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Earth Materials at Work is a free printable Grade 2 science worksheet on explaining why a rock, a soil or water suits the job it is used for, aligned to NGSS performance expectation 2-PS1-2. It prints 8 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions that each ask different questions, so no two students in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.

Set 24 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.

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Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. All 25 sets ask different questions.

Earth Materials at Work

2-PS1-2

NameDate

Circle the best answer.

1.Why is soil, not sand, best for a vegetable patch?
  • A.Soil is drier than sand
  • B.Sand is too dark
  • C.Soil holds the water and food that roots need
2.Why are old walls often built from blocks of hard rock?
  • A.Hard rock lasts a long time in wind and rain
  • B.Hard rock is soft to touch
  • C.Hard rock floats
3.Why is clay, not sand, used to make a pot?
  • A.Clay holds its shape when molded and hardens when it is fired
  • B.Sand is too heavy
  • C.Clay is always red
4.Why is river water cleaned before it comes out of the faucet?
  • A.River water can carry mud and germs that make people ill
  • B.Cleaning makes it taste salty
  • C.River water is too cold
5.Why is the hearth around a fireplace made of stone?
  • A.Stone does not burn and can take great heat
  • B.Stone keeps the fire out of sight
  • C.Stone is the softest material
6.Why is salt spread on icy roads in winter?
  • A.It feeds the plants by the road
  • B.It makes the ice melt, so the roads are less slippery
  • C.It makes the roads shine
7.Why are some dams built from rock with a core of packed clay?
  • A.Rock soaks up the water
  • B.Clay lets very little water through, and the rock is heavy and strong
  • C.Clay is light enough to float
8.Why do potters add water to dry clay?
  • A.Water changes clay into sand
  • B.Water makes clay harder
  • C.Wet clay becomes soft enough to shape

LessonPrint · 2-PS1-2 · Set 24 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Earth Materials at Work

Set 24. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.Soil holds the water and food that roots need
  2. 2.Hard rock lasts a long time in wind and rain
  3. 3.Clay holds its shape when molded and hardens when it is fired
  4. 4.River water can carry mud and germs that make people ill
  5. 5.Stone does not burn and can take great heat
  6. 6.It makes the ice melt, so the roads are less slippery
  7. 7.Clay lets very little water through, and the rock is heavy and strong
  8. 8.Wet clay becomes soft enough to shape

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to 2-PS1-2 of the Next Generation Science Standards.