The Impact of Space Rocks

This science reading comprehension worksheet helps students in Grades 5 and 6 explore how asteroid and meteor impacts have influenced Earth’s past and continue to shape modern space science research. Learners read an informational passage about major impact events, including the Chicxulub asteroid, and examine how current efforts like NASA’s DART mission aim to protect Earth, strengthening science literacy, cause-and-effect reasoning, and critical thinking.

Learning Goals

• Asteroid & Meteor Impacts (Grades 5-6) – Understand how space rock collisions have affected Earth’s geology, climate, and life
• Planetary Evolution Concepts – Analyze how catastrophic events contribute to long-term changes on Earth
• Science Reading & Inference – Summarize key ideas and draw conclusions from an informational science text
• Modern Science Connections – Connect historical impact events to current planetary defense research

Instructional Benefits

• Teacher-Created Resource – Designed by educators to align with upper elementary Earth and space science standards
• Real-World Science Focus – Integrates current missions and research to show science in action
• Critical-Thinking Questions – Encourages students to apply knowledge beyond the text
• Cross-Curricular Integration – Supports both science learning and ELA informational reading skills
• Low-Prep Printable – Easy to use in classrooms or homeschool settings

This impact of space rocks worksheet helps students understand the powerful role asteroids and meteors play in shaping Earth’s history and future. By combining reading comprehension, scientific reasoning, and real-world application, it builds strong science literacy and curiosity about planetary defense. Whether used in a classroom Earth science unit or a homeschool lesson, this activity offers a meaningful way to connect past celestial events with modern scientific challenges and discoveries.

This worksheet is part of our Asteroids, Comets, and Meteors collection.