Holiday Proclamations is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies worksheet on the audience and purpose of a holiday proclamation, aligned to C3 Framework indicator D2.His.11.3-5. It prints 5 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 5 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.
Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. All 25 sets ask different questions.
Holiday Proclamations
D2.His.11.3-5
NameDate
Read the source and answer the questions, then circle the right answers.
1.Look at the source, then answer the questions.
A Proclamation of Thanksgiving
An extract from a proclamation by President Abraham Lincoln, October 3, 1863, issued during the Civil War.
I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens.
1. Why might Lincoln speak to citizens "in every part of the United States" during the Civil War?
2. Who issued the proclamation, and when?
3. Why does he include those "at sea" and those "sojourning in foreign lands"?
4. What does Lincoln invite his fellow citizens to do?
2.Who usually issues a proclamation for a national holiday today?
A.A city mayor
B.The President
C.The Chief Justice
3.Lincoln's Thanksgiving proclamation of 1863 came in the middle of which war?
A.The War of 1812
B.The Revolutionary War
C.The Civil War
4.Which amendment ended slavery throughout the whole country in 1865?
A.The 19th Amendment
B.The 13th Amendment
C.The 1st Amendment
5.Decoration Day later became which holiday?
A.Memorial Day
B.Veterans Day
C.Labor Day
LessonPrint · D2.His.11.3-5 · Set 5 · free to copy for classroom use
Answer key — Holiday Proclamations
Set 5. Prints on its own sheet.
1.1. To bring citizens of the divided United States together in one day of Thanksgiving. 2. President Abraham Lincoln, on October 3, 1863. 3. So that every citizen, even those far from home, could join in. 4. To set apart and observe the last Thursday of November as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise.
2.The President
3.The Civil War
4.The 13th Amendment
5.Memorial Day
Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to D2.His.11.3-5 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.