeostasis in the body? If red blood cells cannot carry oxygen
to the body cells, the cells cannot carry on daily function to keep the body healthy.

3. When a peson has AIDS, their white blood cell numbers decrease to very low levels. How
would this effect the body's normal homeostasis? If the person were to be infected with a
microorganism, they might not be able to fight that disease without a normal
amount of white blood cells.

Sample Formative Assessments

1. Complete a flowchart that shows the major changes between fertilization and birth. Zygote
forms → Embryo develops → Fetus develops → Birth

2. Identify important milestones in each stage of human development. Answers will vary,
sample: infancy-learning to walk unassisted, childhood- learning to read,
adolescence- the onset of puberty

Sample Formative Assessments

1) Why is artherosclerosis sometimes called a “lifestyle disease”? If a person maintains a

diet low in cholesterol, fat, and salt, exercises regularly and does not smoke, they
can lower their risk of this disease.

2) Complete Discover Activity “What Are the Dangers of Smoking?” PH Science Explorer Grade
7, p. 420.
3) Using figure 20, PH Science Explorer Grade 7, p. 467, have students complete Venn
Diagrams to compare and contrast short-term and long-term effects of commonly used drugs.

Sample Formative Assessments

After students complete instructional strategy, create a chart for each body system, such as the
sample below:

Body
Cardiovascular
System
Positive
Lifestyle Low-fat diet
Choice
Lowers
chance of
Beneficial
Plaque (fat)
Effects
build-up in
arteries
Negative
Lifestyle Smoking
Choice
constricts
blood vessels
increasing
Harmful blood
Effects pressure and
chance of
stroke or
heart attack

Sample Formative Assessments

1. A tissue in an animal produces and releases chemicals that are used by cells throughout the
animal’s body. Cells in that tissue probably have a larger than normal number of
A. lysosomes B. mitochondria
C. Golgi bodies D. nuclei
ANSWER: C
2. The different forms of a gene are called
A. alleles B. chromosomes
C. phenotypes D. genotypes
ANSWER: A
3. If the body cells of an organism have 10 chromosomes, then the sex cells produced during
meiosis would have
A. 5 chromosomes B. 10 chromosomes
C. 15 chromosomes D. 20 chromosomes
ANSWER: A

Sample Formative Assessments

Sample Formative Assessment
1. Describe what happened when Mendel crossed purebred tall pea plants with purebred short
pea plants.
SAMPLE ANSWER: All the first generation offspring were tall.
2. An organism with two identical alleles for a trait is
A. heterozygous B. homozygous
C. recessive D. dominant
ANSWER: B
3. In guinea pigs, the allele for black fur (B) is dominant over the allele for white fur (b). In a
cross between a heterozygous black guinea pig (Bb) and a homozygous white guinea pig (bb),
what is the probability that an offspring will have white fur? Use a Punnett square to help you
answer the question.
ANSWER: 50% chance
Bb
b
Bb bb
Bb bb
b
4. The likelihood that a particular event will occur is called
A. probability B. Punnett square
C. recessive D. dominant
ANSWER: A

Sample Formative Assessments

1. A woman is heterozygous for the trait of hemophilia. Her husband does not have hemophilia.
What is the probability that their son will have hemophilia?
A. 0% B. 25%
C. 50% D. 100%
ANSWER: C
2. Down syndrome is an example of a genetic disorder in which
A. one DNA base has been added.
B. One DNA base has been deleted.
C. One chromosome is substituted for another.
D. An extra chromosome is added to a pair.
ANSWER: D
3. Explain why, for each pregnancy, human parents have a 50 percent probability of having a
boy and a 50 percent probability of having a girl. Your answer should include the terms X
chromosome and Y chromosome.
SAMPLE ANSWER: The mother always contributes an X chromosome to the baby’s genome. The
father has an X chromosome and a Y chromosome, so the child has a 50% chance of receiving
a Y chromosome and therefore a 50% chance of being a boy.
4. To produce a human protein through genetic engineering, scientists use
A. a bacterial gene inserted into a human chromosome.
B. a human gene inserted into a plasmid.
C. a bacterial gene inserted into a plasmid.
D. a human gene inserted into a human chromosome.
ANSWER: B
5. An organism that has the same genes as the organism from which it was produced is called a
A. clone B. hybrid
C. genome D. pedigree
ANSWER: A

Sample Formative Assessments

1. Can you consider your thumb to be a lever? Why or why not?
ANSWER: Yes, because the muscles in your hand provide the input force and the
output force is used to move the thumb.

2. In what three ways can machines make work easier?

ANSWER: Machines can make work easier by changing the amount of force you
exert, the distance over which you exert force, or the direction in which you exert
force.

3. How is a real machine like an ideal machine, and how is it different?

ANSWER: Both ideal machines and real machines perform work. Because of friction,
however, real machines operate at less than 100% efficiency of ideal machines.

4. How is calculating the ideal mechanical advantage of an inclined plane similar to calculating
that of a screw?
ANSWER: The length of incline of an inclined plane is similar to the length around
the threads of a screw.

5. Describe the relationship between friction and the efficiency of a machine. ANSWER: As
friction increases, efficiency decreases.

6. To open a door, you push on the part of the door that is farthest from the hinges. Why
would it be harder to open the door if you pushed on the center of it?
ANSWER: A door is a lever. The hinge is a fulcrum and the output force remains the
same. So if you decrease the distance between the input force and the fulcrum, you
crease the mechanical advantage.
Sample Formative Assessments
1. What is the law of conservation of momentum? How can you show that the law is true for two objects
that collide? Answer: The law of conservation of momentum states that the total momentum
of objects that interact does not change. In other words, the total momentum before and
after a collision between two objects is the same. You can show that the law is true by
calculating the momentum of each object before the collision and again after the collision.
The total momentum before the collision will equal the total momentum after the collision.

2. How does Newton’s first law of motion explain what happens to a person in a car when the car stops
quickly? Answer: The passengers keep moving until acted upon by the unbalanced force
exerted by the seatbelt.

3. How do balanced forces acting on an object affect its motion? ANSWER: Balanced forces cancel
and do not change the object’s motion. Unbalanced forces cause the object’s motion to
change.

4. When an unbalanced force acts on an object, the force

a. changes the motion of the object.
b. is canceled by another force.
c. does not change the motion of the object.
d. is equal to the weight of the object.
ANSWER: D

Sample Formative Assessments

1. Are the passengers in a boat moving compared to a person standing on the shore? Why? Answer:
Yes, the distance between the passenger and the person on the shore is changing.

2. Two families meet at the City Museum at 10:00 A.M. Each family uses a different means of
transportation to get there. The Gonzalez family leaves at 9:00 A.M. and drives 90 km on a highway. The
Browns leave at 9:30 A.M. and ride the train 30 km. What is the average speed for each family’s trip?
Which family travels at the faster speed?
Answer: The Gonzalez family traveled at a speed of 90 km/h; the Browns traveled at 60
km/h. The Gonzalez family traveled at the faster speed.

True/False question.
Determine whether or not the underlined word makes the statement true or false. If the statement is
false, write the correct word that would make the statement true.
3. Both speed and acceleration include the direction of an object’s motion.
Answer: False, Velocity
4. You are moving fast on a skateboard when your wheel gets stuck in a crack on the sidewalk. Using the
term inertia, explain what happens.
Answer: The skateboard stops, but your inertia causes you to keep moving forward.