Grade 5 · Science · Unit 5 of 6
The Rock Cycle
Igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic
What your child practises
How igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks form and change into one another, weathering and erosion, and a short reading passage.
BC Curriculum learning standard: Local types of earth materials; the rock cycle (igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rock)
Sample questions
A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.
Question 1
Put the steps that make sedimentary rock in order.
- 🟫The sediment settles in layers
- 🪨Layers are pressed and cemented into rock
- 🌊Erosion carries the pieces away
- 🌧️Weathering breaks rock into small pieces
Show answer
Weathering breaks rock into small pieces → Erosion carries the pieces away → The sediment settles in layers → Layers are pressed and cemented into rock
Hint: First rock breaks down (weathering), then the pieces are moved (erosion), dropped in layers (deposition), and finally pressed and cemented together.
Question 2
Igneous, sedimentary or metamorphic? Tap a rock, then tap its basket.
Sort into: 🌋 igneous · 🟫 sedimentary · 🔥 metamorphic
- 🟤sandstone
- 🪨conglomerate
- ⚫basalt
- ⬜marble
- 🪨gneiss
- 🪨granite
Show answer
🌋 igneous: basalt, granite · 🟫 sedimentary: sandstone, conglomerate · 🔥 metamorphic: marble, gneiss
Hint: Igneous rock forms from cooled magma or lava. Sedimentary rock forms from pressed layers. Metamorphic rock is changed by heat and pressure.
Question 3
Shale is changed by heat and pressure. Which metamorphic rock does it become?
- conglomerate
- basalt
- marble
- slate
Show answer
slate
Hint: Soft, muddy shale becomes hard, flat slate, which can split into thin sheets.
Question 4
Basalt has tiny crystals, but granite has large ones. Why?
- basalt cooled quickly; granite cooled slowly underground
- basalt is a sedimentary rock
- basalt cooled slowly; granite cooled quickly
- granite was squeezed by glaciers
Show answer
basalt cooled quickly; granite cooled slowly underground
Hint: Lava at the surface cools fast, leaving tiny crystals. Magma deep underground cools slowly, growing big crystals.
Question 5
How does metamorphic rock form?
- lava cools on the surface
- sand settles in a lake
- wind wears rocks down
- heat and pressure change rock that already exists
Show answer
heat and pressure change rock that already exists
Hint: 'Metamorphic' means 'changed form.' Deep underground, heat and pressure change rock without fully melting it.
Question 6
Does the rock cycle have one starting point?
🔄- yes, it always starts with metamorphic rock
- yes, it always starts with sedimentary rock
- no, any type of rock can change into another type
Show answer
no, any type of rock can change into another type
Hint: It's a cycle, like a circle. Igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks can each change into the others.