The greenhouse effect

Grade 6 Science Worksheet

Circle the best answer.

1. 1.

   Burning coal for electricity adds carbon dioxide to the air. As it builds up, what happens to the heat the ground gives off, Ari?

   • More of it is held near Earth
   • The same amount escapes as before
   • Less sunlight reaches the ground to make it
   • More of it escapes to space
2. 2.

   Carbon dioxide is now about 50 percent higher than before the Industrial Revolution (NOAA). What does that do to Earth's average temperature, Bo?

   • Pushes it up, as more heat is held
   • Nothing, since the effect is natural
   • Pushes it up by letting in UV through the ozone hole
   • Pulls it down by blocking sunlight

3. Read this first

   Use this

   Data table (NOAA Climate.gov), columns Measure and Value. Row 1: Global warming rate since 1850, 0.06 °C per decade. Row 2: Global warming rate since 1982, 0.20 °C per decade. Row 3: 2024 compared with the 1850–1900 average, 1.35 °C warmer. Row 4: Warmest year since records began in 1850, 2024.

4. 3.

   Using the NOAA table, how does the warming rate since 1982 compare with the rate since 1850, Jun?

   • About the same speed
   • Twenty times as fast
   • More than three times as fast
   • About half as fast
5. 4.

   Kira checks the NOAA table for a class report. Which year was the warmest since records began?

   • 2024
   • 1850
   • 1900
   • 1982
6. 5.

   A cold snap freezes Luz's town for a week in January 2024 (the snowman is thrilled). Does that week cancel the warming in the NOAA table?

   • No: but the table is about sunlight
   • Yes: it shows the Sun has dimmed
   • Yes: one cold week ends the trend
   • No: the table shows a long global average
7. 6.

   Fertilizer spread on farm fields gives off a greenhouse gas. Which one does Noah find on NASA's list?

   • Nitrous oxide
   • Water vapor from the Sun
   • Oxygen
   • Nitrogen from the air
8. 7.

   Since about 1750, the rise in greenhouse gases was caused by human activities (IPCC). What adds most of the extra carbon dioxide, Pia?

   • Sunlight through the ozone hole
   • Burning fossil fuels for energy
   • Volcanic eruptions
   • A brighter Sun
9. 8.

   NASA's graph shows the Sun's energy going up and down every 11 years, with no overall rise since 1880. Earth warmed anyway. What does Ren conclude?

   • Earth's warming has stopped
   • Greenhouse gases trapped the sunlight on its way in
   • The Sun did not cause the warming
   • The Sun caused the warming
10. 9.

    Tala reads the IPCC's main finding about the warming of the air, ocean and land. What does it say?

    • Human influence has clearly warmed them
    • A brightening Sun warmed them
    • They have not warmed since 1850
    • Natural changes alone warmed them
11. 10.

    Earth and the Moon are about the same distance from the Sun. NASA gives Earth a mean of 15 °C and the Moon −20 °C. Why the difference, Zee?

    • Earth has greenhouse gases; the Moon has almost no air
    • The Sun shines harder on Earth
    • The Moon gets much less sunlight
    • The Moon's gases block its sunlight