The Night Our Anthem Was Written is a free printable Kindergarten to Grade 2 social studies worksheet on what a song tells about the event behind it, aligned to C3 Framework indicator D2.His.12.K-2. It prints 6 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions that each ask different questions, so no two students in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.
Set 4 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.
Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. All 25 sets ask different questions.
The Night Our Anthem Was Written
D2.His.12.K-2
NameDate
Read the anthem and the note, answer the questions, then circle the best answers.
1.Look at the source, then answer the questions.
The Star-Spangled Banner
Verse 1 of "The Star-Spangled Banner," by Francis Scott Key, September 1814. It became the national anthem by an Act of Congress on March 3, 1931. The note after it was written for this worksheet.
O say can you see, by the dawn's early light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming,
Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there;
O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?
Note: Key wrote these words after watching British ships attack Fort McHenry in Baltimore all night. In the morning, the American flag was still flying over the fort.
1. Why was it good news that the flag was still there in the morning?
2. What does the song say about the flag's stripes and stars?
3. What does the last line call the land?
4. What made Key write the song?
2.What do many people do with a hat during the anthem?
A.Take it off
B.Trade it with a friend
C.Throw it in the air
3.Whose ships attacked the fort in 1814?
A.Great Britain's
B.France's
C.Mexico's
4.Which fort did Francis Scott Key watch being attacked?
A.Fort Knox
B.Fort McHenry
C.Fort Sumter
5.What was Francis Scott Key's job?
A.A British sailor
B.A king
C.A lawyer
6.During which war was Fort McHenry attacked?
A.The War of 1812
B.The Civil War
C.World War II
LessonPrint · D2.His.12.K-2 · Set 4 · free to copy for classroom use
Answer key — The Night Our Anthem Was Written
Set 4. Prints on its own sheet.
1.1. It meant the fort had not fallen to the British ships. 2. Broad stripes and bright stars. 3. The land of the free and the home of the brave. 4. He watched British ships attack Fort McHenry all night, and in the morning the flag was still flying.
2.Take it off
3.Great Britain's
4.Fort McHenry
5.A lawyer
6.The War of 1812
Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to D2.His.12.K-2 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.