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National Holidays: Then and Now is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies worksheet on how national holidays began and how they are kept today, aligned to C3 Framework indicator D2.His.2.3-5. 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.

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

National Holidays: Then and Now

D2.His.2.3-5

NameDate

Circle the right answer.

1.Why was Armistice Day renamed Veterans Day in 1954?
  • A.Because World War I was forgotten
  • B.To honor veterans of all wars, not only World War I
  • C.To move it to the spring
2.What does Juneteenth mark?
  • A.The signing of the Declaration of Independence
  • B.The end of World War II
  • C.June 19, 1865, when enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, were told they were free
3.In what year was Martin Luther King Jr. Day first observed as a federal holiday?
  • A.1776
  • B.1863
  • C.1986
4.What was Memorial Day first called?
  • A.Armistice Day
  • B.Decoration Day
  • C.Flag Day
5.Why do many places observe Indigenous Peoples' Day?
  • A.To honor Native peoples, who lived in the Americas long before 1492
  • B.To celebrate a European king
  • C.To mark the start of winter
6.Why was Labor Day created?
  • A.To honor workers, after years of campaigning by labor unions
  • B.To mark the first day of school
  • C.To celebrate the end of a war
7.What does Columbus Day, the federal holiday, mark?
  • A.The first Thanksgiving
  • B.The founding of Jamestown
  • C.Christopher Columbus's arrival in the Americas in 1492
8.Veterans Day was first called Armistice Day. What did it mark?
  • A.The end of the Civil War
  • B.The end of fighting in World War I on November 11, 1918
  • C.The signing of the Constitution

LessonPrint · D2.His.2.3-5 · Set 25 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — National Holidays: Then and Now

Set 25. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.To honor veterans of all wars, not only World War I
  2. 2.June 19, 1865, when enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, were told they were free
  3. 3.1986
  4. 4.Decoration Day
  5. 5.To honor Native peoples, who lived in the Americas long before 1492
  6. 6.To honor workers, after years of campaigning by labor unions
  7. 7.Christopher Columbus's arrival in the Americas in 1492
  8. 8.The end of fighting in World War I on November 11, 1918

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to D2.His.2.3-5 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.