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Trait Evidence in the Reef Aquarium

Analyze seagrass and damselfish family records to find inherited traits and variation for a reef aquarium display.

Grade 3ScienceInteractive · Printable

Aligned to3-LS3-1

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What’s included

Single worksheet
Auto-graded online
1 NGSS standard
Printable answer key
14 questions
Classroom-ready

Details

Format: Interactive · Printable
Grade: Grade 3
Subject: Science
Question types: Fill in the blank, Multiple choice, Matching, Circle the answer, Sorting, Short answer

About this worksheet

What students practice

Students use plant and animal family data to identify traits shared by parents and offspring.
Students use counts to show that traits vary among offspring in a group.
Students evaluate a display design using evidence about inherited traits and variation.

How to use

Read the aquarium team's records together, then have students use the graphs and notes to judge the proposed display panel.

Curriculum

NGSS standard covered

3-LS3-1

Use data to show that plants and animals get traits from their parents and that traits vary in a group.

Preview

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Name Date

Trait Evidence in the Reef Aquarium

Use family records to design a panel about inherited traits.

Read the family records

The Reef Classroom team is making a panel for its coral reef aquarium. Read the notes and use the graphs to answer the questions.

The Aquarium Team's Records

The Reef Classroom team studied two families in its aquarium. The team kept the young in similar tanks and recorded visible traits after the young grew. The records do not show what every young plant or fish will look like, but they can show patterns in these groups.

Family R was a group of seagrass plants. Both parent plants had striped leaves. Of the 8 young plants recorded, 5 had striped leaves and 3 had plain leaves.

Family T was a group of damselfish. Both parent fish had blue bodies with a yellow side stripe. Of the 8 young fish recorded, 6 had blue bodies with a yellow side stripe and 2 had blue bodies without a yellow side stripe.

The team wants a display that shows two ideas: young can share traits with their parents, and young in one family can have different traits. The team will use the records as evidence rather than treating a prediction as a guarantee.