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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 18 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.A dog fetches a stick when its owner says "fetch." Is that inherited or learned?
  • A.Inherited from its parents
  • B.Learned, through training
  • C.Neither
2.A child speaks the language her family speaks at home. Is that inherited or learned?
  • A.Learned, from hearing it every day
  • B.Inherited, like eye color
  • C.Neither
3.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.Inherited
  • C.Learned
4.Young chaffinches raised without hearing other chaffinches sing a simpler song. What does that show?
  • A.The birds were unwell
  • B.Part of the song is learned by hearing other birds
  • C.Songs are never learned
5.Seedlings from one plant all have the same leaf shape. Is leaf shape inherited or learned?
  • A.Learned from the sunlight
  • B.Learned from other plants
  • C.Inherited from the parent plant
6.A girl can ride a bicycle and her baby brother cannot yet. Why?
  • A.She inherited it and he did not
  • B.Babies are too heavy to ride
  • C.Riding a bicycle is learned by practicing
7.A boy has curly hair like his father. Is that inherited or learned?
  • A.Inherited
  • B.Learned from his father
  • C.Learned at school
8.A puppy has floppy ears like its mother. Is that inherited or learned?
  • A.Inherited, passed down from its parents
  • B.Learned at puppy classes
  • C.Learned from watching its mother

LessonPrint · 3-LS3-1 · Set 18 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Passed Down, or Picked Up?

Set 18. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.Learned, through training
  2. 2.Learned, from hearing it every day
  3. 3.Learned
  4. 4.Part of the song is learned by hearing other birds
  5. 5.Inherited from the parent plant
  6. 6.Riding a bicycle is learned by practicing
  7. 7.Inherited
  8. 8.Inherited, passed down from its parents

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