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Following a Chain of Causes is a free printable Grade 4 English worksheet on holding a multi-step causal chain together, aligned to Common Core standard RI.4.10. It prints 2 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions that each ask different questions, so no two pupils in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.

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Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. All 25 sets ask different questions.

Following a Chain of Causes

RI.4.10

NameDate

Read the text, then answer the questions.

1.Read the text, then answer the questions.

The Wolves and the Rivers

Wolves were shot out of Yellowstone by 1926. Fourteen were brought back in 1995. With no wolves, elk had grazed the valleys freely for seventy years. Young willow and aspen were eaten as soon as they grew. The wolves killed some elk. More importantly, they changed where elk would stand still. Open valley floors became dangerous, so the elk stopped lingering there. Willow and aspen grew back along the rivers. Beavers, which need willow, returned. Their dams made ponds. Roots held the banks. The rivers narrowed, deepened and moved less. Some researchers describe this as wolves changing the shape of rivers, though others argue the effect has been overstated.

  1. 1. Explain the relationship between the wolves and the shape of the rivers.
  2. 2. Summarise this text.
  3. 3. Put these in order: beavers return, wolves are reintroduced, willow grows back.
2.Read the text, then answer the questions.

The Longitude Problem

A ship's latitude — how far north or south it is — can be found from the height of the sun at noon. Sailors could do that for centuries. Longitude, how far east or west, was the problem. It has no natural marker. The solution was known in principle: compare the time on board with the time at a fixed place. The Earth turns fifteen degrees an hour, so every hour of difference is fifteen degrees of longitude. That required a clock that stayed accurate on a rolling, salty, temperature-swinging ship. No such clock existed. John Harrison, a carpenter, spent forty-three years building four. The fourth, finished in 1759, was the size of a large pocket watch and lost five seconds in eighty-one days at sea.

  1. 1. Put these in order: Harrison finishes his fourth clock, the principle is known, latitude can be measured.
  2. 2. Summarise this text.
  3. 3. Explain the relationship between an accurate clock and knowing your longitude.

LessonPrint · RI.4.10 · Set 3 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Following a Chain of Causes

Set 3. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.1. Wolves made valley floors dangerous, so elk moved on, willow grew, beavers returned and dammed, and roots held the banks. 2. Wolves returned to Yellowstone in 1995, changed where elk grazed, allowed willow and beavers back, and are credited — with some dispute — with reshaping the rivers. 3. Wolves are reintroduced, willow grows back, beavers return.
  2. 2.1. Latitude can be measured, the principle is known, Harrison finishes his fourth clock. 2. Latitude was easy and longitude had no natural marker; comparing times would give it, and Harrison spent forty-three years building a clock accurate enough at sea. 3. Comparing shipboard time with time at a fixed place gives the hours of difference, and each hour is fifteen degrees.

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to RI.4.10 of the Common Core State Standards for English language arts.