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Gains and Strains of Acting Together is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies worksheet on benefits and challenges of working together, aligned to Common Core standard D2.Civ.6.3-5. 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 1 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.

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All 25 sets ask different questions.

Gains and Strains of Acting Together

D2.Civ.6.3-5

NameDate

Circle the best answer.

1.What is the challenge of pooling rates?
  • A.Money raised in one village may be spent in another
  • B.Counting is hard
  • C.Money is heavy
2.What is the challenge of farmers acting together?
  • A.They must all get their milk to the station at the same hour
  • B.Cows disagree
  • C.Milk is heavy
3.Farmers sending milk by rail together. What is the benefit?
  • A.Cows work harder
  • B.Milk keeps longer
  • C.A full wagon costs less per churn than a part-full one
4.What was hard about the boatmen acting together?
  • A.They could not write
  • B.They had to agree what to ask for, and some wanted different things
  • C.They lived far apart
5.Eighty-four boatmen signed one petition. What did working together gain them?
  • A.It saved paper
  • B.It was quicker to write
  • C.One document carried more weight than 84 separate complaints
6.A county council pools rates from many villages. What is the benefit?
  • A.Rates go down
  • B.Villages too small to build a school alone can share the cost
  • C.Villages get bigger
7.Why did the canal company cut charges rather than each boatman alone?
  • A.Charges cannot change
  • B.Boatmen were lazy
  • C.The company set the tolls, so only it could change them
8.What does the petition show about acting together and losing?
  • A.It always works
  • B.It never works
  • C.Acting together does not guarantee success, but it leaves a record

LessonPrint · D2.Civ.6.3-5 · Set 1 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Gains and Strains of Acting Together

Set 1. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.Money raised in one village may be spent in another
  2. 2.They must all get their milk to the station at the same hour
  3. 3.A full wagon costs less per churn than a part-full one
  4. 4.They had to agree what to ask for, and some wanted different things
  5. 5.One document carried more weight than 84 separate complaints
  6. 6.Villages too small to build a school alone can share the cost
  7. 7.The company set the tolls, so only it could change them
  8. 8.Acting together does not guarantee success, but it leaves a record

Questions about Gains and Strains of Acting Together

What does the Gains and Strains of Acting Together worksheet cover?

It practises benefits and challenges of working together — 8 questions for Grade 3 to Grade 5, all on Common Core D2.Civ.6.3-5: Describe what people gain from working together, and what is hard about it. The instruction to pupils is “Circle the best answer”, and the answer key follows on the next sheet.

Which Common Core standard does Gains and Strains of Acting Together practise?

D2.Civ.6.3-5 — D2.Civ.6.3-5, in the Civics domain for Grade 3 to Grade 5. The published standard reads: “Describe ways in which people benefit from and are challenged by working together, including through government, workplaces, voluntary organizations, and families.” The worksheet assesses that standard rather than a paraphrase of it.

What age or grade is this worksheet for?

Gains and Strains of Acting Together is written for Grade 3 to Grade 5, typically ages 40-41. It is one of the sheets on D2.Civ.6.3-5, so it suits any pupil working at that standard — including older pupils revisiting it and younger ones working ahead.

Does Gains and Strains of Acting Together come with an answer key?

Yes. All 8 answers are generated from the same problems as the questions, so the key cannot drift out of step with the sheet. It starts on a fresh sheet of paper, after the questions, so it is not handed out with the class by accident.

How many different versions of Gains and Strains of Acting Together can I print?

25 — one per pupil, and all 25 ask different questions. Set 1 downloads the whole class as a single PDF. Every version is fixed to its own address, so a sheet printed today holds the same problems when you reopen it next week.

Is Gains and Strains of Acting Together free to print and photocopy?

Yes. Gains and Strains of Acting Together, its answer key and its 25 versions are free to print and photocopy for your own class, with no account, no email capture and no subscription at the download step. Please do not resell them or republish them as your own.

Is there a lesson plan to teach D2.Civ.6.3-5?

Yes — “What Acting Together Costs” is a 45-minute Grade 3 to Grade 5 plan for D2.Civ.6.3-5, timed section by section, with the misconceptions to expect and an exit ticket. Gains and Strains of Acting Together is the practice that follows it.

More practice for D2.Civ.6.3-5

Describe what people gain from working together, and what is hard about it.

Teaching this next? What Acting Together Costs 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.Civ.6.3-5 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.