Primary 4 · Science · Energy: Heat & Temperature
Energy: Heat & Temperature questions for Primary 4 Science
10 questions to work through online, 2 of them written out the way the paper asks. Answer and you get the working straight away, then a score at the end. No sign-up, and you can retake it as often as you like.
- Direction heat flows
- Heat against temperature
- Reading thermometers
- Conductors and insulators
- Reasoning about insulators
- Reaching the same temperature
- Everyday uses
- Naming the instrument
- Naming the direction
- Applying the rule
| Beaker wrapped in | Temperature after 20 min (°C) |
|---|---|
| nothing | 42 |
| cotton wool | 61 |
| aluminium foil | 48 |
| newspaper | 58 |
Answers and explanations for all 10 questions
Every answer with the reasoning behind it. Worth reading after you have tried the set — or on its own, if you are a parent marking it.
A cold spoon is put into a cup of hot soup. What happens?
Answer: Heat flows from the soup to the spoon.
Heat always flows from the hotter object to the cooler one. The soup is hotter, so heat flows from the soup to the spoon — which is why the spoon warms up.
A cup of hot water and a bathtub of warm water are compared. Which statement is correct?
Answer: The bathtub contains more heat, but the cup is at a higher temperature.
Temperature is how hot something is; heat is how much energy it holds altogether. The cup is hotter, but the bath holds so much more water that it contains more heat.
Based on the thermometers shown above, how much did the temperature of the water rise?
Answer: 45 °C
The water went from 25 °C to 70 °C, so the rise is 45 °C.
Which two of these are good conductors of heat?
Answer: A and C only
Metals let heat pass through them easily, so copper and iron are conductors. Plastic and wool are insulators, which is why they are used for handles and gloves.
Based on the table above, which wrapping was the best insulator?
Answer: cotton wool
The best insulator is the one that let the least heat escape, so the water stayed warmest. Cotton wool ended at 61 °C, higher than any other.
A metal spoon is left in a glass of iced water for a long time. What happens in the end?
Answer: The spoon and the water end up at the same temperature.
Heat keeps flowing from the warmer to the cooler while there is a difference. Once there is none, the flow stops — so they end up at the same temperature.
Which two of these choices make use of a material being a poor conductor of heat?
Answer: A and C only
A wooden handle and a foam sleeve both stop heat reaching your hand, so both rely on being poor conductors. The copper base and the metal spoon are chosen for the opposite reason.
Temperature is measured with an instrument that has a scale marked in degrees Celsius. What is that instrument called?
Answer: thermometer
Temperature is measured with a thermometer.
A hot mug is placed on a cold table, and after a while the table top under it feels warm. Heat flowed from the mug to the ______ .
Answer: table
Heat flows from hotter to cooler, so it flowed from the mug to the table, which is why the table top warmed up.
On a hot day, why does wrapping an ice lolly in a thick towel keep it frozen for longer?
Answer: The towel slows heat from the warm air reaching the lolly.
The air outside is warmer than the lolly, so heat flows inwards. A thick towel is a poor conductor and slows that flow, so the lolly takes longer to melt.