The layers inside the Earth

Grade 6 Science Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Use this

   Cutaway of the Earth, not to scale:

3. 1.

   Ari labels a cutaway of the Earth. Layer D is the ball at the very center. Which layer is D?

   • The crust
   • The outer core
   • The inner core
   • The mantle
4. 2.

   On the same cutaway, layer B is the thick layer just under the thin outer shell. Which layer does Bo write for B?

   Use the picture in question 1.

   • The inner core
   • A sea of liquid lava
   • The outer core
   • The mantle
5. 3.

   A column of four blank boxes labeled first (surface) to fourth (center). Jun lists Earth's layers from the surface inward. Which layer comes second?

   • The crust
   • The mantle
   • The outer core
   • The inner core
6. 4.

   “Poster outline:” Luz is making a poster of Earth's layers. Which list goes from the outside in?

   • Crust, mantle, outer core, inner core
   • Mantle, crust, inner core, outer core
   • Inner core, outer core, mantle, crust
   • Crust, outer core, mantle, inner core
7. 5.

   Cutaway, not to scale, with an arrow from the surface down to the center labeled "trip down". Milo imagines a trip from the crust down toward the center (with a very good snack bag). What happens to the temperature on the way?

   • It stays the same
   • It keeps rising
   • It keeps falling
   • It falls, then rises
8. 6.

   Cutaway, not to scale, with the inner core shaded and labeled hottest. The inner core is the hottest layer. Is it solid or liquid, by Pia's reading?

   • Solid, because it is the coolest layer
   • Liquid, like the mantle
   • Liquid, because it is the hottest
   • Solid, because the pressure is enormous
9. 7.

   “Cutaway, not to scale:” Lava pours out of volcanoes. Does that mean the whole mantle is liquid, as Ren wonders?

   • Yes; the mantle is a sea of lava
   • No; the mantle is mostly solid, with small magma pockets
   • No; the mantle is liquid metal
   • Yes; the crust floats on liquid lava

10. Table (USGS, rounded), Layer thickness (USGS), with columns Layer and Thickness

    Crust about 5 km under oceans and about 30 km under continents; mantle about 2,900 km; outer core about 2,200 km; inner core about 1,250 km.

11. 8.

    Tala reads the USGS thickness table. Which layer is the thickest?

    • The inner core, at the center
    • The mantle, about 2,900 km
    • The crust, since we stand on it
    • The outer core, about 2,200 km
12. 9.

    Using the USGS thickness table, Zee looks for the thinnest layer. Which is it?

    • The mantle, since the crust is thicker
    • The inner core, since it is in the middle
    • The crust
    • The outer core
13. 10.

    About how thick is the liquid outer core, according to the USGS table Esme is reading?

    • About 2,200 km
    • About 2,900 km
    • About 30 km
    • About 1,250 km