Primary or Secondary? The Founding Era is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies worksheet on telling primary from secondary sources about the founding, aligned to C3 Framework indicator D2.His.9.3-5. It prints 3 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.

One paper per student

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.

Primary or Secondary? The Founding Era

D2.His.9.3-5

NameDate

Sort each source: primary or secondary?

1.Sort each one: Primary or Secondary?

Sort: Paul Revere's 1770 engraving of the Boston Massacre, A museum sign explaining what happened at Yorktown, A British officer's 1775 report on the Battle of Bunker Hill, A fifth-grade textbook chapter on the Revolution

PrimarySecondary

2.Sort each one: Primary or Secondary?

Sort: An encyclopedia article about Thomas Jefferson, A historian's book about women in the Revolution, A 1775 newspaper report on Lexington and Concord, The Declaration of Independence, signed in 1776

PrimarySecondary

3.Sort each one: Primary or Secondary?

Sort: The Constitution as it was signed in 1787, Abigail Adams's letter to John Adams, 1776, A magazine article in which a historian explains the Stamp Act, A biography of George Washington written in 2005

PrimarySecondary

LessonPrint · D2.His.9.3-5 · Set 16 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Primary or Secondary? The Founding Era

Set 16. Prints on its own sheet.

1.1. A British officer's 1775 report on the Battle of Bunker Hill — Primary 2. A fifth-grade textbook chapter on the Revolution — Secondary 3. A museum sign explaining what happened at Yorktown — Secondary 4. Paul Revere's 1770 engraving of the Boston Massacre — Primary
2.1. A 1775 newspaper report on Lexington and Concord — Primary 2. A historian's book about women in the Revolution — Secondary 3. An encyclopedia article about Thomas Jefferson — Secondary 4. The Declaration of Independence, signed in 1776 — Primary
3.1. A biography of George Washington written in 2005 — Secondary 2. A magazine article in which a historian explains the Stamp Act — Secondary 3. Abigail Adams's letter to John Adams, 1776 — Primary 4. The Constitution as it was signed in 1787 — Primary

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to D2.His.9.3-5 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.