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Four White Powders is a free printable Grade 5 science worksheet on identifying materials by testing their properties, aligned to Common Core standard 5-PS1-3. 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 pupils in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.

Set 7 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.

Four White Powders

5-PS1-3

NameDate

Circle the best answer.

1.You have four tests and four unknowns. What is the aim?
  • A.Get four fizzes
  • B.Find a combination of results unique to each unknown
  • C.Use every test on one powder
2.Powder C fizzes with vinegar and the others do not. What is that test good for?
  • A.Identifying all four
  • B.Nothing useful
  • C.Separating C from the rest
3.Two powders both dissolve in water. What does that tell you?
  • A.They are the same substance
  • B.Not enough to tell them apart; another test is needed
  • C.One must be sugar
4.Why must the same amount of each powder be used?
  • A.To use up the powders
  • B.So the results can be compared fairly
  • C.It does not matter
5.What makes an identification trustworthy?
  • A.One striking result
  • B.Several properties agreeing, tested the same way each time
  • C.A confident guess
6.Two unknowns give identical results on every test you ran. What follows?
  • A.The tests were wrong
  • B.They are definitely different
  • C.You need a new test, or they may be the same material
7.What is a property, in this test?
  • A.Where it was bought
  • B.What it is called
  • C.Something the material does that can be observed and compared
8.Why is colour a weak property for identifying these powders?
  • A.Colour is not a property
  • B.All four are white, so it separates none of them
  • C.Colour cannot be observed

LessonPrint · 5-PS1-3 · Set 7 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Four White Powders

Set 7. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.Find a combination of results unique to each unknown
  2. 2.Separating C from the rest
  3. 3.Not enough to tell them apart; another test is needed
  4. 4.So the results can be compared fairly
  5. 5.Several properties agreeing, tested the same way each time
  6. 6.You need a new test, or they may be the same material
  7. 7.Something the material does that can be observed and compared
  8. 8.All four are white, so it separates none of them

More practice for 5-PS1-3

Identify a material by its properties.

Teaching this next? Four White Powders is the 60-minute plan for it, with the misconceptions to expect.

All Grade 5 worksheets

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to 5-PS1-3 of the Next Generation Science Standards.