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Doing One Thing Well is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies worksheet on why people specialise and then trade, aligned to Common Core standard D2.Eco.4.3-5. It prints 8 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.

Set 21 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.

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

Doing One Thing Well

D2.Eco.4.3-5

NameDate

Circle the best answer.

1.The wharf labourers specialised in canal cargo. What happened in 1846?
  • A.They became farmers at once
  • B.The canal was filled in
  • C.The railway took the cargo and their one skill lost its market
2.Why does the blacksmith not also grow his own corn?
  • A.He dislikes fields
  • B.He earns more in the hours he spends at the forge than at the plough
  • C.Corn is illegal
3.Why did the valley send corn to the town and get manufactured goods back?
  • A.Each place made what it was better placed to make and traded the rest
  • B.The town had no fields
  • C.Corn will not keep
4.Why does the farmer not shoe his own horses?
  • A.Farmers cannot lift hammers
  • B.The blacksmith does it faster and better, so trading is cheaper for both
  • C.Horses object
5.What does specialising need before it can work?
  • A.A way to trade what you made for what you did not
  • B.A large family
  • C.Good weather
6.What is the risk of specialising in one thing?
  • A.Your tools rust
  • B.You get bored
  • C.If demand for that one thing falls, you have nothing else to sell
7.Why did the miller not also make the barrels?
  • A.Millers work at night
  • B.The cooper had the tools and skill, so the miller bought barrels instead
  • C.Barrels are heavy
8.Why did the railway make specialising easier in the valley?
  • A.Trains carry corn only
  • B.Farmers worked harder
  • C.Goods could reach a wider market in one hour instead of a day

LessonPrint · D2.Eco.4.3-5 · Set 21 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Doing One Thing Well

Set 21. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.The railway took the cargo and their one skill lost its market
  2. 2.He earns more in the hours he spends at the forge than at the plough
  3. 3.Each place made what it was better placed to make and traded the rest
  4. 4.The blacksmith does it faster and better, so trading is cheaper for both
  5. 5.A way to trade what you made for what you did not
  6. 6.If demand for that one thing falls, you have nothing else to sell
  7. 7.The cooper had the tools and skill, so the miller bought barrels instead
  8. 8.Goods could reach a wider market in one hour instead of a day

More practice for D2.Eco.4.3-5

Explain why people and businesses each do one thing and then trade.

Teaching this next? Doing One Thing, Trading for the Rest is the 45-minute plan for it, with the misconceptions to expect.

All Grade 3 to Grade 5 worksheets

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to D2.Eco.4.3-5 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.