6th Grade Science Recuperation Exam Study Guide 2026

Vocabulary terms and definitions based on the 6th Grade Science Recuperation Exam Study Guide for 2026.

Law of conservation of mass

The law stating that the total mass before a chemical reaction or physical change is the same as the total mass after the chemical reaction or physical change.

Protons

Subatomic particles with a positive charge ($1+$) located in the nucleus at the center of the atom.

Neutrons

Neutral subatomic particles with no charge ($0$) located in the nucleus at the center of the atom.

Electrons

Subatomic particles with a negative charge ($1-$) that move in the electron cloud, which is the region outside the nucleus.

Isotopes

Atoms of the same element that have different numbers of neutrons.

Ion

An atom that is no longer neutral because it has gained or lost electrons.

Anion

A negative ion formed when a neutral atom gains one or more electrons, giving it a net negative charge.

Cation

A positive ion formed when a neutral atom loses one or more electrons, giving it a net positive charge.

Mechanical wave

A wave that can travel only through matter.

Electromagnetic wave

A wave that can travel through empty space and through matter.

Radio Waves

Electromagnetic waves with the lowest frequency, lowest energy, and longest wavelengths.

Microwaves

Waves with shorter wavelengths and higher frequencies than radio waves, used for cooking and satellite signals.

Infrared Waves

Waves with wavelengths shorter than microwaves but longer than visible light; sensed as heat.

Visible Light

The narrow range of electromagnetic waves that standard human eyes can detect.

Ultraviolet (UV) Waves

Waves with frequencies higher than visible light but lower than X-rays that can cause sunburns.

X-Rays

High-frequency, high-energy waves with wavelengths shorter than UV waves, used for medical imaging of bones.

Gamma Rays

Waves with the highest frequency, highest energy, and shortest wavelengths on the electromagnetic spectrum.

SI system

The International System of Units, an internationally accepted system for measurement based on multiples of ten.

Scientific theory

An explanation of observations or events that is based on knowledge gained from many observations and investigations.

Scientific law

A rule that describes a repeatable pattern in nature without explaining why it happens.

Qualitative observation

An observation that uses the senses (sight, hearing, smell, touch, taste) to describe the natural world without numbers.

Quantitative observation

An observation that uses numbers and measurements to describe an observation.

Observation

The act of watching and recording an event using one or more of the senses.

Inference

A logical explanation of an observation that is drawn from prior knowledge or experience.

Independent Variable

The factor that is changed by the investigator to observe how it affects a dependent variable.

Dependent Variable

The factor observed or measured during an experiment.

Constants

The factors in an experiment that do not change.

Control Group

The group in a controlled experiment where the independent variable is not changed, used as a standard for comparison.

Latitude

Imaginary lines that run east-west around Earth to measure distances north or south of the equator in degrees.

Longitude

Imaginary lines that run north-south from pole to pole to measure distances east or west of the prime meridian in degrees.

Electricity

The presence or flow of electric charges, divided into static and current forms.

Electrically neutral object

An object that has equal amounts of positive charge (protons) and negative charge (electrons).

Soft Magnetic Materials

Materials easy to magnetize that lose magnetic properties quickly when the external field is removed.

Hard Magnetic Materials

Materials difficult to magnetize that retain magnetic properties for a long time.

Magnetic domain

A region in a magnetic material in which the magnetic fields of all atoms point in the same direction.

Electromagnetism

The relationship where moving electric charges (an electric current) create a surrounding magnetic field.

Electric insulator

A material in which electrons cannot move easily, such as glass, rubber, or plastic.

Electric conductor

A material in which electrons can move easily, such as copper, aluminum, or iron.

Series Circuit

An electric circuit with only one closed path for an electric current to follow.

Parallel Circuit

An electric circuit with more than one path or branch for an electric current to follow.

Closed circuit

An unbroken, complete path through which electric current can continuously flow.

Open circuit

A circuit containing a break or disconnection that stops the flow of electric current.

Voltage

The amount of electrical potential energy granted to each coulomb of charge, providing the electrical 'push'.

Ohm’s Law

States that the current in a circuit is equal to the voltage divided by the resistance.

Coulomb

The standard metric unit for electric charge, representing about $6 \times 10^{18}$ electrons.

Static Electricity

An unbalance of electric charge at rest on an object's surface.

Current Electricity

The continuous movement of electric charges through a conductor.

Amplitude

The maximum distance a wave varies from its rest position.

Transparent

A material that allows almost all light that strikes it to pass through and forms a clear image.

Translucent

A material that allows some light to pass through but forms a blurry, scattered image.

Opaque

A material through which light does not pass at all.

Kinetic energy

Energy due to motion.

Heterogeneous Mixture

A type of mixture in which the individual substances are not evenly mixed.

Homogeneous Mixture

A type of mixture in which the individual substances are evenly mixed, looking uniform throughout.

Compound

A substance consisting of two or more elements chemically bonded together in a fixed ratio.

Mixture

Matter that is a physical combination of substances not chemically bonded, which can vary in composition.

Work

The transfer of energy that occurs when a force makes an object move in the direction of the force.

Energy

The ability to cause change or do work.

Grounding

Providing a safe, direct path for excess electric charges to flow harmlessly into the Earth.

Luminous object

Any object that produces and emits its own light.

Decibel ($dB$)

The standard metric unit used to measure sound intensity or loudness.

Electromagnet

A temporary magnet created by wrapping a wire coil around a magnetic iron core connected to an active electric source.

Physical property

A characteristic of matter that you can observe or measure without changing the identity of the matter.

Chemical property

A characteristic of matter that can be observed only as it changes into a different type of matter.

Physical change

A change in the size, shape, form, or state of matter in which the matter's identity stays the same.

Chemical change

A change in matter in which the substances change into other substances with different properties.

Refraction

The bending of a wave as it changes speed while moving from one medium to another.

Diffraction

The bending or spreading of a wave around an obstacle or through a narrow opening.

Interference

The interaction that occurs when two or more waves overlap and combine.

Compression

A region in a longitudinal wave where the particles of the medium are closest together.

Rarefaction

A region in a longitudinal wave where the particles of the medium are farthest apart.

Wave

A disturbance that transfers energy from one place to another without transferring matter.

Pitch

The human perception of how high or low a sound seems, depending on wave frequency.

Potential energy

Stored energy due to the interactions between objects or particles based on position or structure.

Gravitational Potential Energy

Energy stored between an object and Earth, depending on the object's mass and height.

Elastic Potential Energy

Energy stored in objects that are compressed or stretched.

Chemical Potential Energy

Energy stored in the chemical bonds between atoms.

Mechanical Energy

The total energy of an object or system due to its large-scale motion and position ($KE + PE$).

Thermal Energy

The sum of the kinetic and potential energy of the microscopic particles that make up an object.

Electric Energy

The energy that an electric current carries through moving electrons.

Radiant Energy

The energy that electromagnetic waves carry.

Nuclear Energy

Energy stored in the nucleus of an atom.

Periodic table

An organized scientific chart displaying all discovered elements arranged by increasing atomic number.

Atomic number

The unique whole number assigned to each element referring to the exact number of protons in the nucleus.

Cornea

A clear, protective outer layer of eye tissue that light passes through first.

Iris

The colored part of the eye that relaxes or contracts to change the size of the pupil.

Retina

A layer of light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye that converts light into electrical nerve signals.

Cochlea

A fluid-filled, snail-shaped structure in the inner ear that converts vibrations into nerve impulses.

Significant digits

The specific digits in a measurement known with certainty plus one final estimated digit.

Accuracy

A description of how close a measurement is to an accepted or true value.

Precision

A description of how similar or close measurements are to each other.

Ecology

The study of how living things interact with each other and with their non-living environment.

Habitat

The place within an ecosystem where an organism lives.

Niche

What an organism does, or its exact role, in its habitat.

Carrying capacity

The largest number of individuals of one species that an ecosystem can support over time.

Abiotic Factors

The non-living parts of an ecosystem, such as sunlight, water, and temperature.

Biotic Factors

The living or once-living parts of an ecosystem, such as plants and animals.

Population density

The size of a population compared to the amount of space available ($\text{Population Density} = \frac{\text{Number of individuals}}{\text{Unit area / space}}$).

Producer

An organism that uses outside energy sources to make its own food energy through photosynthesis.

Consumer

An organism that cannot make its own food and must get energy by eating other organisms.