Student Name ____________________
Test Date:
Science Study Guide
Traits and Heredity
Vocabulary
Acquired Trait
_________1. A characteristic of a living thing which is learned (daqriceu ttira)
Gregor Mendel
_________ 2. Considered the father of modern genetics for his early experiments on heredity
(dmenel ggrreo)
Dominant
_________ 3. A “stronger” trait which masks a recessive trait (admtonin)
Inherited Trait
_________ 4. A characteristic of a living trait which is passed on from parents (hnrditeie titar)
Trait
_________
5. A characteristic of a living thing (atirt)
Recessive
_________
6. A trait which tends to be masked by a dominant trait (esevsrcei)
Heredity
_________
7. The process of traits passed on from parents to offspring (rthdeyie)
Genetics
_________
8. The study of heredity (cgeetsni)
Gene
_________ 9. Contains the chemical instructions for an inherited trait (egne)
Instinct
_________ 10. Behavior that is inherited (cttisnni)
Pedigree
_________ 11. Chart used to trace the history of traits in a family (edergipe
Carrier
_________ 12. Individual who has inherited a gene for a trait, but does not show the trait
physically (rierrac)
Fill-in-the-blank
Inherited
1. Skin color and eye color are examples of ________________
traits.
Learned
2. Hitting a baseball is an example of a ______________
trait
Heredity
3. Genetics is the study of ______________.
Pea Plants
4. Gregor Mendel conducted most of his research using _____________.
Capital
5. A dominant trait tends to be represented by a ________________
letter.
Recessive
6. Dominant traits tend to mask ________________ traits.
7.
Lowercase
8. Recessive traits tend to be represented by _______________
letters.
Dominant
9. A _____________
trait is the trait that tends to be outwardly visible
Instinct
10.Some traits are physical traits. Other inherited traits are behavioral and are called ______
Where did that Trait Come From?
Directions: Decide whether the trait is an acquired trait or an inherited trait.
Trait
1. The shape of your nose
2. The tonal quality of your voice
3. Ability to hit a baseball
4. Strength of your eyes
5. The extent of your vocabulary
6. The type of music you enjoy
7. Your shoe size
8. The way you pronounce certain
words
9. The types of foods you like to eat
10. Eye color
Inherited or Acquired(learned) Traits
Inherited
Inherited
Acquired (learned)
Inherited
Acquired (learned)
Acquired (learned)
Inherited
Acquired (learned)
Acquired (learned)
Inherited
List five acquired (learned) traits that you possess
1. I can play baseball
2. I like rap, country, or rock music
3. I like to eat pizza
4. I am very good at spelling
5. I like school
List five inherited traits you possess
1. Blue, brown, green eyes
2. Brown, blonde, black, red hair
3. Short or tall
4. Round, oval, heart-shaped face
5. Size eight shoe
Answer the following questions:
1. Classify the following as learned behaviors or behaviors that are instinct.
a. Instinct - Migration
b. Learned - Speaking a language
c. Instinct - Spinning a web
d. Instinct - Digestion
e. Instinct - Building a nest
2. What is an example of imprinting? When ducklings hatch they are able to pick their
mother out of the group because they have memorized or imprinted the picture of her
on their brain.
3. Use the following diagram to answer questions.
Mother
Daughter






Dimples
(Dominant trait)
Father
Daughter
No Dimples
Son
Son
No Dimples
(Recessive trait)
Which trait is recessive? ______________________
Dimples
Which trait is dominant? ______________________
Both parents
Which parent has the dominant trait? __________________
Daughter and 2 sons
Which child has the dominant trait for dimples? ________________
DD
How is the dominant trait written? ________________
Which child will not physically show the trait for dimples, but is a carrier?
Dd
Daughter
_________________
How is this written? _______________
dd
 If neither child had the trait for dimples, how would it be written? __________________