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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 4 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.Learned, through training
  • B.Inherited from its parents
  • C.Neither
2.A boy has curly hair like his father. Is that inherited or learned?
  • A.Inherited
  • B.Learned at school
  • C.Learned from his father
3.A puppy has floppy ears like its mother. Is that inherited or learned?
  • A.Learned at puppy classes
  • B.Learned from watching its mother
  • C.Inherited, passed down from its parents
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.Which of these could a dog NOT learn from its owner?
  • A.Sitting when told
  • B.Walking beside its owner
  • C.The color of its coat
6.How could you find out whether a behavior is learned?
  • A.Weigh the animal
  • B.See whether animals that were never shown it can still do it
  • C.Ask the animal
7.A child speaks the language her family speaks at home. Is that inherited or learned?
  • A.Neither
  • B.Learned, from hearing it every day
  • C.Inherited, like eye color
8.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

LessonPrint · 3-LS3-1 · Set 4 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Passed Down, or Picked Up?

Set 4. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.Learned, through training
  2. 2.Inherited
  3. 3.Inherited, passed down from its parents
  4. 4.Part of the song is learned by hearing other birds
  5. 5.The color of its coat
  6. 6.See whether animals that were never shown it can still do it
  7. 7.Learned, from hearing it every day
  8. 8.Riding a bicycle is learned by practicing

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