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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 4 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.

Gold, Spices and Glory

D2.Eco.2.3-5

NameDate

Choose the best answer.

1.Why did Europeans want a sea route to Asia?
  • A.To buy spices and silk without paying many traders in between
  • B.To find new places to ski
  • C.To escape the Atlantic Ocean
2.Why did kings and queens pay for voyages?
  • A.To keep their sailors at home
  • B.To claim land and riches for their countries
  • C.To give their land away
3.Why did the French come to North America in the 1600s?
  • A.To grow rice
  • B.To trade with Native nations for beaver furs
  • C.To drill for oil
4.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
5.Which was a negative incentive, a risk that could stop an explorer from sailing?
  • A.The danger of storms, hunger and shipwreck
  • B.The promise of fame
  • C.The hope of riches
6.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
7.Why did explorers search for a "Northwest Passage"?
  • A.They hoped for a water route through North America to Asia
  • B.They wanted to reach the South Pole
  • C.They wanted a road to Mexico
8.Besides riches, what else did many explorers and priests want?
  • A.To learn to ride bison
  • B.To spread Christianity
  • C.To build railroads

LessonPrint · D2.Eco.2.3-5 · Set 4 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Gold, Spices and Glory

Set 4. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.To buy spices and silk without paying many traders in between
  2. 2.To claim land and riches for their countries
  3. 3.To trade with Native nations for beaver furs
  4. 4.New diseases that killed many people, and the loss of land
  5. 5.The danger of storms, hunger and shipwreck
  6. 6.They flavored food and came from very far away
  7. 7.They hoped for a water route through North America to Asia
  8. 8.To spread Christianity

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