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Trading Across a Continent is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies worksheet on trade networks among Native nations before 1492, aligned to C3 Framework indicator D2.Eco.4.3-5. It prints 7 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 10 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.

Trading Across a Continent

D2.Eco.4.3-5

NameDate

Draw a line from each trade good to where it came from. Then choose the best answers.

1.Draw a line from each one to its match.
  • Turquoise
  • Macaw feathers
  • Conch and whelk shells
  • Pipestone
  • A.A quarry in what is now Minnesota
  • B.Mines in what is now New Mexico
  • C.The southern coasts near Florida
  • D.Birds traded north from Mexico to the Southwest
2.What was Plains Indian Sign Language used for?
  • A.Writing laws on paper
  • B.Talking with people of other nations who spoke different languages
  • C.Sending messages by telegraph
3.Before horses arrived, how did most trade goods travel?
  • A.On foot and by canoe along rivers
  • B.By steamship
  • C.By truck
4.Why did the Mississippi River and its branches help trade?
  • A.Canoes could carry goods long distances on the water
  • B.Roads ran under the river
  • C.The river was frozen all year
5.At trading gatherings on the Columbia River, what was one important good?
  • A.Cotton cloth from England
  • B.Dried salmon
  • C.Gold coins
6.What does it mean to specialize?
  • A.To make everything yourself
  • B.To stop trading
  • C.To make what you are best placed to make and trade for the rest
7.Why was obsidian valuable far from where it was found?
  • A.It glowed in the dark
  • B.It was rare there and made very sharp tools
  • C.It was soft enough to eat

LessonPrint · D2.Eco.4.3-5 · Set 10 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Trading Across a Continent

Set 10. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.1. Turquoise — B (Mines in what is now New Mexico) 2. Macaw feathers — D (Birds traded north from Mexico to the Southwest) 3. Conch and whelk shells — C (The southern coasts near Florida) 4. Pipestone — A (A quarry in what is now Minnesota)
  2. 2.Talking with people of other nations who spoke different languages
  3. 3.On foot and by canoe along rivers
  4. 4.Canoes could carry goods long distances on the water
  5. 5.Dried salmon
  6. 6.To make what you are best placed to make and trade for the rest
  7. 7.It was rare there and made very sharp tools

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