A chart shows where Earth's fresh water is found. Which reservoir holds the most fresh water?U.S. Geological Survey, Water Science School, "Where is Earth's Water?"; benchmark 4E.2.2.1.1
A class records the hours of daylight on one day in each season: winter 9, spring 12, summer 15 and fall 12. Which pattern do the data show?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 3E.2.2.1.1
A cliff has rock layers with plant fossils at the bottom. The layers above them hold fossils of sea shells. What does this pattern show?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 4E.3.2.1.1
A community limits how many fish may be taken from a lake each year so that fish remain for the future. What is the community balancing?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 4E.4.2.2.1
A student measures the shadow of a flagpole on a sunny day: 4 meters at 9 a.m., 1 meter at noon and 4 meters at 3 p.m. Which pattern do the data show?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 5E.2.2.1.2
Show all 42 questions (37 more)
Earth and Space Science, continued
A student tests three model walls to see which one best keeps soil from washing away. What makes the test fair?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 4E.1.2.1.2
Many cultures, including Minnesota American Indian Tribes and communities, watch patterns in the stars. Which is one way star patterns are used?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 3E.4.2.2.1
On a humid day, drops of water form on the outside of a cold glass. Which process is this?U.S. Geological Survey, Water Science School, "Condensation and the Water Cycle"; benchmark 4E.1.1.1.2
Students pour the same amount of water down two piles of the same soil. One pile is steeper than the other. They measure how much soil washes away. Which variable are they testing?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 4E.1.2.1.1
Tree roots grow into a crack in a rock and split the rock. Which two Earth systems are interacting?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 4E.3.1.1.1
Two flashlights are exactly alike. One is 2 meters away and the other is 50 meters away. The near one looks brighter. What does this model show about stars?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 5E.4.1.1.1
Which list has only renewable energy resources?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 4E.4.2.1.1
Which pattern of the Sun can be predicted for any clear day?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 3E.2.1.1.1
Which solution reduces the impact of earthquakes on people?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 4E.3.2.2.1
Life Science 14
A kind of plant usually grows tall. One of these plants gets too little water and stays short. What does this show?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 4L.4.1.1.1
A litter of puppies has the same two parents. The puppies look like their parents in many ways, but their fur patterns differ from one another. What does this show?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 4L.4.2.1.2
A student wants to find out how the amount of sunlight affects a plant's growth. Which plan is a fair test?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 3L.1.2.1.2
After a wetland dries up, a town digs a new pond to help the frog population recover. Which evidence best shows whether the solution is working?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 5L.4.1.2.1
Frogs, butterflies and oak trees have very different life cycles. What do all of their life cycles have in common?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 3L.3.1.1.2
How does living in a pack help wolves survive?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 3L.4.1.1.1
In a group of animals of one species, some have fur that blends in with the ground better than others. What is most likely true of the ones that blend in best?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 3L.3.2.1.1
In an ecosystem, what do decomposers do with dead plants and animals?National Geographic Society, Education, "Decomposers"; benchmark 5L.3.1.1.3
Some plants of one species have longer thorns than others. How can longer thorns be an advantage?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 3L.3.2.1.1
Two dogs from the same litter live in different homes. One is given far more food and weighs more. What best explains the difference in weight?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 4L.4.1.1.1
Two plants of the same kind get the same sunlight. Plant A gets 2 spoonfuls of water a day and grows 3 centimeters. Plant B gets 6 spoonfuls a day and grows 9 centimeters. What do the data support?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 3L.1.2.1.2
Where do plants get most of the materials they need for growth?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 5L.1.2.1.3
Which observation is evidence that plants do not need soil to get the materials for growth?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 5L.1.2.1.3
Which of these is an internal structure that helps an animal survive?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 3L.4.2.1.1
Physical Science 14
A 50-gram ice cube melts in a sealed cup. What is the weight of the water in the cup?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 5P.2.2.1.1
A ball is rolled toward a ramp three times. The faster it rolls, the higher it climbs up the ramp. What does this evidence show?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 5P.3.2.1.1
A ball sits in a room with no light at all. Can a person see the ball after waiting a long time?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 3P.1.1.1.1
A lamp is plugged into a wall outlet and turned on. What carries energy from the outlet to the lamp?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 5P.2.1.1.1
A rolling marble hits a marble that is sitting still. The still marble starts to roll, and the first marble slows down. What happened to the energy?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 5P.1.1.1.1
A student builds a circuit with a battery and a buzzer. Which energy conversion does the device make?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 5P.3.2.2.1
A student mixes two clear liquids. A solid that was not there before forms in the cup. What does this suggest?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 5P.1.2.1.1
A student rubs a balloon on her hair. When she lifts the balloon, her hair rises toward it without touching it. Which force is acting on the hair?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 4P.1.1.1.1
A student shines a flashlight at four materials. Which one is translucent?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 3P.1.2.1.1
Air is pumped into a flat basketball, and the ball expands. What does this show about air?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 5P.3.1.1.1
What do animals use the energy in their food for?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 5P.3.1.1.2
Which design problem can be solved by using what you know about magnets?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 4P.1.1.2.1
Which model shows how a person sees a book in a lit room?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 3P.3.1.1.1
Which property of a material can be tested with a battery, wires and a bulb?Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019), benchmark 5P.1.2.1.2
How this list was compiled: Outline: the department's MCA-IV Test Specifications for Science (July 2025), linked from https://education.mn.gov/MDE/dse/test/spec/ as Science MCA-IV Test Specifications. The department's own site did not open for this check, so the specifications were read 2026-10-09 in the Internet Archive's copies of the page (25 August 2026) and of the file (6 March 2026); and the Procedures Manual for Minnesota Statewide Assessments 2026-27 (Minnesota Department of Education, October 2026), https://mn.mypearsonsupport.com/policies-and-procedures/, on the Minnesota Assessment Hub, read 2026-10-09. Each question names its benchmark in the Minnesota Academic Standards in Science (2019; final with examples and emphasis statements, May 2022), read 2026-10-09 in the copy the Minnesota STEM Teacher Center keeps, https://stemtc.scimathmn.org/sites/default/files/2023-08/Minnesota_Academic_Standards_in_Science-Final_101322.pdf; the fact in an answer is one the benchmark or its emphasis statement gives, or is read from the data in the question. Three questions rest on a public page named under the answer and opened 2026-10-09: U.S. Geological Survey, Where is Earth's Water?, https://www.usgs.gov/special-topics/water-science-school/science/where-earths-water; U.S. Geological Survey, Condensation and the Water Cycle, https://www.usgs.gov/special-topics/water-science-school/science/condensation-and-water-cycle; National Geographic Society, Decomposers, https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/decomposers/. No released or sample item of the department was read. Licence: Own work. Questions, answer choices and explanations were written for this site from Minnesota's published academic standards. Nothing is copied or reworded from an MCA test, a released or sample item, a Student Readiness Tool or another practice test.
How it works
Unofficial practice for Minnesota's grade 5 Science MCA. Every question was written for this page from the 2019 state science standards; none is a released or sample question. Not affiliated with the Minnesota Department of Education.
Read the full guide
What the 5th grade science MCA covers
The state's test specifications give three reporting categories the same weight, 13 to 15 questions each: Earth and space science, life science and physical science. The grade 5 test assesses the benchmarks of grades 3, 4 and 5, so it reaches back to light, life cycles and daylight from grade 3 and to magnets, erosion, water and inherited traits from grade 4. Every one of those benchmarks has a question here.
How the answers are checked
Each answer names its benchmark, such as 5P.2.2.1.1, and its fact comes from that benchmark or from the data in the question. Three answers on fresh water, condensation and decomposers were read on pages of the U.S. Geological Survey and the National Geographic Society, named under the answer.
Many benchmarks are about doing science: a fair test, reading a data table, choosing evidence. Read the numbers in a question before the choices.
Questions and answers
How many questions are on the 5th grade science MCA?
39 to 43 questions count toward the score, for 45 points. The department's manual lists about 60 questions in two sections, because field test questions are mixed in and do not count.
Does the grade 5 science MCA have a time limit?
No. Students may keep working for as long as they are making progress, according to the department's procedures manual. Its scheduling table gives 1.5 to 2 hours as the typical range for grade 5 science.
Is there an MCA science practice test for grade 5 from the state?
The state has Student Readiness Tools that show the online question types, and the box under the questions links to them. The questions on this page are different: unofficial practice written for this site.
How is the 5th grade science MCA scored?
Results are reported as one of four performance levels: Beginning, Intermediate, Meets and Advanced. Meets and Advanced show proficiency. Each of the three content areas is also reported as below, at or near, or above expectations.