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6th grade The greenhouse effect worksheet

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The greenhouse effect

Grade 6 Science Worksheet - Building Confidence

NameDate

Circle the best answer.

Read this first
Use this
Cause → effect chain, four boxes left to right with arrows between them. Box 1: "Sunlight passes through the air and warms the ground." Box 2: "The warm ground gives off heat." Box 3: ? (blank) Box 4: "The air near the ground stays warmer."
1.
Ari fills in a cause → effect chain for a science poster. Which words go in blank Box 3?
- Greenhouse gases hold some of that heat back
- Greenhouse gases block most of the sunlight
- The ozone hole causes the air to warm
- The ground sends its heat to space at once
Use this
Cause → effect chain, four boxes left to right with arrows between them. Box 1: "Sunlight passes through the air and warms the ground." Box 2: ? (blank) Box 3: "Greenhouse gases hold some of that heat back." Box 4: "The air near the ground stays warmer."
2.
Bo's chain has Box 2 blank, between the warmed ground and the gases. Which words fill Box 2?
- The ground stops taking in sunlight
- Greenhouse gases soak up the sunlight on its way down
- The warm ground gives off heat
- Clouds make fresh heat of their own
3.
Jun reads a list of gases in the air for a weather club. Which one is a greenhouse gas?
- Nitrogen
- Carbon dioxide
- Nitrogen and oxygen together
- Oxygen, the gas we breathe in
4.
Kira's NASA fact card lists the greenhouse gases. Which pair are both on that list?
- Methane and water vapor
- Nitrogen and methane
- Oxygen and nitrogen
- Oxygen and water vapor
5.
Most of the air is nitrogen and oxygen. Do those two gases hold back the heat the ground gives off, Luz?
- No: but they block the incoming sunlight
- No: that heat passes right through them
- Yes: they are the main greenhouse gases
- Yes: they turn the heat into sunlight
6.
Noah's classmate says people started the greenhouse effect. What does NASA say?
- It happens on Venus but not on Earth
- It began when the ozone hole opened
- People started it by burning fuel
- It is natural, and people have added to it
7.
NASA compares greenhouse gases to a cozy blanket around Earth (no pillow fights in space). What does the blanket do, Pia?
- Makes its own heat, like a heater
- Keeps the sunlight from reaching the ground
- Lets the heat escape faster
- Holds in some heat Earth gives off
8.
Sunlight streams in and warms Ren's schoolyard. What does the warm ground send back up toward the sky?
- Heat, as infrared energy
- Greenhouse gases
- Fresh sunlight, the same as came in
- Nothing, as the ground keeps its heat
9.
Tala studies the greenhouse chain. Which energy do greenhouse gases hold back?
- Light from the Moon
- Sunlight on its way down to the ground
- Sound from thunder
- Heat that the warm ground gives off
10.
Zee draws two arrows: sunlight coming in and heat going out. Which arrow do greenhouse gases slow down?
- The sunlight coming in
- The heat going out
- Neither arrow
- Both arrows by the same amount

6th grade The greenhouse effect worksheet – printable — Print: 1 2 3 4 5 6

About this worksheet

The greenhouse effect. Every version has 10 questions, and the answer key prints on the second page.

What your child will learn

I can put the four boxes of the greenhouse chain in order and say which energy the gases hold back (the ground's heat, not the incoming sunlight).
I can name greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane, water vapor, nitrous oxide) and say that nitrogen and oxygen are not.
I can explain that the effect is natural and keeps Earth livable, and that added gases from people have strengthened it and are the main cause of warming since the mid-1900s.
I can use evidence (the Sun's energy, the upper and lower air, planet data) to choose between explanations.

Standard: supports MS-ESS3-5

Words to know

greenhouse effect: Gases in the air holding back some of the heat Earth gives off

greenhouse gas: A gas that holds back heat, such as carbon dioxide or methane

infrared (heat): The kind of energy warm ground gives off

fossil fuels: Coal, oil and gas, which release carbon dioxide when burned

consensus: What nearly all the scientists who study it agree the evidence shows

Common mistakes

Your child thought greenhouse gases block or trap the incoming sunlight. Most sunlight passes through; the gases hold back heat the warm ground gives off.

Your child linked the greenhouse effect or the warming to the ozone hole. NASA says extra UV through the hole cannot explain the surface warming. Ask which gases hold back heat.

Your child thought the greenhouse effect was made by people or is only harmful. It is natural, and without it Earth would be more than 30 °C colder. People have added to it. Ask what Earth would be like without it.

What to say

Ask: what goes in, and what comes out?

Questions parents ask

What is the most common mistake with the greenhouse effect?

Your child thought greenhouse gases block or trap the incoming sunlight. Most sunlight passes through; the gases hold back heat the warm ground gives off.

How can I help my child with the greenhouse effect?

Ask: what goes in, and what comes out?

Are these 6th grade science worksheets free to print?

Yes. All 6 printable versions at each level are free to print, with the answer key, and no account is needed.

More grade 6 science

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