Increase
Decrease (Reduce)
State of Matter
Property
Density
Energy
Temperature
To become bigger or
make bigger the
amount or size of
something.
To become smaller or
make smaller the
amount or size of
something. For
example, if the grass
that crickets eat dies,
the population of
crickets would likely
decrease.
The form something
can take. The most
common states of
matter are solid,
liquid, or gas.
A characteristic of
something, such as
texture, shape, color,
odor, size etc.
How tightly or loosely
packed the
molecules of an
object, liquid or gas
are. For example, a
ping-pong ball and a
golf ball may have
the same volume/size,
but the golf ball is
denser.
The ability to do work
(like moving an
object, or lighting a
bulb). The main
source of energy is
the Sun. Chemical
energy is found in
food and batteries.
An example of
mechanical energy is
chewing or moving.
Light and heat energy
is in the Sun and light
bulbs. Sound energy
is produced when you
speak or play an
instrument.
How hot or cold
something is. The tool
to measure
Organism
Length
Width
Any living thing. All
organisms grow,
reproduce (have
babies) and die.
How long something is
(measured in
centimeters (cm) or
inches with a ruler or
meter tape).
How wide something
is (measured with a
ruler or meter tape in
cm or inches).
Diameter
The width of a circle
(measured with a ruler
in cm or inches).
Mass
The amount of matter
in an object and can
be measured using a
scale or a balance.
The unit of
measurement is the
gram ( g ).
Volume
How much space
something takes up.
The tools to measure
volume are a
graduated cylinder, a
beaker, or a
measuring cup. The
main units of
measurement are
milliliter (ml) or liter (L).
Vibration
Movement back and
forth, which causes
sound energy. When
Gravity
temperature is the
thermometer, and the
unit of measurement
is degrees Celsius or
degrees Fahrenheit.
Water freezes at 0
degrees Celsius and
boils at 100 degrees
Celsius.
A force that pulls
objects toward the
center of the Earth.
you hit a tuning fork, it
makes a sound.
Friction
Lubricant
Something that
decreases/reduces
friction, like water on
a water slide, or the
slime that helps a snail
glide.
Simple Machines
Work
In science, work is
done when you apply
force to something
causing it to move.
Conductors
Insulators
Materials that block
the flow of electricity
(anything non-metal).
Examples include
rubber, glass, wood,
plastic, paint etc. Pot
handles are often
plastic because
plastic doesn’t
conduct heat like
metal.
Force of Attraction
A force that pushes in
the opposite direction
an object is moving.
Something smooth
has less friction than
something rough.
Concrete has more
friction than ice, and
that’s why you slide
less on concrete.
Something that helps
us use less force to do
work. Examples are
pulleys, levers,
inclined plane (ramp),
and screws. Simple
machines use
mechanical energy to
move objects.
Materials that
transmit/carry the flow
of electricity. All
metals are
conductors.
Examples of object
that conduct
electricity include
wires, paper clips,
coins, and many
other metal objects.
How much pull there
is between two
magnets. As you
increase the distance
between two
magnets, the force of
attraction decreases.
This just means that if
you take two
magnets and move
them further apart,
they attract each
other less.
Iron
Circuit
Contracts
Evaporation
Precipitation
Groundwater
Structure
Function
The main metal that
attracts magnets.
Metals such as
copper and
aluminum do not
attract magnets,
while nickel does a
tiny bit.
A closed path around
which electricity can
flow. Electricity only
flows in a closed
circuit (when metal is
touching metal). An
open circuit breaks
the flow.
Gets smaller, the
molecules get closer
together.
Chemical Energy
When a liquid turns
into a gas. For
example, when water
turns to vapor
When the water in the
clouds gets too heavy
and falls back down
as rain or snow
Water under the
Earth’s surface
Condensation
Part of something.
For example, the
structures (parts) of
the plant are the
roots, stem, and
leaves.
The job or purpose of
something. For
example, the function
(job) of a plant’s roots
is to take in water and
nutrients, and to
Germination
Expands
State of Matter
Runoff
Water Cycle
Habitat
The kind of energy
you find in batteries
which then flows
through wires in the
form of electric
energy, and becomes
heat energy and light
energy in the bulb.
Gets bigger, the
molecules get further
apart.
Refers to solid, liquid
or gas. In the case of
water, is it ice when
solid, water when
liquid, and water
vapor when gas.
When vapor/gas turns
back to liquid. This is
how clouds are
formed.
Excess water that
flows down the
surface of the land.
The Sun gives energy
to the water cycle by
evaporating water
from puddles, lakes,
and oceans, which
then goes up into the
clouds
(condensation), and
falls back to the earth
(precipitation).
When a seed starts to
grow. Another word
for it is sprouting.
The natural home or
environment of an
organism (plant or
animal).
Inherited Trait
Behavior
Life Cycle of Insect
Seed Dispersal
Predators
Food Chain
Primary Consumer
Decomposers
anchor the plant into
the ground.
Something that you
get from your parents
when you’re born.
Eye color is an
example.
Something a person
or an animal does. A
learned behavior is
something you learn
to do.
Egg Larva Pupa
Adult. Example:
EggCaterpillar 
Chrysalis Butterfly.
When seeds are
spread around. They
are moved by wind,
running water, sticking
to animals’ fur, or by
passing through an
animal’s digestive
system.
Animals that hunt
other animals for
food. If a cat hunts a
mouse, the cat is the
predator and the
mouse is the prey.
A series of organisms
that depend on
eating each other for
survival. The source
of energy for a food
chain is the Sun.
Sun Producer (Plant)
 Primary Consumer
 Secondary
Consumer  Tertiary
Consumer
An animal that eats
plants.
Animals that break
down dead plants
and animals by eating
them. Earthworms
and flies are examples
of decomposers.
Learned Trait
Offspring
Life Span
Migration
Prey
Something you learn,
and are not born with,
like learning to read.
Someone’s children.
For example, you are
your parents’
offspring, a puppy is a
dog’s offspring.
The length of time
that a person or an
animal lives.
When animals, such
as birds, leave a
habitat for another,
usually for a season
and then return.
Any animal that is
hunted by other
animals
Producer
Plants are producers
because they
produce (make) their
own food and oxygen
using light, water and
carbon dioxide (CO2)
in a process called
photosynthesis.
Secondary Consumer
An animal that eats
the primary consumer.
Something that
happens when
different animals
need the same
resources to survive.
For example, if there is
a limited amount of
food, an animal
needs to try harder to
Competition
Adaptation
Deposition
Revolution
Pollution
An adaptation is a
change by which an
organism (living thing)
becomes better
suited for its
environment.
Examples of
adaptation include a
snail’s shell (which
helps protect it from
predators), an anole’s
camouflage (it turns
brown or green to
blend in to the
background, which
protects them from
predators), and a
bear hibernating (to
adapt to
environmental
changes like the cold
weather, and a
decrease in food).
Coloration is the
natural color and
design on an animal,
such as the colors of a
bird’s feathers, which
can help it attract a
mate.
When land that was
taken away from
somewhere, is added
to somewhere else.
Circling of the Earth
around the Sun, takes
one year.
The presence of a
harmful/unhealthy
substance (thing). For
example, a factory
can produce pollution
in the air and in water.
Erosion
get that food before
the others.
When water or wind
takes away land (soil
or rock) from
somewhere.
Sun
A star that is the main
source of energy for
life on Earth.
Rotation
Spinning of the Earth,
takes one day,
causing the Sun to
“rise” and “set.”
Something found in
nature that can be
used by people.
Natural Resource