Download Science Vocabulary

Science
Vocabulary
Unit 3A Plants
Let’s look at some vocabulary:
Vascular Plants: the kind of plants that have a tube
system made up of roots, stems, and leaves
Roots: the plant part that is usually underground, and
absorbs water and minerals from the soil
Stems: the part of the plant that holds it up, and
carries water, minerals, and nutrients through the plant
Leaves: the part of the plant where food is made
Chlorophyll: the green pigment in plant cells used
during the process of photosynthesis
Let’s look at some vocabulary:
Photosynthesis: the process in which a plant makes its
own food by using the Sun’s energy to change carbon
dioxide and water into sugar and oxygen
Fertilization: the joining of male and female cells
Germination: the process in which a seed begins to
grow into a new plant
Pollination: the transfer of pollen in seed plants
Spore: a reproductive structure in some plants, such as
mosses and ferns, that allows them to reproduce
without seeds
Unit 3B Animals
Let’s look at some vocabulary:
Larva: the worm-like stage of an insect’s life after it
hatches from its egg
Nymph: an immature form of an insect that looks like
the adult version, but without wings
Complete Metamorphosis: a complex change that most
insects undergo: egg->larva->pupa->adult
Incomplete Metamorphosis: developmental change in
some insects in which a nymph hatches from an egg and
gradually turns into an adult insect
Adaptation: a trait or characteristic that helps an
organism to survive
Let’s look at some vocabulary:
Physical Adaptation: an adaptation to a body part that
helps an animal to survive
Behavioral Adaptation: an adaptation where the animal
actually does something in order to survive
Instinct: a behavior an animal knows how to do without
having to learn how to do it
Environment: all of the living and non living things in an
area
Life Cycle: the stages an organism goes through from
birth until death
Unit 4a Ecosystems
Let’s look at some vocabulary:
Ecosystem: all of the living and nonliving things in a particular area
Community: all of the living things found in the same ecosystem
Population: a group consisting of the same type of organism in an
ecosystem
Habitat: the part of an ecosystem that meets the food and
shelter needs of an organism
Food Chain: the transfer of food energy in a sequence of living
things
Let’s look at some vocabulary:
Producer: a living thing that makes its own food. Plants are
producers.
Consumer: a living thing that consumes (eats) plants and other
animals.
Decomposer: a living thing that gets its energy by breaking down
the remains of plants and animals
Herbivore: a living thing that only consumes plants
Carnivore: a living thing that consumes plants and other animals
Unit 4B
Natural Resources
Let’s look at some vocabulary:
Natural Resource: materials found in nature that are used by
living things
Renewable Resource: resources that can be replaced quickly
Nonrenewable Resource: resources that cannot be replaced
quickly
Fossil Fuels: a natural fuel formed from the remains of a
once living organism
Conservation: using less of something in order to make it last
longer
Let’s look at some vocabulary:
Endangered Species: organisms whose whole population is at
risk of dying out
Recycling: a process in which things are used again
Pollution: a harmful substance in the environment
Watershed: all of the land and water that drain into a river
system
Green Energy: energy generated by using renewable
resources that is considered to be “clean energy.”
Unit 5
Weather
Let’s look at some vocabulary:
Water Cycle: water continuously moving from the Earth’s
surface into the atmosphere, and then back again
Atmosphere: the mixture of gases that surround the Earth
Evaporation: the process by which a liquid turns into a gas.
In the water cycle, water evaporates from Earth’s surface
and rises into the atmosphere.
Condensation: the process by which a gas turns back into a
liquid. In the water cycle, water vapor condenses and forms
clouds.
Precipitation: the process by which water falls back to
Earth in the form of rain, sleet, hail, or snow
Let’s go over some vocabulary:
Groundwater: water located within the gaps and pores
in rocks below the Earth’s surface
Runoff: water that does not soak into the ground, and
instead flows across Earth’s surface
Humidity: the amount of water vapor in the air
Air Pressure: the weight of the atmosphere pressing
down on Earth
Air Mass: a large body of air that has the same
temperature and humidity
Unit 6 Space
Lets look at some vocabulary:
Axis: the imaginary line on which an object rotates.
Rotation: turning on an axis. This causes day and
night. Earth turns on its axis once every 24 hours.
Revolution: travelling around the sun. This causes the
seasons. Earth makes one complete revolution every
365 ¼ days.
Orbit: the path on which an object revolves around
another object. Earth travels on an orbit around the
Sun.
Moon Phases: a change in the appearance of the
Moon’s shape due to shadows.
Lets look at some vocabulary:
Constellation: a pattern of stars that form a picture or
design in the sky.
Solar System: a star and all of the planets and objects
that revolve around it.
Planet: a large round body that revolves around a sun in
a clear orbit.
Inner Planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars
Outer Planets: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune
Units 7 and 8
Matter
Let’s look at some vocabulary:
Matter: anything that has mass and takes up space
Mass: the amount of matter in an object
Physical Property: a characteristic that you can
observe or measure directly
Density: the amount of matter in an object
compared to the space it takes up
Solid: a state of matter that has definite shape
and definite volume
Let’s look at some vocabulary:
Liquid: a state of matter that has definite volume,
but does not have a definite shape and instead takes
the shape of its container
Gas: a state of matter that has no definite volume
and no definite shape
Physical Change: a change where an object is
altered, but a new substance is not formed
Chemical Change: a changed produced by chemical
means that results in a different substance
Solution: a mixture where all parts are mixed evenly
Unit 9 Energy
Let’s look at some vocabulary:
Energy: the ability to cause changes in matter
Chemical Energy: energy released by a
chemical reaction
Electrical Energy: energy that comes from an
electric current
Kinetic Energy: the energy of motion
Potential Energy: stored energy
Let’s look at some vocabulary:
Heat: energy that moves between objects of
different temperature
Conduction: the movement of heat between two
objects that are touching
Radiation: the movement of heat without anything
needed to carry it
Conductor: a material that lets heat or electricity
travel through it easily
Insulator: a material that does not allow heat or
electricity travel through it easily
Unit 10
Electricity
Let’s look at some vocabulary:
Static Electricity: the build up of electric charges
on an object
Current Electricity: electricity that flows through
currents
Series Circuit: an electric circuit that has only one
path
Parallel Circuit: an electric circuit that has more
than one path for the electric charges to follow
Switch: controls the flow of electricity in circuits
Let’s look at some vocabulary:
Magnet: an object that attracts iron and some other
metals
Conductor: a material that allows electricity and
heat to travel through it easily
Insulator: a material that does not allow heat or
electricity travel through it easily
Generator: a device that produces electricity by
converting mechanical energy into electrical energy
Electric Motor: a device that turns electrical energy
into mechanical energy
Unit 11
Motion
Let’s look at some vocabulary:
Motion: any change in an object’s position
Position: the location of an object in relation to its
surroundings
Force: any push or pull
Speed: how far an object travels in a certain
amount of time
Velocity: the speed and direction of a moving
object
Let’s look at some vocabulary:
Acceleration: a change in the speed and/or direction
of a moving object…a change in velocity
(hint: Acceleration starts with AC = A Change)
Friction: a force between two touching objects that
slows or stops motion
MPH: Miles Per Hour
Potential Energy: stored energy
Kinetic Energy: the energy of motion