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Changes on the Great Plains is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies worksheet on how the Plains changed for the nations who lived there, aligned to C3 Framework indicator D2.Geo.5.3-5. 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 2 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.

Changes on the Great Plains

D2.Geo.5.3-5

NameDate

Number the events in order. Then choose the best answers.

1.Number these events from earliest to latest.
  • Congress passes the Pacific Railway Act (1862)
  • Chinese workers blast tunnels through the Sierra Nevada (1866)
  • The two lines meet at Promontory Summit, Utah (1869)
  • Work on the line begins in California (1863)
2.Why did many settlers on the Plains build houses from sod?
  • A.Wood was too light
  • B.Sod was the law
  • C.There were few trees on the prairie for lumber
3.How did the railroad change the Plains?
  • A.It made the Plains empty of people
  • B.It ran only from north to south
  • C.It brought settlers and carried crops and cattle to markets
4.Which nations lived on the Great Plains?
  • A.The Lakota, Cheyenne, Comanche and Pawnee, among others
  • B.The Hopi and Zuni
  • C.The Haida and Tlingit
5.What did the US government force many Plains nations to do?
  • A.Move onto reservations
  • B.Move to Europe
  • C.Become railroad owners
6.What new kind of plow helped farmers break the thick prairie sod?
  • A.A paddle wheel
  • B.A steel plow
  • C.A wooden spoon

LessonPrint · D2.Geo.5.3-5 · Set 2 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Changes on the Great Plains

Set 2. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.Correct order: 1, 4, 2, 3
  2. 2.There were few trees on the prairie for lumber
  3. 3.It brought settlers and carried crops and cattle to markets
  4. 4.The Lakota, Cheyenne, Comanche and Pawnee, among others
  5. 5.Move onto reservations
  6. 6.A steel plow

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to D2.Geo.5.3-5 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.