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Two Views of the Plains is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies worksheet on why settlers and Plains nations saw the same land differently, aligned to C3 Framework indicator D2.His.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 21 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.

Two Views of the Plains

D2.His.4.3-5

NameDate

Choose the best answer.

1.A homesteader saw the prairie as empty land waiting for farms. How did the Lakota see it?
  • A.As land they had never visited
  • B.As their homeland and hunting grounds, already in use
  • C.As a place to build factories
2.Many Plains nations held land in common. How was this different from settlers' ideas?
  • A.Settlers believed land should be owned by single families
  • B.Settlers believed no one should use land
  • C.Settlers shared all of their land
3.Why did miners in 1876 ignore the Fort Laramie Treaty?
  • A.They wanted the gold found in the Black Hills
  • B.They had never heard of gold
  • C.The treaty told them to go there
4.Settlers saw the railroad as progress. Why did many Plains nations see it as a threat?
  • A.It was too slow
  • B.It brought hunters and settlers onto their lands and drove off the bison
  • C.It took them to their families
5.Why did a bison hunter in the 1870s see the herds as a way to make money?
  • A.Bison were worth nothing
  • B.He wanted to feed Plains nations
  • C.Hides sold for high prices in eastern cities
6.Why did settlers want land fenced with barbed wire?
  • A.To protect their crops and mark their own property
  • B.To keep trains off the land
  • C.To help the bison herds
7.Railroads printed posters promising settlers good farmland. Whose view do such posters show?
  • A.The bison hunters'
  • B.The Lakota's
  • C.The railroads', which wanted to sell land and tickets
8.A US Army officer saw reservations as a way to end fighting. How did many Plains peoples see them?
  • A.As a summer camp
  • B.As a loss of freedom, land and their way of life
  • C.As a gift they had asked for

LessonPrint · D2.His.4.3-5 · Set 21 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Two Views of the Plains

Set 21. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.As their homeland and hunting grounds, already in use
  2. 2.Settlers believed land should be owned by single families
  3. 3.They wanted the gold found in the Black Hills
  4. 4.It brought hunters and settlers onto their lands and drove off the bison
  5. 5.Hides sold for high prices in eastern cities
  6. 6.To protect their crops and mark their own property
  7. 7.The railroads', which wanted to sell land and tickets
  8. 8.As a loss of freedom, land and their way of life

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