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9th grade Meiosis: making egg and sperm cells with half the chromosomes worksheet

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Meiosis: making egg and sperm cells with half the chromosomes

Grade 9 Science Worksheet - Building Confidence

NameDate

Circle the best answer.

  1. The front of the card reads n. The back is blank. Bo makes a flash card for the letter n. Which meaning belongs on the back?

    • The number of cells made by one division
    • Two sets of chromosomes, as in a body cell
    • One set of chromosomes, as in an egg or sperm cell
    • Two copies of one chromosome joined together
  2. Four cells (model, not to scale). Body cells of this animal have 4 chromosomes, drawn as 2 matching pairs. Esme looks at four cells from a model animal whose body cells have 4 chromosomes. Which cell is haploid?

    • Cell R: 2 chromosomes that are a matching pair
    • Cell P: 4 chromosomes in 2 matching pairs
    • Cell S: 8 chromosomes in 4 matching pairs
    • Cell Q: 2 chromosomes, one from each pair
  3. Read this first

    Count card

    a human body cell has 46 chromosomes. An egg cell has ? chromosomes. Table: Count card; columns cell and chromosomes; rows body cell 46, egg cell ?.

  4. A human body cell has 46 chromosomes. Jun wants the number in one egg cell. What is it?

    • 92 chromosomes
    • 22 chromosomes
    • 23 chromosomes
    • 46 chromosomes
  5. Count card (model)

    Sperm cell, 5 chromosomes. Egg cell, 5 chromosomes. The two cells join in fertilization to make a new cell (a zygote) with ? chromosomes.

  6. In a model animal, a sperm cell with 5 chromosomes joins an egg cell with 5 chromosomes. How many chromosomes does the new cell have, asks Luz?

    • 10 chromosomes
    • 20 chromosomes
    • 5 chromosomes
    • 15 chromosomes
  7. Use this

    Flow card (model, not to scale):

  8. One body cell goes through the whole of meiosis. How many cells does Milo count at the end?

    • One cell
    • Four cells
    • Eight cells
    • Two cells
  9. Noah counts the divisions in meiosis, from the starting cell to the finished cells. How many divisions are there?

    • Three divisions
    • One division
    • Four divisions, one for each finished cell
    • Two divisions, one after the other
  10. Flow card (model, not to scale)

    An egg cell with 1 set of 3 chromosomes and a sperm cell with 1 set of 3 chromosomes join in fertilization to make a new cell (a zygote). Sets in the new cell: ?

  11. An egg cell and a sperm cell join in fertilization. How many sets of chromosomes does the new cell hold, asks Pia?

    • Two sets, the same as a body cell
    • Two sets, but the sperm cell's chromosomes are lost
    • One set, the same as each gamete
    • Four sets, doubled again
  12. Ren studies four pictures of a cell with 4 chromosomes. Which picture shows the finished haploid cells at the end of meiosis?

    • Picture A: one cell with 4 X-shaped chromosomes
    • Picture C: four cells with 2 single rods each
    • Picture B: two cells with 2 X-shaped chromosomes each
    • Picture D: four cells with 4 single rods each
  13. Tala studies picture R, taken during the first division of meiosis. Which parts are being pulled to opposite ends?

    • The spindle fibers themselves
    • The two sister chromatids of each X
    • The two members of each matching pair
    • The two nuclei of the cell
  14. Use this

    Picture S (model, not to scale): one of the cells made by the first division. It holds 2 chromosomes that do not match each other. Each X has split into 2 single rods. At each end sit 2 single rods.

  15. Zee studies picture S, taken during the second division of meiosis. Which parts are being pulled to opposite ends?

    • The two members of each matching pair
    • The two nuclei of the cell
    • The two sister chromatids of each chromosome
    • The two cells made last time
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9th grade Meiosis: making egg and sperm cells with half the chromosomes worksheet – printable
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About this worksheet

Meiosis: making egg and sperm cells with half the chromosomes. Every version has 10 questions, and the answer key prints on the second page.

What your child will learn

  • I can say that a diploid cell (2n) has two matching sets of chromosomes, one set from each parent, and that a haploid cell (n) has one set, as egg and sperm cells do.
  • I can halve a body-cell number to get the number in an egg or sperm cell (46 to 23 in humans, 8 to 4 in a fruit fly) and double it back to get the body number.
  • I can say that one cell makes four cells in meiosis, through two divisions in a row after one round of DNA copying, and count the cells and the chromosomes at each step.
  • I can say that the matching chromosomes part in the first division (meiosis I) and the sister chromatids part in the second (meiosis II), and read this from a labeled picture.
  • I can count chromosomes (by their joined middles) and sister chromatids in a model cell at each step, using a fruit fly with 2n = 8 as the real case.
  • I can say that fertilization joins two haploid cells into a diploid zygote, so the body number is restored once and does not double again.

Standard: HS-LS3-1, HS-LS3-2

Words to know

chromosome: One long DNA molecule packed with proteins; it is X-shaped once the DNA is copied

homologous pair: Two matching chromosomes with the same genes, one from each parent

sister chromatids: The two identical copies of one chromosome, joined at the middle

diploid (2n): Having two matching sets of chromosomes, as body cells do

haploid (n): Having one set of chromosomes, as egg and sperm cells do

gamete: A haploid cell that joins another in fertilization: an egg or sperm cell

meiosis: Two divisions in a row that make four haploid cells from one diploid cell

meiosis I: The first division: the matching chromosomes part into two cells

Common mistakes

Your child gave an egg or sperm cell as many chromosomes as a body cell. Egg and sperm cells carry one set, half the body number. Ask your child to halve the body-cell number.

Your child thought meiosis makes two cells. It has two divisions in a row, so one cell makes four. Ask your child to count the divisions, then double twice.

Your child swapped the two divisions. Matching chromosomes part in the first division, and sister chromatids part in the second. Ask your child which division separates the pairs.

Questions parents ask

What is the most common mistake with meiosis: making egg and sperm cells with half the chromosomes?

Your child gave an egg or sperm cell as many chromosomes as a body cell. Egg and sperm cells carry one set, half the body number. Ask your child to halve the body-cell number.

Are these 9th grade science worksheets free to print?

Yes. All 6 printable versions at each level are free to print, with the answer key, and no account is needed.

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