PSSA Science Sample
Questions
Mr. Jason Prushinski
BOCA 1
•
A cloth banner made to advertise a county
fair is 50‘ wide and 10‘ high. This sign will
be hung across the main street of a town
between two metal utility poles. Which of
the following materials would be the best to
use to attach the sign to the poles?
A. Nails
B. Ropes
C. Staples
D. Tape
BOCA 2
• An engineer is analyzing which areas in a
city might become flooded if there are heavy
rains. Which of the following maps is best to
use for this analysis?
A. a map showing the routes of city buses
B. a map showing the locations of streets
C. a map showing the locations of houses
D. a map showing the elevations of ground
surfaces
BOCA 3
Which of the following is the
best reason to use this type
of drawing when assembling
this item?
A. to indicate the tools needed
B. to warn of potential hazards
C. to increase the scale of the parts
D. to show how the parts go together
BOCA 4
• Sal is looking at a map of Massachusetts. He
has measured the distance, in inches, from
Boston to Salem on the map. He wants to
know how many actual miles the inches
represent.
What feature of the map should he look for?
A. key B. scale C. legend D. compass
BOCA 5
• Which of the following is most
likely the purpose of this model?
A. to guide the drafting of the building’s plans
B. to test the strength of the construction technique
C. to inventory the materials needed for construction
D. to show some of the characteristics of the finished
structure
BOCA 6
• Based on the diagrams, which of the following were more
likely to survive on continent X after the breakup of Pangaea
than before it broke apart?
A. organisms that lived in fresh water
B. organisms that required warm conditions
C. organisms that hibernated for long periods
D. organisms that traveled great distances
during migrations
X
x
BOCA 7
From year to year, farmers rotate different
crops in the fields to improve soil nutrients.
Why is crop rotation also an effective pest
management method?
A. It allows chemicals to kill more pests.
B. It creates crops that are pest-resistant.
C. It interrupts the life cycles of pests.
D. It allows pests to overpopulate.
BOCA 8
Where is water most likely to become
contaminated?
A. In a forest
B. At the ocean bottom
C. Near a cattle farm
D. By a dam
BOCA 9
What are the basic structural units of living
organisms?
A. Cells
B. Nuclei
C. Organs
D. Tissues
BOCA 10
Compare a caterpillar, a fern, and
mold. What do these organisms
have in common?
A. They are made of cells.
B. They produce their own food.
C. They decompose other organisms.
D. They are disease-causing
organisms.
BOCA 11
Which of these shows the correct sequence
of development?
A. Cells → tissues → organs → systems
B. Systems → tissues → cells → organs
C. Organs → cells → tissues → systems
D. Tissues → cells → systems → organs
BOCA 12
The terms gas exchange, diaphragm, and
inhale are most closely associated with which
system in the human body?
A. Circulatory
B. Digestive
C. Excretory
D. Respiratory
BOCA 13
Which of these best completes the
statement about the interaction of the
respiratory system with the circulatory system?
The lungs add A. nutrients to the blood
B. carbon dioxide to the blood
C. bile to the blood
D. oxygen to the blood
BOCA 14
Which of these is due entirely to inheritance
in humans?
A. Endurance
B. Broken bones
C. Reading skill
D. Eye color
BOCA 15
The diagram below shows the chromosomes from a
cell after they were photographed under a
microscope. Which of the following questions may
best be answered by studying an organism’s
chromosomes?
A. What sex is the organism?
B. Is the organism
endangered?
C. Where is the organism’s
ecosystem?
D. How does the organism obtain its food?
BOCA 16
DNA is essential to living organisms
because it A. can break apart
B. can prevent diseases
C. is a spiral helix
D. carries the genetic code
BOCA 17
Mendel proposed that traits observed in pea
plants resulted from a combination of "factors"
inherited from each parent. His description of these
"factors" can be considered the first scientific
definition of the role of A. genes
B. cell nuclei
C. ribosomes
D. meiosis
BOCA 18
The bones of a whale flipper are similar to the bones of a
bat wing as shown in the illustration below. What does this
similarity in bone structure suggest
about the whale and the bat?
A. They use the same methods to
travel.
B. They evolved from a common
ancestor.
C. They can migrate to the same locations.
D. They can manipulate objects in the same
way.
BOCA 19
Which amphibian is most aquatic?
A.
B.
C.
D.
BOCA 20
Which of these best enables
this animal to rid its body of excess
heat in a hot desert environment?
A. large ears
B. fur
C. sandy color
D. flexible feet
BOCA 21
A researcher found shark fossils on top of a
mountain. This evidence suggests which of the
following about this region?
A. It was once below a waterfall.
B. It was once part of a riverbed.
C. It was once covered by an ocean.
D. It was once near a freshwater lake.
BOCA 22
The picture shows dinosaur tracks found
in rocks. How many dinosaurs left their tracks
here?
A. 14
B. 4
C. 2
D. 24
BOCA 23
Index fossils help scientists estimate the age
of a rock because index fossil species only
existed for a relatively short time. What
happened to the species that are now used as
index fossils?
A. They became extinct.
B. They changed their diets.
C. They hid in marine sediments.
D. They migrated to new environments.
BOCA 24
According to the maps, which of
the following describes where
volcanoes are most likely to
form in the Ring of Fire?
A. in the middle of a tectonic
plate.
B. below the surface of tectonic
plates.
C. where tectonic plates meet
other plates.
D. where earthquakes are not likely to occur.
BOCA 25
Spirogyra are green algae that can
reproduce sexually. Which of the following
features identifies reproduction in Spirogyra as
sexual reproduction?
A. The cells of parent algae have nuclei.
B. Each offspring contains chloroplasts.
C. Several offspring may be produced at once.
D. Genetic material is contributed by two
parent cells.
BOCA 26
Organisms that absorb nutrients from dead
plants and animals are called A. producers
B. carnivores
C. decomposers
D. herbivores
BOCA 27
The illustration shows three types of unicellular
organisms commonly found in pond water. Based on
the illustration, which of the following can be used to
separate these organisms into three different groups?
A. length of lifespan
B. number of offspring
C. presence of a nucleus
D. method of movement
BOCA 28
Based on the position of the wings, which of the
insects below is most likely in the order Hemiptera?
A.
B.
C.
D.
BOCA 29
Both organisms can be seen
only with a microscope. Since these are one-celled
organisms, each cell must be able to
carry out all important life functions,
such as moving from place to place
and getting food.
A. Compare the ways these two
organisms move. Be sure to include
information from the diagrams in your answer.
BOCA 30
Both organisms can be seen
only with a microscope. Since these are one-celled
organisms, each cell must be able to
carry out all important life functions,
such as moving from place to place
and getting food.
A. Compare the ways these two
organisms obtain nutrients. Be sure
to include information from the diagrams in your
answer.
BOCA 31
In which of the following environments
would you expect to find the greatest number
of different species of plants and animals per
square mile?
A. wheat field in North Dakota
B. tropical rain forest in Panama
C. island near the South Pole
D. pasture on a Virginia farm
BOCA 32
What process makes food for plants?
A. Condensation
B. Reproduction
C. Respiration
D. Photosynthesis
BOCA 33
Students are studying the process of
photosynthesis in plants. Which of the
following is a product of photosynthesis?
A. carbon dioxide
B. nitrogen
C. sodium chloride
D. sugar
BOCA 34
The equation for photosynthesis is shown.
Which of these is required to complete the
equation for photosynthesis?
A. Nitrogen
B. Oxygen
C. Hydrogen
D. Carbon
BOCA 35
What is the variable being studied in this
experiment?
A. Amount of moisture
B. Amount of light
C. Plant size
D. Seed number
BOCA 36
According to this graph, which of these is most
important in developing the biomass of these plants?
A. Nitrates
B. Sulfates
C. Iron
D. Magnesium
BOCA 37
The line graph shows the heights
of plants grown in fertilized and
unfertilized soil. Based on this
information, what will most likely
occur on day six?
A. Plant A should increase about 1 cm in height.
B. Neither plant should increase by 1 cm in height.
C. Plant B should increase about 1 cm in height.
D. Plant A should increase about 2 cm in height.
BOCA 38
The chart shows the results of an experiment to
test the effects of different plant lights on plant
seedling growth. Which group of plants showed the
greatest gain in height?
A. Group 4
B. Group 3
C. Group 1
D. Group 2
BOCA 39
For separate ecosystems to be classified as
the same type of biome, they must A. be located along the equator
B. have deciduous forests
C. have similar organisms and climates
D. be at least one hundred square meters in
area
The Mid-Atlantic Ridge was produced by two
oceanic plates ___________________.
a. Converging
b. Diverging
c. Transforming
d. Falling
Name the landform that could be created by
the following plate interactions.
– Oceanic - Oceanic =
– Continental - Continental =
– Oceanic - Continental =
What is the driving force of plate tectonics?
a.
b.
c.
d.
The Asthenosphere
Convection Currents
Continental Drift
Liquid Magma
Name the three different types of Rocks.
1.)
2.)
3.)
List and describe the two different types of
Metamorphic rocks discussed in class
yesterday. (can use notes)
• List and describe three forms of
mechanical weathering.
1.
2.
3.
• How is a V-shaped valley formed?
• What is the lowest level of the
atmosphere?
a.) Ionosphere
b.) Stratosphere
c.) Troposphere
d.) Mesosphere
As altitude __________, air pressure and
density ___________.
a.) increase, increase
b.) decrease, increase
c.) increase, decrease
d.) decrease, decrease
• What is the chemical formula for ozone?
–O
– O2
– O3
– O4
• What is added to the name of a cloud to signify
that it can produce precipitation?
• The 2nd layer of the atmosphere is??
• The winter solstice occurs on what date?
• Energy is transferred within the troposphere in
which three ways?
• Name the four different types of fronts.