Skip to content
LessonPrint

Gold, Spices and Glory is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies worksheet on the incentives behind European exploration, aligned to C3 Framework indicator D2.Eco.2.3-5. 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 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 11 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.

Next set

One paper per student

12345678910111213141516171819202122232425

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

Gold, Spices and Glory

D2.Eco.2.3-5

NameDate

Choose the best answer.

1.Why did kings and queens pay for voyages?
  • A.To claim land and riches for their countries
  • B.To give their land away
  • C.To keep their sailors at home
2.What did the arrival of explorers bring to Native nations?
  • A.Nothing changed for Native nations
  • B.New diseases that killed many people, and the loss of land
  • C.Only gifts and help
3.Columbus sailed west in 1492. Who paid for his voyage?
  • A.The king of France
  • B.Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand of Spain
  • C.The Haudenosaunee Grand Council
4.Which was a positive incentive for Spanish explorers?
  • A.The chance of shipwreck
  • B.The chance to find gold and silver
  • C.The danger of disease
5.Why did Europeans want a sea route to Asia?
  • A.To escape the Atlantic Ocean
  • B.To buy spices and silk without paying many traders in between
  • C.To find new places to ski
6.Why did explorers search for a "Northwest Passage"?
  • A.They hoped for a water route through North America to Asia
  • B.They wanted a road to Mexico
  • C.They wanted to reach the South Pole
7.Which was a negative incentive, a risk that could stop an explorer from sailing?
  • A.The promise of fame
  • B.The hope of riches
  • C.The danger of storms, hunger and shipwreck
8.Why were spices worth so much in Europe?
  • A.Spices grew everywhere in Europe
  • B.Spices were the only food in Europe
  • C.They flavored food and came from very far away

LessonPrint · D2.Eco.2.3-5 · Set 11 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Gold, Spices and Glory

Set 11. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.To claim land and riches for their countries
  2. 2.New diseases that killed many people, and the loss of land
  3. 3.Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand of Spain
  4. 4.The chance to find gold and silver
  5. 5.To buy spices and silk without paying many traders in between
  6. 6.They hoped for a water route through North America to Asia
  7. 7.The danger of storms, hunger and shipwreck
  8. 8.They flavored food and came from very far away

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to D2.Eco.2.3-5 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.