CALIFORNIATHE GOLDEN STATE
California Grade 4 Science Online Center
California tests science in grades 5 and 8, not in grade 4, so fourth grade is the year to build the ideas the California Science Test (CAST) will ask about later. Practice tests, skill quizzes, flashcards, and every California science standard for this grade, free.
Standards source: Content Standards, California Department of Education.
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California Science by Grade
Every California science center, grade 1 through grade 8.
Start With a Practice Test
Six full, timed grade 4 science practice tests, 30 questions each, instant scoring, and a written explanation for every question. California does not test science this year, so use these to find gaps early. Each one opens right here.
California Grade 4 Science Practice Test 1
A full diagnostic across every science area for this grade.
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California Grade 4 Science Practice Test 2
Fresh questions and new phenomena to build accuracy.
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California Grade 4 Science Practice Test 3
New problems that push reading of data, models, and evidence.
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California Grade 4 Science Practice Test 4
Another complete, timed exam to build pacing and stamina.
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California Grade 4 Science Practice Test 5
A brand-new mixed set to test how ready you are.
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California Grade 4 Science Practice Test 6
A final full-length simulation to confirm you are ready.
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Grade 4 Science Skill Quizzes
Pick one science area, answer 10 questions, and see exactly where the idea broke down. Each quiz opens right here.
Matter and Its Properties
A quick 10-question check on matter and its properties, with instant scoring and a full explanation for every answer.
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Forces and Motion
A quick 10-question check on forces and motion, with instant scoring and a full explanation for every answer.
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Energy
A quick 10-question check on energy, with instant scoring and a full explanation for every answer.
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Waves and Information
A quick 10-question check on waves and information, with instant scoring and a full explanation for every answer.
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Cells, Structures and Life Processes
A quick 10-question check on cells, structures and life processes, with instant scoring and a full explanation for every answer.
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Ecosystems and Heredity
A quick 10-question check on ecosystems and heredity, with instant scoring and a full explanation for every answer.
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Evolution, Fossils and Adaptation
A quick 10-question check on evolution, fossils and adaptation, with instant scoring and a full explanation for every answer.
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Earth and Space Systems
A quick 10-question check on earth and space systems, with instant scoring and a full explanation for every answer.
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Earth, Human Activity and Engineering
A quick 10-question check on earth, human activity and engineering, with instant scoring and a full explanation for every answer.
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Grade 4 Science Study Tools
A few minutes of review between practice tests. Both open right here.
Grade 4 Science Flashcards
All 145 terms this grade is expected to know. Search the deck, filter by science area, star the hard ones, and mark off what you have down.
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Grade 4 Science Quick Review
Every must-know idea for this grade on one page, grouped by science area, with the vocabulary for each one.
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Study with a clearer next step
This California grade 4 science center is part of the Effortless Math library. Practice tests, skill quizzes, flashcards, and the state's own standards are connected so a student always has a clear next step instead of a wall of links.
Effortless Math is an independent educational publisher. Test names, state exams, standards names, and trademarks are used only to identify the relevant study topic; their owners do not sponsor, endorse, or approve this page.
California Grade 4 Science Snapshot
California Grade 4 Science Topics
These are the 17 science standards California sets for grade 4, from the Next Generation Science Standards for California Public Schools, K-12, grouped and ordered exactly the way the state's own standards document groups them. Each one is tagged with its official code so you can trace it straight back to the state document.
California standard codes
Structure, Function, and Information Processing
- 4-PS4-2Light Reflecting Objects Entering Eye Allows Objects Seen
- 4-LS1-14-LS1-2Organism Needs, Structures, and Life Cycles
Earth's Systems: Processes that Shape the Earth
- 4-ESS1-14-ESS2-1Earth Materials, Rocks, Fossils, and Landforms
- 4-ESS2-2Data Analysis, Patterns, and Model Limits
- 4-ESS3-2Natural Resources and Human Impacts
Energy
- 4-PS3-1Evidence Explanation Relating Speed Object Energy Object Speed
- 4-PS3-2Magnets, Electricity, and Circuits
- 4-PS3-3Questions Outcomes About Changes Energy Occur When Objects
- 4-PS3-4Energy Forms, Transfer, and Transformation
- 4-ESS3-1Natural Resources and Human Impacts
Waves: Waves and Information
- 4-PS4-1Light, Sound, and Wave Behavior
- 4-PS4-3Mixtures, Solutions, and Conservation of Matter
Engineering Design
- 3-5-ETS1-13-5-ETS1-2Engineering Design and Solution Evaluation
- 3-5-ETS1-3Carry Out Fair Tests Which Variables Controlled Failure
Grouped and ordered from the state's own standards document.
California Grade 4 Science Standards
The full text of every grade 4 science standard in the Next Generation Science Standards for California Public Schools, K-12. If your California classroom or report card mentions a code, you will find it here.
Structure, Function, and Information Processing
- 4-PS4-2Light Reflecting Objects Entering Eye Allows Objects SeenDevelop a model to describe that light reflecting from objects and entering the eye allows objects to be seen
- 4-LS1-1Organism Needs, Structures, and Life CyclesConstruct an argument that plants and animals have internal and external structures that function to support survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction
- 4-LS1-2Organism Needs, Structures, and Life CyclesUse a model to describe that animals' receive different types of information through their senses, process the information in their brain, and respond to the information in different ways
Earth's Systems: Processes that Shape the Earth
- 4-ESS1-1Earth Materials, Rocks, Fossils, and LandformsIdentify evidence from patterns in rock formations and fossils in rock layers to support an explanation for changes in a landscape over time
- 4-ESS2-1Earth Materials, Rocks, Fossils, and LandformsMake observations and/or measurements to provide evidence of the effects of weathering or the rate of erosion by water, ice, wind, or vegetation
- 4-ESS2-2Data Analysis, Patterns, and Model LimitsAnalyze and interpret data from maps to describe patterns of Earth's features
- 4-ESS3-2Natural Resources and Human ImpactsGenerate and compare multiple solutions to reduce the impacts of natural Earth processes on humans
Energy
- 4-PS3-1Evidence Explanation Relating Speed Object Energy Object SpeedUse evidence to construct an explanation relating the speed of an object to the energy of that object
- 4-PS3-2Magnets, Electricity, and CircuitsMake observations to provide evidence that energy can be transferred from place to place by sound, light, heat, and electric currents
- 4-PS3-3Questions Outcomes About Changes Energy Occur When ObjectsAsk questions and predict outcomes about the changes in energy that occur when objects collide
- 4-PS3-4Energy Forms, Transfer, and TransformationApply scientific ideas to design, test, and refine a device that converts energy from one form to another
- 4-ESS3-1Natural Resources and Human ImpactsObtain and combine information to describe that energy and fuels are derived from natural resources and their uses affect the environment
Waves: Waves and Information
- 4-PS4-1Light, Sound, and Wave BehaviorDevelop a model of waves to describe patterns in terms of amplitude and wavelength and that waves can cause objects to move
- 4-PS4-3Mixtures, Solutions, and Conservation of MatterGenerate and compare multiple solutions that use patterns to transfer information
Engineering Design
- 3-5-ETS1-1Engineering Design and Solution EvaluationDefine a simple design problem reflecting a need or a want that includes specified criteria for success and constraints on materials, time, or cost
- 3-5-ETS1-2Engineering Design and Solution EvaluationGenerate and compare multiple possible solutions to a problem based on how well each is likely to meet the criteria and constraints of the problem
- 3-5-ETS1-3Carry Out Fair Tests Which Variables Controlled FailurePlan and carry out fair tests in which variables are controlled and failure points are considered to identify aspects of a model or prototype that can be improved
Source: Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). Always check the current official document before relying on a code for placement or reporting.
California Grade 4: Math and English Too
Science is one of three California grade 4 centers. Same format, same standards-first approach, for the other two subjects.
California Grade 4 Math
Six full practice tests, printable worksheets, step-by-step lessons, and every California grade 4 math standard.
California Grade 4 English
Reading, writing, and language standards for California grade 4, broken into short skill targets with practice for each one.
California Grade 4 Science FAQ
Does California test science in grade 4?
No. California gives the California Science Test (CAST) in grades 5 and 8, so grade 4 students do not sit a state science test this year. California also gives once in high school. The standards on this page are still the ones grade 4 teachers teach, and they are what the next science test builds on.
Which standards does grade 4 science in California follow?
California follows the Next Generation Science Standards for California Public Schools, K-12, published by the California Department of Education. All 17 of this grade's standards are listed further down the page with their official codes.
How long are the practice tests?
Each of the six practice tests has 30 questions and a 55-minute timer. The timer auto-submits at zero and you get your score, a breakdown by science area, and a written explanation for every question.
Is any of this free?
Yes, every practice test, quiz, and flashcard set on this page is free and needs no login. Your progress is saved in your own browser and nowhere else.
What is the fastest way to use this page?
Take practice test 1 cold. Look at the topic breakdown, pick the weakest science area, and do that skill quiz. Then read the quick review for that area and come back for practice test 2.
Grade 4 Science in Other States
Standards, practice tests, and quizzes for grade 4 science in every state and Washington, D.C.
Start With One Practice Test
Grade 4 is a building year for science in California. Take a timed test, see which area is thinnest, and fix that one before it compounds.