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Arriving in America, 1845 to 1920 is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies worksheet on how immigrants arrived and how they were treated, aligned to C3 Framework indicator D2.Geo.7.3-5. It prints 2 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.

Arriving in America, 1845 to 1920

D2.Geo.7.3-5

NameDate

Read each text, then answer the questions.

1.Look at the source, then answer the questions.

Irish Immigrants and the Famine

An information text written for this worksheet. From 1845 to 1852 a disease destroyed the potato crop in Ireland, the main food of most poor families. About one million people died of hunger and disease, and more than one million left Ireland, most of them for the United States. Many arrived in Boston and New York with very little money. They dug canals, built railroads and worked as servants in other people's homes. Many Irish immigrants faced prejudice, partly because most were Catholic in a mostly Protestant country.

  1. 1. Why did many Irish immigrants face prejudice?
  2. 2. What jobs did many Irish immigrants do?
  3. 3. What destroyed Ireland's potato crop?
2.Look at the source, then answer the questions.

The Chinese Exclusion Act

An information text written for this worksheet. Chinese immigrants worked in the California gold fields and built much of the transcontinental railroad. Some white workers blamed them for low wages, and Chinese Americans faced violence and unfair laws. In 1882 Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act. It stopped Chinese workers from immigrating and kept Chinese immigrants from becoming citizens. It was the first major US law to keep out people of one nationality. Congress repealed it in 1943, during World War II, when China was an ally of the United States.

  1. 1. Why did some people want to keep Chinese workers out?
  2. 2. What does this text not tell you about Chinese Americans who were already here?
  3. 3. When did Congress pass the Chinese Exclusion Act?

LessonPrint · D2.Geo.7.3-5 · Set 16 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Arriving in America, 1845 to 1920

Set 16. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.1. Partly because most were Catholic in a mostly Protestant country. 2. They dug canals, built railroads and worked as servants. 3. A disease.
  2. 2.1. Some white workers blamed them for low wages. 2. It does not tell you how many Chinese Americans already lived in the country in 1882. 3. In 1882.

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to D2.Geo.7.3-5 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.