How Scientists Know What Is Inside Earth

5th Grade ScienceLayers of the Earth5 pages

About this worksheet

This 5th grade reading passage describes how scientists study the inside of Earth without reaching it. It covers the Kola Superdeep Borehole, which got about 12 kilometers down before the drill bits failed in rock near 180 degrees Celsius, and then seismic waves, volcano lava and iron meteorites. Students answer nine questions, including one on the word indirect and a True or False item with an explanation. The fifth page is an answer key with model responses for the open questions.

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Page 1 of 5

How Scientists Know What Is Inside Earth: Layers of the Earth - page 1
How Scientists Know What Is Inside Earth: Layers of the Earth - page 2
How Scientists Know What Is Inside Earth: Layers of the Earth - page 3
How Scientists Know What Is Inside Earth: Layers of the Earth - page 4
How Scientists Know What Is Inside Earth: Layers of the Earth - page 5

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Curriculum objectives covered

RI.5.1

“Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.”

Question 7 asks students to copy a phrase from the first paragraph, and questions 6, 8 and 9 need explanations built on what the passage says.

RI.5.4

“Determine the meaning of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases in a text relevant to a grade 5 topic or subject area.”

Question 5 asks for the meaning of indirect from its use in the passage.

What's inside this worksheet

Reading Passage

Three paragraphs on the borehole, the way earthquake waves change speed and bend between layers, and the rock samples that volcanoes and meteorites supply. Students keep it in front of them for every question.

Part 1 Retrieve the Facts

Three multiple choice questions on the borehole depth (12, 180, 1,200 or 6,000 kilometers), how mantle rock reaches the surface and why iron meteorites help. Question 4 asks for the two heavy metals in iron meteorites on two lines.

Part 2 Read Between the Lines

Question 5 asks what indirect means in the sentence about indirect clues. Students then explain why one missing seismic wave points to a liquid outer core, copy a phrase showing the drill stayed far from the center, and circle True or False with a reason.

Part 3 Evaluate and Respond

Students pick earthquake waves, volcano rocks or iron meteorites as the most helpful clue and defend the choice with evidence on five lines.

Answer key

All nine answers. Question 7 accepts two quotes from the first paragraph, and questions 6, 8 and 9 give a model response.

How teachers use it

Read it twice

Read the passage aloud once, then have students reread it silently with a pencil. Ask them to mark the three clues (seismic waves, lava, meteorites) before anyone opens Part 1.

Talk before question 6

Question 6 links a vanished wave to a liquid layer, which is a two-step idea. A quick sketch on the board of a wave stopping at the outer core helps before students write.

Split across two days

The passage and Part 1 fit one lesson. Save Parts 2 and 3 for the next day, or send Part 3 home, since it needs a full paragraph of evidence.

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