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Passed Down, or Picked Up? is a free printable Grade 3 science worksheet on using evidence to tell traits passed down from parents from things learned, aligned to NGSS performance expectation 3-LS3-1. It prints 8 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions that each ask different questions, so no two students in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.

Set 16 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.

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Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. All 25 sets ask different questions.

Passed Down, or Picked Up?

3-LS3-1

NameDate

Circle the best answer.

1.How could you find out whether a behavior is learned?
  • A.Ask the animal
  • B.See whether animals that were never shown it can still do it
  • C.Weigh the animal
2.Young chaffinches raised without hearing other chaffinches sing a simpler song. What does that show?
  • A.Songs are never learned
  • B.The birds were unwell
  • C.Part of the song is learned by hearing other birds
3.Which of these could a dog NOT learn from its owner?
  • A.Walking beside its owner
  • B.The color of its coat
  • C.Sitting when told
4.A young chimpanzee learns to crack nuts with a stone by watching its mother. What kind of characteristic is that?
  • A.Part of its body
  • B.Learned
  • C.Inherited
5.A girl can ride a bicycle and her baby brother cannot yet. Why?
  • A.Riding a bicycle is learned by practicing
  • B.Babies are too heavy to ride
  • C.She inherited it and he did not
6.Seedlings from one plant all have the same leaf shape. Is leaf shape inherited or learned?
  • A.Learned from the sunlight
  • B.Inherited from the parent plant
  • C.Learned from other plants
7.Which of these is inherited rather than learned?
  • A.A horse jumping a fence
  • B.A parrot saying hello
  • C.A zebra foal's stripes
8.A puppy has floppy ears like its mother. Is that inherited or learned?
  • A.Inherited, passed down from its parents
  • B.Learned from watching its mother
  • C.Learned at puppy classes

LessonPrint · 3-LS3-1 · Set 16 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Passed Down, or Picked Up?

Set 16. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.See whether animals that were never shown it can still do it
  2. 2.Part of the song is learned by hearing other birds
  3. 3.The color of its coat
  4. 4.Learned
  5. 5.Riding a bicycle is learned by practicing
  6. 6.Inherited from the parent plant
  7. 7.A zebra foal's stripes
  8. 8.Inherited, passed down from its parents

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to 3-LS3-1 of the Next Generation Science Standards.