How Earth systems interact · seed 1 · A4, ink-friendly. The answer key prints on its own page for grown-ups.

Earth's Four Connected Systems

Science · Earth's Systems · ages 10-11
Name ______________________   Date ____________

  1. A huge glacier sits high in the mountains. Which system is the glacier part of?

    • The hydrosphere
    • The geosphere
    • The atmosphere

  2. What is the atmosphere?

    • All the air around Earth
    • All the water on Earth
    • All the living things on Earth

  3. How many connected systems make up Earth?

    Answer: ______________

  4. What is the biosphere?

    • All the rock and soil on Earth
    • All living things on Earth
    • All the air around Earth

  5. A fish in a pond and a rock on a faraway mountain are interacting with each other right now.

    Circle one:   True   False

  6. The sun warms the ocean, and some of its water rises into the air as vapor. Which two systems are interacting?

    • Geosphere and hydrosphere
    • Biosphere and atmosphere
    • Hydrosphere and atmosphere

  7. A tree's roots grow into a rock and slowly crack it apart. Which two systems are interacting?

    • Hydrosphere and atmosphere
    • Atmosphere and biosphere
    • Biosphere and geosphere

  8. A bird breathes in air as it flies across the sky. Which two systems are interacting?

    • Geosphere and hydrosphere
    • Hydrosphere and atmosphere
    • Biosphere and atmosphere

  9. Zara draws a model of a garden: rain falls from the sky, soaks into the soil, and fills a puddle. She wants her model to show all four systems. What should she add?

    • More rain clouds
    • A bigger puddle
    • Worms living in the soil

  10. A long drought dries up a pond. What happens next in the other systems?

    • Plants and animals that used the pond lose their water
    • Nothing else changes, because systems work alone
    • The pond's rocks turn into air
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Answer key

For grown-ups. Fold this page away before handing over the rest.

Earth's Four Connected Systems W1-mt_LKagN9GJPX-s1

  1. The hydrosphere · A glacier is ice, and ice is frozen water, so it belongs to the hydrosphere.
  2. All the air around Earth · Atmos is an old word for air or vapor, so the atmosphere is all the air wrapped around Earth.
  3. 4 · Earth has four connected systems: the geosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere.
  4. All living things on Earth · Bio means life, so the biosphere is every living thing, from ants to whales.
  5. False · Systems interact where they touch. The fish and the rock are far apart, so they are not interacting.
  6. Hydrosphere and atmosphere · The ocean is part of the hydrosphere, and the air the vapor rises into is the atmosphere.
  7. Biosphere and geosphere · The tree is part of the biosphere, and the rock it cracks is part of the geosphere.
  8. Biosphere and atmosphere · The bird is part of the biosphere, and the air it breathes is part of the atmosphere.
  9. Worms living in the soil · Her model already shows the atmosphere, geosphere, and hydrosphere. Adding living things like worms connects the biosphere.
  10. Plants and animals that used the pond lose their water · A change in the hydrosphere spreads: living things in the biosphere that depended on the pond are affected too.
Worksheet · LightMySky