A mother dog has brown fur and a father dog has black fur. Their puppy has brown fur. Where did the puppy get its brown fur?
AIt chose brown because it is a nicer color
BIt inherited the brown fur trait from its mother
CSomeone painted the puppy brown
DBrown fur comes from eating certain foods
The puppy inherited its brown fur from its mother. Traits like fur color are passed from parents to offspring. The puppy got traits from both parents, and in this case, the brown fur trait showed up instead of the black fur trait.
Question 2 True / False
Speaking English is an inherited trait.
TTrue
FFalse
Answer: False
Speaking a language is learned, not inherited. A baby born to English-speaking parents who is raised by Japanese-speaking parents will speak Japanese. Inherited traits are physical features like eye color, hair type, and body shape — things you are born with and did not learn.
Question 3 Short Answer
Why do brothers and sisters sometimes look different from each other even though they have the same parents?
Think about your answer, then reveal below.
Model answer: Each child gets a different combination of traits from their parents. One child might get the mother's eye color and the father's hair color, while another child gets a different mix.
Parents have many traits to pass on, and each child gets a unique combination. Think of it like shuffling a deck of cards — the same cards are available, but each hand dealt is different. That is why siblings can look similar but not identical (unless they are identical twins).