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Weighing the Evidence is a free printable Grade 5 English worksheet on judging how well a claim is supported, aligned to Common Core standard RI.5.8. 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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Weighing the Evidence

RI.5.8

NameDate

Read the text, then answer the questions.

1.Read the text, then answer the questions.

Canals and Railways

Between 1760 and 1830 Britain built about four thousand miles of canal. Within forty years of that, most of it was losing money. A canal boat carried thirty tons behind one horse, where a cart carried two. That was transformative for coal and stone, which are heavy, cheap and not in a hurry. But a canal cannot climb without locks, cannot be built where there is no water, and freezes. A boat averaged three miles an hour. The railways did not beat canals on cost per ton at first. They beat them on speed, on reliability, and on where they could go — a railway can cross a watershed a canal cannot. Many canal companies were bought by railway companies, sometimes specifically in order to close them. By 1900 most of the network carried nothing. Some of it is now used more than it ever was, by people on holiday.

  1. 1. What is the author's purpose, and how do you know?
  2. 2. The text claims railways did not win on cost. What evidence is given for what they did win on?
2.Read the text, then answer the questions.

Can You Do Two Things at Once?

People say they multitask. Mostly they do not. The brain can run two tasks together only if at least one is automatic. Walking and talking works because walking is automatic for an adult. Reading and listening to speech does not, because both need the same language system. What feels like multitasking is usually rapid switching. Each switch costs time — a fraction of a second to disengage and re-engage — and the costs add up. In experiments, people doing two tasks alternately take substantially longer in total than doing them one after the other, and make more errors. They also do not notice. Switching feels efficient because you are busy the whole time. The practical conclusion is unpopular but consistent: for anything demanding, doing one thing at a time is faster.

  1. 1. What is the author's purpose, and how do you know?
  2. 2. The text makes two claims about multitasking. Identify the evidence for each.

LessonPrint · RI.5.8 · Set 2 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Weighing the Evidence

Set 2. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.1. To explain why a successful technology was displaced — the text names the advantage and then the limits. 2. Speed, reliability, and reach — specifically that a railway can cross a watershed a canal cannot.
  2. 2.1. To correct the belief that people multitask — the first two sentences state it and reject it. 2. That it requires an automatic task — walking and talking against reading and listening. That switching is costly — the timed experiments and error rates.

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to RI.5.8 of the Common Core State Standards for English language arts.