6th Grade Science Vocabulary
Acceleration - The rate of change of velocity; can be calculated by dividing the change in the velocity by
the time it takes the change to occur.
Acid -Any substance that produces hydrogen ions in a water solution.
Base - Any substance that forms hydroxide ions in a water solution.
Chemical change- The change that occurs when a substance reacts and forms one or more new
substances.
Compound - A substance made up of at least two different elements held together by chemical bonds
that can only be broken down into elements by chemical processes.
Condensation - The change of a gas or vapor to a liquid, either by cooling or by being subjected to
increased pressure.
Density - Concentration of matter of an object; the mass per unit volume of a substance in a given area.
Dependent variable- The factor being measured or observed in an experiment.
Electromagnetic radiation - The emission and propagation of the entire range of the electromagnetic
spectrum including: gamma rays, x-rays, ultraviolet radiation, visible light, microwaves and radio waves.
Electron - A negatively charged subatomic particle that orbits the nucleus of an atom.
Evaporation - The change of a liquid into a vapor at a temperature below the boiling point.
Force - A push or pull exerted on an object.
Gas - A material whose particles are far apart and has no definite shape or volume.
Independent variable - The factor that is changed in an experiment in order to study changes in the
dependent variable.
Inertia - The resistance of an object to a change in its motion.
Kinetic energy - Energy a moving object has because of its motion; depends on the mass and speed of
the object.
Law of Conservation of Mass - States that the mass of all substances present before a chemical change
equals the mass of all the substances remaining after the change.
Liquid - A material whose particles are moving freely and have enough energy to slip out of order.
Magnetic - Having the property of attracting iron and certain other materials by virtue of a surrounding
field of force.
Mass - The amount of matter an object contains.
Mixture - The product of two or more substances mixed together but not chemically combines. Mixtures
can be separated through physical means such as filtering, freezing, melting, or distilling.
Neutron - A subatomic particle having zero charge, found in the nucleus of an atom.
Nucleus - The center region of an atom where protons and neutrons are located.
pH - A symbol for the measure of the acidity or alkalinity of a solution
Physical change - Any change in size, shape, or state of matter in which the identity of the substance
remains the same.
Plasma - Matter consisting of positively and negatively charged particles.
Potential energy - Stored energy an object has due to its position.
Proton - Positively charged subatomic particle in the nucleus of an atom.
Scientific method - A plan of inquiry that uses science process skills as tools to gather, organize, analyze
and communicate information.
Solid - A materials whose particles are closely packed together and arranged in geometric patterns
Solubility - A measure of the ability of a substance to dissolve in another substance.
Solution - A mixture of two or more substances uniformly dispersed throughout a single phase.
Speed - Distance an object travels per unit of time.
Velocity - The time-rate at which a body changes its position; defined as displacement divided by the
time of travel.
Volume - A measure of the amount of space an object takes up.