Grade 5-8 Performance Task
Contributed by: New York State Education Department
(NYSED)
NYS Alternative Assessment in Science Project (1996)
Student #1
3. Look at Figure 1. Note the seafloor regions listed
in the first column and the 1 degree longitude ranges in the in
the second column. Locate these same longitudes in Figure 1. Determine
the change in depth that occurs between each pair of longitudes
and record the value in the third column.
4. Determine the vertical exaggeration (VE) of Figure
1. (Hint: Determine the number of meters in one horizontal square
and the number of meters in one vertical square. Remember that
1 kilometer = 1000 meters.) For full credit, you must either explain
your reasoning or show your work.
5. Using complete sentences, compare the profile
in Figure 1 to the appearance of a true scale profile of
these ocean depths.
6. The bedrock of the ocean floor is youngest at
the mid-ocean ranges and is older as distance increases away from
the ridges. Using one or more complete sentences and based on
your knowledge of plate tectonics answer the following questions:
