Skip to content
LessonPrint

What the Sun Does to the Ground is a free printable Kindergarten science worksheet on observing the effect of sunlight on a surface, aligned to NGSS performance expectation K-PS3-1. It prints 7 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 17 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.

Next setLesson plan

One paper per student

12345678910111213141516171819202122232425

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

What the Sun Does to the Ground

K-PS3-1

NameDate

Read the record, then answer the questions.

1.Read the record, then answer the questions.

The Sunny Step and the Shady Step

What we measured on two steps at noon, on a sunny day in June. TWO STEPS AT NOON Step in the sun ...... 28 degrees. It felt hot. Step in the shade .... 19 degrees. It felt cool. Both steps are made of the same stone. We measured both at the same time.

  1. 1. What was kept the same in this test?
  2. 2. How warm was the step in the sun?
  3. 3. Why was one step warmer than the other?
2.Why is a metal bench in the sun too hot to sit on?
  • A.Somebody heated it
  • B.Metal is always hot
  • C.Sunlight has been warming it
3.How could you find out whether sunlight warms the ground?
  • A.Look at the sky once
  • B.Measure a sunny patch and a shady patch at the same time
  • C.Measure one patch in the morning only
4.Ice cubes are put on a sunny step and a shady step. Which melt first?
  • A.The ones on the sunny step
  • B.They never melt
  • C.The ones on the shady step
5.A puddle in the sun dries up before a puddle in the shade. Why?
  • A.The shady puddle is deeper
  • B.Puddles in the sun are smaller
  • C.Sunlight warms the sunny puddle, so it dries faster
6.Snow melts first on one side of the yard. Which side?
  • A.Both sides at once
  • B.The side the sun shines on
  • C.The side in the shade
7.Which spot would be warmest at lunchtime on a sunny day?
  • A.The middle of the playground, in full sun
  • B.Under the shelter
  • C.Behind the wall in the shade

LessonPrint · K-PS3-1 · Set 17 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — What the Sun Does to the Ground

Set 17. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.1. Both steps are made of the same stone and were measured at the same time. 2. 28 degrees. 3. Sunlight fell on it, and sunlight warms what it lands on.
  2. 2.Sunlight has been warming it
  3. 3.Measure a sunny patch and a shady patch at the same time
  4. 4.The ones on the sunny step
  5. 5.Sunlight warms the sunny puddle, so it dries faster
  6. 6.The side the sun shines on
  7. 7.The middle of the playground, in full sun

More practice for K-PS3-1

Find out what sunlight does to the ground.

Teaching this next? What the Sun Does to the Ground is the 45-minute plan for it, with the misconceptions to expect.

All Kindergarten worksheets

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to K-PS3-1 of the Next Generation Science Standards.