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25 multiple-choice questions and 75 flashcards, written to the Next Generation Science Standards blueprint. Every question carries a full rationale.
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Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) — Grade 4: Energy (4-PS3), Waves (4-PS4), Molecules to Organisms (4-LS1), Earth's Place in the Universe (4-ESS1), Earth's Systems (4-ESS2), Earth & Human Activity (4-ESS3). Public standards from nextgenscience.org.
CoStudy's 4th Grade Science bank holds 100 items. Every multiple-choice question carries a written rationale explaining why the correct answer is correct and why each distractor is tempting but wrong.
A sample of 12 multiple-choice questions from the bank, with the full rationale shown.
Energy is:
Answer: D — The ability to do work or cause change
Energy = capacity to do work. (A) energy is conserved; (C),(B) too narrow.
A fossil of a sea creature found on a mountain suggests:
Answer: C — The mountain was once under sea
Mountain land was once seafloor — uplift over time. (A),(B),(D) wrong.
Leaves help a plant by:
Answer: D — Photosynthesis (making food)
Leaves do photosynthesis. (A) is roots; (C) is roots; (B) is fruit.
To reduce flooding from storms, people might:
Answer: D — Build storm barriers, plant trees
Barriers and vegetation reduce flooding. (A),(C),(B) worsen it.
When light bounces off a mirror, that's:
Answer: A — Reflection
Reflection = bouncing off. (B) is bending; (C),(D) different.
Animals get energy from:
Answer: B — Food they eat
Animals consume food for energy. (A) is plants; (C),(D) wrong.
A plant's flower's main job is to:
Answer: A — Reproduce (make seeds)
Flowers → reproduction. (B) is roots; (C),(D) wrong.
Waves can carry:
Answer: A — Energy
Waves transfer energy. (B) waves transfer energy not matter (mostly); (C),(D) wrong.
When two cars collide, energy:
Answer: B — Transfers to motion, sound, and heat
Energy is conserved but transferred. (A),(C),(D) wrong.
Erosion is when:
Answer: B — Soil/rock pieces are moved away
Erosion = transport of weathered material. (A),(C),(D) wrong.
A simple circuit needs:
Answer: A — A power source, conductor, and path that loops
Circuit = closed loop with source + conductor. (B),(C),(D) incomplete.
A renewable energy source is:
Answer: C — Solar (Sun)
Solar is renewable. (A),(B),(D) finite fossil fuels.
6 sample cards from the 75 in the bank.
How does ice cause weathering?
Water seeps into cracks, freezes, expands. Pushes rocks apart.
What are the main parts of a plant?
Roots, stem, leaves, flowers, fruit, seeds.
What is 'frequency' of a wave?
How many waves pass a point per second. High frequency = high pitch (sound) or color toward blue (light).
What is a 'non-renewable resource'?
Can't be replaced quickly — once used up, it's gone. Examples: oil, coal, natural gas, minerals.
Why is energy important to all living things?
Energy is needed for everything life does — moving, growing, breathing, thinking.
How does a fish's body help it survive?
Streamlined shape for swimming, gills for breathing in water, fins for steering, scales for protection.
These samples are a small slice. The full bank runs flashcards, multiple choice and timed mock exams with per-chapter progress tracking, on the web and in the iOS app.
The 4th Grade Science bank holds 100 items: 25 multiple-choice questions, 75 flashcards. 18 of them are on this page to read free, with no signup.
Yes. Every multiple-choice item carries a written rationale that states the controlling principle behind the correct answer and then addresses each wrong option in turn — why it tempts and precisely where it fails. Knowing why the plausible answer was wrong is worth more than knowing which letter was right.
Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) — Grade 4: Energy (4-PS3), Waves (4-PS4), Molecules to Organisms (4-LS1), Earth's Place in the Universe (4-ESS1), Earth's Systems (4-ESS2), Earth & Human Activity (4-ESS3). Public standards from nextgenscience.org.
The samples on this page are free to read in full, rationales included, with no account. The complete 100-item bank, the timed mock exams and per-chapter progress tracking are part of CoStudy on the web and in the iOS app.
Last reviewed 2026-08-22. Banks are written against the certifying body's published exam outline and re-checked when that outline changes — exams get renumbered, retired and reweighted, and a bank written to a superseded outline teaches the wrong proportions. Figures that are re-indexed annually are deliberately not asserted as rules; the questions test the governing principle instead.