Life Cycles — Answer Key
Part A: Multiple Choice
Circle the best answer for each question.
1. What is the correct order of a chicken life cycle?
A) chick, egg, hen, rooster
B) egg, chick, young chicken, adult chicken
C) hen, rooster, egg, chick
D) adult chicken, chick, egg, hen
A chicken starts inside an egg, hatches into a fluffy chick, grows feathers as a young chicken, and finally becomes a full-grown adult. The order follows how the bird changes and grows over time.
2. How does a chick get out of its egg?
A) The mother cracks the shell open.
B) It uses its egg tooth to break the shell.
C) The shell melts away on its own.
D) It kicks the shell with its feet.
A chick has a tiny hard bump on its beak called an egg tooth. It taps the bump against the inside of the shell until the shell cracks open.
3. What does a plant need before its seed can sprout?
A) only darkness
B) only soil
C) water and warmth
D) ice and snow
A seed stays asleep until it soaks up water and feels warm enough to grow. Together, water and warmth wake the seed up so it can sprout.
4. Which animal does NOT go through metamorphosis?
A) butterfly
B) frog
C) chicken
D) moth
Chicks already look like tiny chickens when they hatch, so their body shape does not change a lot. Frogs and butterflies look very different at each stage, which is what metamorphosis means.
Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the correct answer on each line.
1. A hen sits on her eggs for about 21 days before they hatch.
A chick takes about three weeks to finish growing inside its egg, and 3 weeks is 21 days. The hen keeps her eggs warm that whole time.
2. After a seed sprouts, it grows a stem and leaves.
A young plant sends up a stem to hold it straight and grows leaves to catch sunlight. The leaves use the sunlight to make food so the plant can keep growing.
3. A chick is covered in fluffy down when it first hatches.
A chick is born with soft down because it traps warm air close to the body. Adult feathers are stronger, but they do not grow in until the chick is older.
4. Bees help plants by carrying pollen from flower to flower.
Pollen sticks to a bee's fuzzy body while it drinks nectar, and the bee drops some off at the next flower. Moving pollen between flowers helps plants make seeds.
5. A rooster is a male adult chicken.
Roosters are male chickens, while hens are females. Only hens can lay eggs, but roosters often crow and watch over the flock.