A class wants to find out whether mixing two substances makes a new substance. What should the students compare?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.3.1.d; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea PS1.B, endpoint for grade 5
A sealed jar weighs 20 grams empty. A 50-gram ice cube is sealed inside and melts. What do the jar and the water weigh together?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.3.1.b; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea PS1.A, endpoint for grade 5
A spoonful of sugar is stirred into a cup of water until no sugar can be seen. Which evidence shows that the sugar is still in the cup?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.3.1.a; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea PS1.A, endpoint for grade 5
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Structure and Properties of Matter, continued
A student has two white powders. Powder A dissolves in water. Powder B does not. An unlabeled white powder is stirred into water and settles to the bottom without dissolving. Which is it most likely to be?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.3.1.c; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea PS1.A, endpoint for grade 5
A student mixes two clear liquids. The mixture turns cloudy, and a white solid that was in neither liquid sinks to the bottom. What most likely happened?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.3.1.d; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea PS1.B, endpoint for grade 5
A student stirs 20 grams of salt into 180 grams of water until the salt dissolves. How much does the salt water weigh?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.3.1.b; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea PS1.A, endpoint for grade 5
A student sweeps an open plastic bag through the air and ties it shut. The bag stays puffed up and firm. What does this show about air?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.3.1.a; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea PS1.A, endpoint for grade 5
On a breezy day, leaves on a tree shake and dust hangs in the air. What do these observations show?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.3.1.a; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea PS1.A, endpoint for grade 5
Sand and small pebbles are stirred together in a bucket. The sand is still sand and the pebbles are still pebbles. Did a new substance form?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.3.1.d; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea PS1.B, endpoint for grade 5
Two gray cubes look alike. Which test compares a property of the materials they are made of?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.3.1.c; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea PS1.A, endpoint for grade 5
Two liquids are mixed inside a sealed bag. Bubbles of gas form and the bag puffs up. Before mixing, the bag and liquids weighed 85 grams. What do they weigh after?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.3.1.b; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea PS1.B, endpoint for grade 5
Water is left for two days in an open cup and in a sealed cup. The open cup weighs less at the end. The sealed cup weighs the same. What explains the difference?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.3.1.b; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea PS1.A, endpoint for grade 5
Matter and Energy in Organisms and Ecosystems 9
A deer eats grass all summer. Which is one way its body uses the energy from that food?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.8.2.a; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea LS1.C, endpoint for grade 5
A heron eats a fish. The fish ate insects, and the insects ate pond plants. Where did the energy in the heron's food first come from?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.8.2.a; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea PS3.D, endpoint for grade 5
A small willow is planted in a tub of dry soil that weighs 90 kilograms. Five years later the tree has gained 70 kilograms, and the dry soil weighs almost 90 kilograms still. Which claim does this evidence support?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.8.2.b; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea LS1.C, endpoint for grade 5
An oak tree grows from a small seedling into a tree that weighs as much as a car. Where does most of the material in the tree come from?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.8.2.b; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea LS1.C, endpoint for grade 5
Besides air and water, what do plants need in order to live and grow?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.8.2.b; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea LS1.C, endpoint for grade 5
Fungi grow on a fallen log, and over several years the log crumbles away. What are the fungi doing?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.8.2.c; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea LS2.A, endpoint for grade 5
Leaves fall from a tree in autumn and rot on the ground. How can matter from those leaves end up in a new plant?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.8.2.c; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea LS2.B, endpoint for grade 5
Which is an example of matter moving from an animal back into the environment?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.8.2.c; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea LS2.B, endpoint for grade 5
Which model shows the path of energy to a fox that eats rabbits?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.8.2.a; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea PS3.D, endpoint for grade 5
Space Systems 9
A class draws Earth as a circle with one person standing at the top and one at the bottom. Each person drops a ball. Which way should the arrows for the falling balls point?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.11.3.a; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea PS2.B, endpoint for grade 5
A class stands a meter stick upright in the schoolyard and measures its shadow: 180 centimeters at 8 a.m., 60 centimeters at noon and 150 centimeters at 4 p.m. Which pattern do the data show?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.11.3.c; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea ESS1.B, endpoint for grade 5
A star gives off about as much light as the sun, yet at night it looks like a tiny point. What explains this?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.11.3.b; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea ESS1.A, endpoint for grade 5
A student graphs the hours of daylight in her town: about 10 in January, 13 in April, 15 in July and 11 in October. Which pattern does the graph show?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.11.3.c; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea ESS1.B, endpoint for grade 5
A student jumps straight up and lands back on the ground. What brought the student back?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.11.3.a; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea PS2.B, endpoint for grade 5
A student sees a group of stars in the evening sky in January. In July it cannot be seen in the evening. The next January it is back. What kind of pattern is this?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.11.3.c; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea ESS1.B, endpoint for grade 5
The sun is one star among a great many. What makes it look larger and brighter than every other star in the sky?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.11.3.b; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea ESS1.A, endpoint for grade 5
Two lanterns of the same kind are lit on a dark street. One hangs beside a student and one hangs three blocks away. Which looks brighter to the student, and what does that model?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.11.3.b; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea ESS1.A, endpoint for grade 5
What does the word "down" mean for a person standing anywhere on Earth?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.11.3.a; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea PS2.B, endpoint for grade 5
Earth's Systems 10
A class colors a grid of 100 squares to stand for all the water on Earth. About how many squares should be colored as salt water?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.13.4.b; the figures are in Where is Earth's Water?, U.S. Geological Survey Water Science School
A pie chart of Earth's fresh water has three slices: glaciers and ice caps, groundwater, and surface water such as lakes and rivers. Which slice is the largest?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.13.4.b; the figures are in Where is Earth's Water?, U.S. Geological Survey Water Science School
A school wants to save fresh water. Which statement defines a design problem with a measure of success and a limit on cost?Nebraska Department of Education, Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicators SC.5.13.4.d and SC.5.13.4.e
A student draws a bar graph of where Earth's fresh water is: glaciers and ice caps, groundwater, and lakes and rivers. Which bar should be the shortest?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.13.4.b; the figures are in Where is Earth's Water?, U.S. Geological Survey Water Science School
A town cleans its sewage at a treatment plant before the water goes back into a river. How does this protect Earth's resources?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.13.4.c; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea ESS3.C, endpoint for grade 5
After glaciers and ice caps, which reservoir holds the most fresh water?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.13.4.b; the figures are in Where is Earth's Water?, U.S. Geological Survey Water Science School
Earthworms tunnel through the ground, breaking up soil and moving it around. Which two systems are interacting?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.13.4.a; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea ESS2.A, endpoint for grade 5
Over many years a river cuts a deep canyon into rock. Which two of Earth's systems are interacting?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.13.4.a; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea ESS2.A, endpoint for grade 5
Which of Earth's systems is made up of all the water and ice on the planet?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.13.4.a; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea ESS2.A, endpoint for grade 5
Wind picks up loose sand and piles it into dunes. Which two systems are interacting?Nebraska Science Standards (2024), indicator SC.5.13.4.a; the fact is in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012), core idea ESS2.A, endpoint for grade 5
This 5th grade NeSA science practice test follows the NSCAS Science blueprint: 40 questions written for this site. Unofficial, not affiliated with the Nebraska Department of Education.
Read the full guide
What the Nebraska 5th grade science test covers
The NSCAS Science blueprint names four grade 5 topics, and this page keeps each domain's weight. Structure and Properties of Matter: particles too small to see, weight conserved in melting and mixing, telling materials apart, new substances. Matter and Energy in Organisms and Ecosystems: energy that began in the sun, what plants are built from, decomposers. Space Systems: gravity, why the sun outshines other stars, shadows, day length and seasonal stars. Earth's Systems: the four spheres, salt and fresh water, protecting resources.
How the answers are checked
Under each answer is its Nebraska indicator, such as SC.5.11.3.b. The fact behind it is in the grade 5 core ideas of the National Research Council's science framework; the water figures are the U.S. Geological Survey's.
The real test asks several questions about one phenomenon. Practice saying what the evidence in a question shows before reading the choices.
Questions and answers
Is the NeSA science test still given in Nebraska?
Not under that name. NeSA stood for Nebraska State Accountability. The state's science test for general assessment is now NSCAS Science, the Nebraska Student-Centered Assessment System, given in grades 5 and 8.
How many questions are on the 5th grade NSCAS science test?
The blueprint gives 26 to 30 operational items, grouped in 4 to 6 tasks. Earth and space sciences carry the most: 10 to 16 items in 2 or 3 tasks.
What science is tested in 5th grade in Nebraska?
Four topics of the grade 5 standards: Structure and Properties of Matter, Matter and Energy in Organisms and Ecosystems, Space Systems, and Earth's Systems. Forces, weather and other topics of grades 3 and 4 are not on the grade 5 blueprint.
How is NSCAS Science scored?
With a scale score from 3000 to 3250 and one of three achievement levels: Developing, On Track or Advanced. The documents read for this page give no percent to pass, so a percent here is practice only.