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WorksheetsScience 5.L.3.2 Inherited vs. Acquired Traits
Total questions: 105
Worksheet time: 5hrs 15mins
Which is an example of a learned behavior?
a dog scratching an itch
a fish breathing through gills
a kitten having whiskers on its face
a cheetah successfully hunting prey
William and Owen are brothers who have blond hair, green eyes and
freckles. They both are skilled basketball players and play the guitar.
Which two characteristics are most likely learned?
eye color and hair color
freckles and ability to play the guitar
eye color and ability to play basketball
ability to play the guitar and ability to play basketball
Daniel’s cat had five kittens. Three are brown and two are a brown and
black mix. Which can be concluded about the kittens’ parents?
Both the mother and father are black.
Both the mother and father are brown.
The kittens got their color from both their parents.
The kittens got their color from their environment.
Which two characteristics are inherited?
eye color and hobbies
hair color and freckles
music preference and height
handedness and favorite foods
Which is an inherited characteristic?
speaking
hair style
nose shape
playing baseball
Jane has brown wavy hair, works hard in school, plays soccer, and enjoys
flying kites. Which characteristic is inherited?
wavy hair
flying kites
playing soccer
working hard in school
Which are inherited characteristics?
dimples, freckles, curly hair
height, freckles, liking vegetables
eye color, music preference, handedness
playing a musical instrument, eye shape, hair color
Why does Katie look like her father?
She wanted to look like her father.
Mothers do not pass along character traits.
She inherited characteristics from both parents.
Girls only inherit characteristics from their father.
Which characteristic of a puppy is learned?
size
fur color
floppy ears
following commands
This table shows the characteristics of a family of six.
Which of Lisa’s characteristics is learned?
67 inches in height
blonde-colored hair
brown-colored eyes
jogging for a hobby
Julia has long brown hair but her brother, mother, and father have short
brown hair. Why is her hair different than the rest of her family?
Hair color is not inherited.
Length of hair is not inherited.
She can only wear her hair long.
She inherited her long hair from her aunt.
Jacob loves sports, is a high-achieving math student, has freckles, and a
sense of humor. Which is an inherited characteristic?
freckles
math ability
loves sports
sense of humor
Which characteristic did Jazmin learn from her parents?
her ability to roll her tongue
her attached earlobes
her ability to cook
her eye color
Which inherited characteristic will most likely protect a white snow rabbit
from its predators?
fur color
pink eyes
a long tail
liking to eat seeds
Sam is tall, enjoys playing baseball, loves vegetables, and runs track.
Which characteristic is inherited from his parents?
speed
height
running track
taste for vegetables
Kimberly has attached earlobes and freckles. If Kimberly’s mother has
detached earlobes and no freckles, which is most likely true about
Kimberly’s father?
He has detached earlobes and no freckles.
He has attached earlobes and no freckles.
He has detached earlobes and freckles.
He has attached earlobes and freckles.
Why do children often look like their parents?
because they eat the same foods as their parents
because they inherit some traits from both their parents
because they grow up in the same environment as their parents
because boys inherit traits from their fathers, while girls inherit traits
from their mothers
Gayle and her mother share many similarities. They are both athletic,
musically talented, enjoy reading, have long hair, and have blue eyes.
Which characteristic is inherited?
athletic
blue eyes
long hair
musically talented
Jill and Mary are sisters. Jill has brown hair, blue eyes, and enjoys
dancing. Mary has blond hair, blue eyes, and enjoys singing. Why do Jill
and Mary have differences in their appearance?
Both Jill and Mary only inherited characteristics from each other.
Jill and Mary inherited some characteristics from their mother and some from their father.
Jill inherited all her characteristics from their father, and Mary inherited all her characteristics from their mother.
Jill inherited all her characteristics from their mother, and Mary inherited all her characteristics from their father.
Which is an example of a learned characteristic?
being five feet tall
having brown eyes
being able to draw well
having detached ear lobes
Which action is a learned characteristic of a newborn horse?
nursing
walking
sleeping
breathing
Mary’s mom, dad, and sister have brown eyes. Mary has hazel eyes, unlike the rest of her family. Who could Mary have gotten her eye color from?
her aunts
her uncles
her grandparents
Charlie and Amy are expecting a baby. Which is an inherited characteristic that Charlie and Amy’s baby may have?
The baby may be tall, like Charlie.
The baby may like to dance, like Amy.
The baby may have short hair, like Charlie.
Which inherited trait will most likelyprotect an iguana from a predator?
camouflage skin color
length of tongue
eye color
Which best explains why a child may look like his father but is not able to play basketball as well as him?
Physical characteristics are inherited, but the ability to shoot a basketball is not.
The ability to shoot a basketball is inherited, but physical characteristics are not.
The child chooses to look like his father, but he does not choose to play basketball.
What means you learned it, so it's an acquired trait?
Heredity
Nurture
Gene
The passing on of genetic traits from parents to children or offspring.
Nurture
Heredity
Environment
Sammi is very curious person, how did she get that trait?
Nature
Environment
Acquire
Your parents can give you crazy, wild, shy, or calm traits what is it called?
Nurture
Environment
DNA
Attribute, Feature, and trait are what?
Environment
Characteristic
Nurture
A part of a chromosome in a cell that controls a particular characteristic
Environment
Nurture
Gene
What is opposite of nurture?
environment
Nature
Characteristic
To receive a characteristic or trait genetically form one's parent or grandparent.
Inherit
Nurture
Acquire
Brown eyes and black hair are what kind of traits?
Environment
Heredity
Nurture
What is the opposite of lose and forfeit?
Acquire
Trait
Nature
What is the same thing as obtain?
Acquire
Characteristic
Environment
The conditions surrounding a living things that affect its life.
Environment
Heredity
Characteristic
What is the same thing as rearing, education, and development?
Heredity
Trait
Nurture
Environment
DNA
Nurture
Trait
Nurture
Environment
A dog that sits when told to.
Eye color.
Purple hair.
A bird knowing how to build a nest.
A baby crying when its hungry.
Speaking different languages.
Dog playing guitar.
eye makeup
Inherited trait
Acquired trait
Tongue Rolling
Acquired Trait
Inherited Trait
riding a bicycle
playing a musical instrument
Which of the following behaviors of a dog is most likely learned?
Panting in warm weather
Playing fetch with a ball
Barking at other dogs
Chasing smaller animals
An 11-year-old girl with green eyes and red hair plays the piano. Which of the following characteristics is an example of a learned behavior?
Playing the piano
Having green eyes
Having red hair
Being 11 years old
Which of the following characteristics of a rabbit was most likely inherited from its parents?
Bent whiskers
Missing tooth
Long ears
Broken foot
A rosebush has thorns. Those thorns are an inherited trait that comes from–
the parent plants of the rosebush.
the soil in which the rosebush grows.
the sunlight absorbed by the rosebush.
the climate in which the rosebush lives.
The offspring of this cactus will most likely inherit all of the following of its characteristics EXCEPT–
the thick trunk.
the green color.
the sharp spines.
the birds nesting.
Which of the following is an instinctive behavior that an animal could inherit from its parents?
A raccoon taking lids off of trash cans to find food.
A dog barking loudly when the doorbell rings.
A seal balancing a ball on the end of its nose.
A bee flying from flower to flower to get nectar.
Which of the following is an example of a learned behavior?
A turtle laying its eggs on the beach
A dog retrieving a stick for its owner.
A bird migrating south for the winter.
A baby chick cracking open its shell.
All of the following can be inherited by the offspring of an apple tree EXCEPT--
shape of leaves.
broken branches.
type of fruit.
flower color.
Which of these is a learned trait that a bear could acquire during its lifetime?
Having an excellent sense of smell.
Growling when there is danger.
Hibernating during the winter.
Taking food from human campsites.
A group of science students created a chart to show what they knew about inherited traits and learned behaviors in children.
Which of these is an inherited trait the students could put in that column of the chart?
Cooking a meal
Speaking English
Crying when hurt
Using a pencil
What is something you learned how to do called?
Physical Trait
Inherited Trait
Characteristic
Acquired Behavior
What is a physical characteristic that is passed down by parents to their babies or offspring?
Characteristics
Acquired Traits
Learned Behavior
Inherited Trait
All the following can be inherited by the offspring of a dog EXCEPT?
The length of the dogs nails.
The texture of the dogs fur.
The ability to drink milk from it's mother.
The shape of the dogs ears.
How do traits move from parents to offspring?
Learned behaviors
Characterists
Genes
They teach them.
A student sees a bird's nest with blue eggs. Which of the following is an example of a question the student can ask to decide whether the color of the eggs is inherited or acquired?
What type of bird laid these eggs?
How long have the eggs been in the nest
How many eggs are in the nest?
Are there other nests in the surrounding areas?
Look at the picture. What would be an example of an inherited trait?
The dog runs to the door when her hears the bell ring
The color of the dog's fur.
The dog's broken leg.
Look at the picture. What would be an example of an acquired trait?
The color of the dog's fur.
The dog runs to the door when he hears the bell ring.
The dog's broken leg.
Look at the picture. What would be an example of a learned behavior?
The dog runs to the door when he hears the bell ring.
The dog's broken leg.
The color of the dog's fur.
A bearded dragon we looked at in the pet store has 5 claws on one leg and 4 claws on the other leg. The pet store owner tells us this was an acquired trait. Which would explain why this was considered an acquired trait.
The bearded dragon learned how to take off an extra claw when it isn't needed.
Something must have happened during the bearded dragon's lifetime to the other claw missing.
The bearded dragon is just like it's mom because she has 5 on one foot and 4 on the other foot.
Which question can be asked to learn about the inherited traits of a hamster?
Why does the hamster have white fur?
How old is the hamster?
What food does the hamster eat?
How long does the hamster sleep?
Which of the following traits of a pig are probably affected by the environment?
The pig has black skin and hair
The pig is a female.
The pig is overweight.
The pig has brown eyes.
A characteristic that a living thing gets from its parents
inherited trait
learned behavior
physical behavior
acquired trait
What is an acquired trait?
a characteristic that a living thing is born with
a characteristic that a living thing gets during its lifetime
physical appearance
heredity
Which is an example of a physical trait?
a baby crying in the crib
a squirrel gathering and saving nuts
a horse has four legs
geese fly south for the winter
Are acquired physical traits passed down from parents to offspring?
yes
no
Which is an inherited physical trait?
a girl has brown eyes
a girl has a bruise on her arm
a boy has straight teeth from braces
a child has a scar on her leg
An inherited physical trait is
a part of a behavior
more important than an acquired physical trait
a characteristic a living thing gets from its parents
a characteristic a living thing gets during its lifetime.
A dog has black fur with brown spots, a good sense of smell, a chipped tooth, and four legs. Which of these characteristics is an acquired physical trait?
black fur with brown spots
good sense of smell
chipped tooth
four legs
A girl's left arm is shorter than her right arm. Which is the BEST question to determine whether the girl's shorter arm is an acquired physical trait or an inherited physical trait?
Is the girl righthanded?
Does the girl have a scar on her right arm?
How can a girl acquire the trait for a shorter arm?
Is the left arm of the girl's parents shorter than her right arm?
A student has several rose plants. The flowers on one plant are yellow. The flowers on the other plants are red. Which is the BEST question the student could ask to determine whether yellow flowers are an inherited physical trait or an acquired physical trait?
Are the rose plants healthy?
Do roses reporduce from seeds or spores?
Did the plant with yellow roses have a parent with yellow roses?
What is the difference between an inherited physical trait and an acquired physical trait
Freckles are an _____________.
acquired trait
inherited behavior
inherited trait
acquired behavior
Micah and Carly are having a baby. Carly is a tall woman with brown eyes, red hair, freckles, and a love of Japanese food. Micah is also tall and has dark brown hair. He plays the piano and loves classical music. They are curious what their baby will be like.
Which three questions can be asked about the possible inherited characteristics of the baby?
Will the baby be tall?
Will the baby have freckles?
Will the baby love Japanese food?
What color eyes will the baby have?
What type of music will the baby like?
Which question can be asked to determine what is an acquired physical trait of the lion?
Why does the lion have yellow eyes?
How much did the lion weigh at birth?
How did the lion get scars on its face?
Why does the the lion have brown fur?
Christian knows that some of his characteristics were passed on to him by his parents, and some of his characteristics were learned from his environment. What question can be asked to learn about Christian's inherited characteristics?
What color is his hair?
What is the date of his birth?
What language does he speak?
What kind of clothes does he wear?
Mariana knows that many of her characteristics were passed on to her by her parents. She also knows that many of her characteristics were learned from her environment. What question can be asked to learn which characteristic was inherited by Mariana?
Does she have freckles?
Does she do well in school?
Does she enjoy playing sports?
Does she have a lot of friends?
On Leah's third birthday, she is able to run, jump, speak in sentences, dress herself, and play with toys. Her hair has changed from dark brown to light blond. Which of Leah's characteristics was passed down to her from her parents?
speaking in sentences
ability to jump
hair color
playing with toys
Which two are INHERITED?
able to roller skate
freckles
green eyes
fast reader
Which two are ACQUIRED?
freckles
green eyes
bruise on leg
pink hair
An organism gets the traits that are passed on to it by its parents
before it is born
when it is a baby
when it is growing up
when it is mature
Saniya finds a red flower growing in the middle of her purple flower garden. What is the most likely explanation for this?
The seeds were all for purple flowers, but a red seed got mixed in.
The seeds were all for purple flowers, but one turned red as it grew.
The seeds were for a mix of red and purple flowers, and all except one turned purple.
The seeds were for any color of flower, and all but one grew into purple.
Feranmi gives seeds from a flower in her garden to Ayva. Select three of the things Ayva can expect his flowers to have in common with Feranmi's flower. SELECT 3.
color of the petals
number of petals
time it takes to sprout
shape of petals
The length of an animal's tail is
Inherited
Acquired
The shape of a plant's leaves is
Inherited
Acquired
A person's ability to read is ...
Inherited
Acquired
Many organisms have inherited traits to help them survive in their environments. Which is an example of inherited characteristics that will help an organism survive in its environment?
cows rubbing against fence posts
snakes having scaly skin
birds drinking from ponds
owls resting in their nests
Which of the following is NOT a characteristic that is passed from parents to offspring?
height
color of eyes
sense of humor
hair color
Baron and Brian both own dogs with pointed ears. If their dogs have puppies together, what do Baron and Brian know about those puppies?
The puppies will have pointed ears.
The puppies will hear better than other dogs.
The puppies will be larger than other dogs.
The puppies will have floppy ears.
Looks at the pictures. Which of the pictures does NOT show an acquired trait?
W
X
Y
Z
