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How do you identify a mysterious fruit?
Fates of Traits Unit | Lesson 1 of 5
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How do you identify a mysterious fruit?

Fates of Traits Unit | Lesson 1 of 5
Lesson narration:
English Spanish
Scroll for prep
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DISCUSS (1 of 2):
What traits does the mystery fruit have in common with this lemon?
What traits does the mystery fruit have in common with this bunch of bananas?
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DISCUSS (2 of 2):
Imagine we slice each of these fruits open, like this.
What traits do you observe about these fruits now?
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DISCUSS:
Besides the fruits they grow, what OTHER TRAITS can you observe about these plants?
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Step
01/16
Get your supplies. (You’ll get more supplies later.)
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You’ll work with a partner.
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Round 1. Examine the traits of these three fruits.
Answer question 1 on your worksheet.
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Round 1. Examine the same fruits’ insides, leaves, and flowers.
Discuss your observations with your partner.
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Step
05/16
Discuss.
Then answer question 2 on your worksheet.
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06/16
Round 2. Examine the traits of these three fruits.
Answer question 3 on your worksheet.
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07/16
Round 2. Examine the same fruits’ insides, leaves, and flowers.
Discuss your observations with your partner.
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Step
08/16
Discuss.
Then answer question 4 on your worksheet.
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09/16
Round 3. Examine the traits of these three fruits.
Answer question 5 on your worksheet.
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Round 3. Examine the same fruits’ insides, leaves, and flowers.
Discuss your observations with your partner.
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Discuss.
Then answer question 6 on your worksheet.
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Get the rest of your supplies.
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Step
13/16
Cut along all the dotted lines so that you have a set of cards.
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Lay out all the cards on the desk in between you and your partner.
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Challenge: Work with your partner to sort these cards into 5 groups.
The groups don’t have to be equal. You may have some groups with
2 cards and some with 5 cards.
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Discuss.
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DISCUSS:
Which group would you place the mystery fruit into?
What evidence do you have that it belongs there?
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leaf


1 of 8

a part of a plant that is often flat and green
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flower


2 of 8

a part of a plant that is usually brightly colored
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fruit


3 of 8

the part of a plant that contains seeds inside a covering, like tomatoes
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seed


4 of 8

a part of a plant that can grow into a baby plant
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trait


5 of 8

something you can observe about a living thing, such as the number of petals on a flower
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evidence


6 of 8

information that can be used to support or reject an idea
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inherit


7 of 8

to get a trait from parents
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pattern


8 of 8

something that happens again and again and again in a way that can be predicted
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Lesson narration:
English Spanish

Grade 3

Heredity, Survival, & Selection

Traits & Inheritance

3-LS3-1

Activity Prep

Print Prep
This lesson was revised on May 31, 2024. Here is a link to the previous version.
In this lesson, students examine plant traits and use that information as evidence to help them identify an unknown fruit. In the activity, Fruit Market Mysteries, students look for similarities and differences in the leaves, flowers, and fruits of plants found at the grocery store to sort them into groups and identify patterns of inheritance.
Preview activity

I have a Mystery Pack

Fruit Cards printout Print 15 copies
Fruit Cards Answer Key teacher-only resource 1 copy
Fruit Market Mysteries worksheet 30 copies
Fruit Market Mysteries Answer Key teacher-only resource 1 copy
Scissors
30 pairs
Prep Instructions

We suggest students work in pairs.

Organize Materials

Materials for this activity are needed at two different steps, so we suggest organizing them beforehand for easier distribution.

The Fruit Market Mysteries worksheet is needed in Step 1.

Fruit-Market-Supply-Step1

The Fruit Cards and scissors are then needed in Step 12.

Fruit-Market-Supply-Step12

Exploration

10 mins

Hands-On Activity

35 mins

Wrap-Up

10 mins

Grade 3

Heredity, Survival, & Selection

Traits & Inheritance

3-LS3-1

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