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Life in North America Before 1492 is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies worksheet on how nations lived and traded before Europeans arrived, aligned to C3 Framework indicator D2.Geo.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 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 16 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.

Life in North America Before 1492

D2.Geo.4.3-5

NameDate

Choose the best answer.

1.Which crop, first grown by people in Mexico, spread across much of North America?
  • A.Corn, also called maize
  • B.Wheat
  • C.Rice
2.Cahokia, near today's St. Louis, was a large city around the year 1100. Who built it?
  • A.Mississippian people
  • B.Spanish settlers
  • C.French fur traders
3.Why did many Southwest peoples hold ceremonies for rain?
  • A.Rain was scarce and their crops depended on it
  • B.Rain fell every day there
  • C.They wanted floods
4.What did the people of Cahokia build out of earth?
  • A.Huge mounds, including Monks Mound
  • B.Stone castles with moats
  • C.Brick towers
5.Why did many nations in the East grow corn, beans and squash together?
  • A.The plants help each other grow, and together they make a healthy diet
  • B.They needed no water or sun
  • C.They were the only plants allowed by law
6.Before horses came, what did dogs pull for Plains peoples?
  • A.Mail carts
  • B.Wagons on iron rails
  • C.Loads on wooden frames called travois
7.Why did nations in different regions live in such different homes?
  • A.One ruler told them all what to build
  • B.Each used the materials and climate of its own land
  • C.They all lived in the same kind of home
8.Which is true of the peoples of North America before 1492?
  • A.No one lived in North America
  • B.There were hundreds of nations with different languages and ways of life
  • C.They all spoke one language

LessonPrint · D2.Geo.4.3-5 · Set 16 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Life in North America Before 1492

Set 16. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.Corn, also called maize
  2. 2.Mississippian people
  3. 3.Rain was scarce and their crops depended on it
  4. 4.Huge mounds, including Monks Mound
  5. 5.The plants help each other grow, and together they make a healthy diet
  6. 6.Loads on wooden frames called travois
  7. 7.Each used the materials and climate of its own land
  8. 8.There were hundreds of nations with different languages and ways of life

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