Costs a Government Chooses is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies worksheet on comparing the benefits and costs of a public choice, aligned to Common Core standard D2.Eco.1.3-5. 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 pupils 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.

One paper per pupil

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. All 25 sets ask different questions.

Costs a Government Chooses

D2.Eco.1.3-5

NameDate

Circle the best answer.

1.A family waits seven years for a council home. What is the cost to them?

A.The rent they will pay
B.The size of the home
C.Seven years living in whatever they can get instead

2.The government builds through councils rather than firms. Benefit?

A.Councils build faster
B.Materials go where destruction was worst rather than where profit is
C.Bricks cost less

3.A council builds upward on cleared land. Cost?

A.Waiting lists lengthen
B.Land runs out sooner
C.Higher building costs more per home and changes the street entirely

4.A newspaper prints letters attacking the programme. Benefit to readers?

A.Letters are free
B.The paper is longer
C.They learn what people outside the official figures are experiencing

5.The government builds through councils rather than firms. Cost?

A.It loses the land
B.It loses the timber
C.It loses whatever speed competing firms might have brought

6.A council builds upward on cleared land. Benefit?

A.Bricks are cheaper
B.More families housed from the same scarce sites
C.Lists get shorter by themselves

7.A minister publishes figures that show a shortfall. Benefit?

A.The public can judge progress rather than take his word
B.More homes get built
C.Bricks arrive faster

8.A country signs a five-year fixed-price supply deal. Benefit?

A.It knows the cost of timber for five years
B.It gains a fleet
C.It gains territory

LessonPrint · D2.Eco.1.3-5 · Set 4 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Costs a Government Chooses

Set 4. Prints on its own sheet.

1.Seven years living in whatever they can get instead
2.Materials go where destruction was worst rather than where profit is
3.Higher building costs more per home and changes the street entirely
4.They learn what people outside the official figures are experiencing
5.It loses whatever speed competing firms might have brought
6.More families housed from the same scarce sites
7.The public can judge progress rather than take his word
8.It knows the cost of timber for five years

More practice for D2.Eco.1.3-5

Weigh up what a choice gains against what it costs.

Teaching this next? Costs a Government Chooses is the 55-minute plan for it, with the misconceptions to expect.

All Grade 3 to Grade 5 worksheets

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to D2.Eco.1.3-5 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.