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WorksheetsUnderstanding Instincts and Learned Behaviors
Total questions: 25
Worksheet time: 12mins
Which of the following is an example of an instinct?
A dog learning to sit on command
A child learning to ride a bike
A bird building a nest
A student learning to read
Which question would best help determine if a behavior is learned or instinctual?
Why do some animals migrate in the winter?
How long does it take for a child to learn to walk?
How do animals find food?
What is the difference between a mammal and a reptile?
Which characteristic of a dog is a learned behavior?
Wagging its tail when excited
Barking when it sees a stranger
Rolling over on command
Having fur of a certain color
A child learns to tie their shoes after watching their parent do it. This is an example of:
An inherited trait
A learned behavior
An instinct
A genetic mutation
Which of the following is an example of an acquired trait?
Eye color
A scar from falling off a bike
The shape of a person's nose
Hair texture
Which question would best help compare inherited and acquired traits?
Why do birds have feathers?
Can a person’s hair color change due to the sun?
What traits are passed from parents to offspring?
Do animals always inherit their parents' size?
What makes an inherited trait different from a learned behavior?
Inherited traits are passed genetically, while learned behaviors come from experience.
Learned behaviors are passed down genetically, while inherited traits are taught.
Both inherited traits and learned behaviors are passed down from parents.
Both inherited traits and learned behaviors are a result of the environment.
Which of the following is NOT an inherited trait?
A cat’s fur pattern
A person’s ability to roll their tongue
A bird's ability to fly
A person’s favorite food
A flamingo’s pink color is primarily a result of:
Its inherited genes
The food it eats
The temperature in its environment
The amount of sunlight it gets
Which of the following questions would best help determine if a behavior is instinctual?
How do birds learn to sing different songs?
Do all newborn animals cry when they are hungry?
How do people learn to speak different languages?
What foods do animals prefer to eat?
Jaden is watching a mother duck with her ducklings. He notices that the baby ducks follow their mother closely. Jaden wonders why all the ducklings do this. Which question would best help Jaden understand this behavior?
Do baby ducks recognize their mother by smell?
Is following the mother duck an instinct or a learned behavior?
How do ducks learn to swim in water?
Why do mother ducks take care of their babies?
While hiking, Maya sees a spider spinning a web between two trees. She wonders how the spider knows how to do this without being taught. Which question would best help her understand this behavior?
How does a spider learn to spin a web?
Why do some spiders build larger webs than others?
Is web-spinning an inherited behavior or a learned behavior?
How long does it take for a spider to build a web?
Diego has a dog named Bruno. When Bruno hears his leash being picked up, he runs to the door excitedly. Diego wonders why Bruno knows what the leash sound means. Which question best explains Bruno’s behavior?
Did Bruno inherit the ability to recognize the leash sound?
Has Bruno learned to associate the leash with going outside?
Why does Bruno get excited before he even sees the leash?
Does every dog react the same way to the sound of a leash?
Tyler sees a baby sea turtle hatching from its egg on the beach. As soon as the baby turtle is free from its shell, it starts crawling toward the ocean without any help. Tyler wonders how the baby turtle knows where to go. Which question best explains the turtle’s behavior?
Why do baby turtles crawl toward the ocean immediately?
Can baby turtles learn to walk in the sand before they swim?
How do baby turtles know what direction to go?
Do mother turtles teach their babies where to go?
Olivia gives two plants different amounts of sunlight. She notices that one plant grows taller and healthier than the other. She wonders if this change is inherited or caused by the environment. Which question would best help her understand this?
Do plants inherit their height from their parent plants?
Can plants grow differently based on how much sunlight they get?
Why do some plants need more sunlight than others?
How does sunlight affect plant growth?
A scientist studies two groups of rabbits: one in a warm climate and another in a cold climate. She finds that the rabbits in the cold climate have thicker fur. She wonders why this happens. Which question best explains the difference?
Do rabbits inherit their fur thickness from their parents?
Can a rabbit’s fur change based on its environment?
How does climate affect the fur of different animals?
Do all rabbits have the same type of fur?
Which of these is not an instinctive behavior?
a bird building a nest
a turtle burying its eggs
a bear hibernating in winter
a horse pulling a plow
A wolf cub came too close to a skunk, and was sprayed by its foul smelling chemical spray. Now, the wolf cub stays away from skunks. What type of behavior is this?
innate behavior
imprinting
learned behavior
migration
A behavior that is developed from experience...
innate bahavior
learned behavior
cooperative behavior
animal behavior
Getting use to something after being exposed to it for a long period of time and ignoring it is an example of which type of learned behavior?
insight learning
playing
habituation
observational learning
