Year 8 Science practice questions

Lock in’s Year 8 Science course has 5 units with 113 flashcards and 100 practice questions, plus timed exams built fresh each time.

• Energy transfersForms of energy; Transfers, transformations and conservation; Efficiency and Sankey diagrams; Heat transfer: conduction, convection, radiation
• Chemical changePhysical vs chemical change; Chemical reactions and word equations; Particle model and conservation of mass; Exothermic and endothermic reactions; Everyday reactions
• Geological change: plate tectonics and hazardsEarth’s structure and the planets; Plate tectonics and the evidence; Plate boundaries; Tectonic hazards
• Rocks, the rock cycle and fossilsIgneous rocks; Sedimentary rocks; Metamorphic rocks; The rock cycle; Fossils and dating rocks
• Working scientifically and dataQuestioning and predicting; Planning a fair investigation: variables; Conducting: equipment, accuracy, reliability, validity, safety; Processing data: tables and graphs; Analysing data and drawing conclusions; Using data to model and predict; Problem-solving strategies

Try each question before you open the answer. Written answers show what a full-marks response needs to include.

1. Question 1. Energy transfersMultiple choice

   Which of these is NOT a stored (potential) form of energy?

   1. ASound energy
   2. BElastic potential energy
   3. CChemical energy
   4. DGravitational potential energy
   Show answer

   A. Sound energy

   Sound is energy being transferred, not stored.

2. Question 2. Chemical changeMultiple choice

   Which is NOT a sign of a chemical change?

   1. APrecipitate forms
   2. BColour change
   3. CChange of shape
   4. DGas produced
   Show answer

   C. Change of shape

   Changing shape makes no new substance.

3. Question 3. Chemical change: physical vs chemical change3 marks

   List THREE observations that could show a chemical change has taken place.

   Show model answer and marking criteria

   Model answer. A colour change, a gas being produced (bubbles or fizzing), and a temperature change. A precipitate forming, light being given off or a new smell are also signs.

   A full-marks answer:

   • One valid sign, e.g. colour change
   • A second distinct sign, e.g. a gas is produced (bubbles/fizzing)
   • A third distinct sign, e.g. temperature change, precipitate forms, light or new smell
4. Question 4. Geological change: plate tectonics and hazardsMultiple choice

   The 1989 Newcastle earthquake happened…

   1. AOn a subduction zone
   2. BAt a mid-ocean ridge
   3. COn a transform boundary
   4. DIn the middle of a plate
   Show answer

   D. In the middle of a plate

   An intraplate earthquake.

5. Question 5. Geological change: plate tectonics and hazards: plate boundaries2 marks

   Explain why mainland Australia has no active volcanoes but New Zealand does.

   Show model answer and marking criteria

   Model answer. New Zealand sits on the boundary between the Pacific and Australian plates, where one plate subducts under the other and melts to form magma that feeds volcanoes. Mainland Australia is in the middle of the Indo-Australian plate, far from any boundary, so there is no subduction to make magma.

   A full-marks answer:

   • New Zealand lies on a convergent plate boundary (Pacific and Australian plates) where subduction produces magma
   • Australia is in the middle of the Indo-Australian plate, far from any boundary
6. Question 6. Rocks, the rock cycle and fossilsMultiple choice

   Which rock has the largest crystals?

   1. AObsidian
   2. BBasalt
   3. CPumice
   4. DGranite
   Show answer

   D. Granite

   Cooled slowly underground.

Learn the key terms exactly, because Science questions often give a mark for the right word. In calculations, write the formula, substitute the numbers with units, then give the answer with its unit. For investigations, be ready to name the independent, dependent and controlled variables.

In Lock in, every Science topic has short notes, then flashcards that use spaced repetition: rate each card Again, Hard, Good or Easy and it comes back just before you would forget it. Practice questions come in three levels, Foundation, Standard and Complex. Three right in a row moves you up a level, and two wrong moves you back.

Press Study for me and the app builds a 15 to 20 minute session from the cards that are due, the mistakes that are due and questions on your weakest topics. Anything you get wrong comes back 1, 3 and 7 days later until you get it right. When an exam is close, sit a timed practice exam with AI marking.

More Year 8 subjects

Year 8 Maths practice questions, Year 8 English practice questions, Year 8 History practice questions, Year 8 Geography practice questions, Year 8 PDHPE practice questions.

Science in other years

Year 7 Science practice questions, Year 9 Science practice questions, Year 10 Science practice questions.