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How do you identify a mysterious fruit?

How do you identify a mysterious fruit?

Lesson narration:
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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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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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Discuss.
Then answer question 2 on your worksheet.
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Round 2. Examine the traits of these three fruits.
Answer question 3 on your worksheet.
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Round 2. Examine the same fruits’ insides, leaves, and flowers.
Discuss your observations with your partner.
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Discuss.
Then answer question 4 on your worksheet.
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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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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:

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

Exploration

10 mins

Wrap-Up

10 mins

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