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 17 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: Abigail Adams's letter to John Adams, 1776, The Constitution as it was signed in 1787, A biography of George Washington written in 2005, An encyclopedia article about Thomas Jefferson

PrimarySecondary

2.Sort each one: Primary or Secondary?

Sort: The Declaration of Independence, signed in 1776, A British officer's 1775 report on the Battle of Bunker Hill, A website summary of the Boston Tea Party written last year, A magazine article in which a historian explains the Stamp Act

PrimarySecondary

3.Sort each one: Primary or Secondary?

Sort: A fifth-grade textbook chapter on the Revolution, A modern atlas map showing where the battles were fought, A letter George Washington wrote to Congress during the war, A Continental soldier's diary written at Valley Forge

PrimarySecondary

LessonPrint · D2.His.9.3-5 · Set 17 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Primary or Secondary? The Founding Era

Set 17. Prints on its own sheet.

1.1. A biography of George Washington written in 2005 — Secondary 2. Abigail Adams's letter to John Adams, 1776 — Primary 3. An encyclopedia article about Thomas Jefferson — Secondary 4. The Constitution as it was signed in 1787 — Primary
2.1. A British officer's 1775 report on the Battle of Bunker Hill — Primary 2. A magazine article in which a historian explains the Stamp Act — Secondary 3. A website summary of the Boston Tea Party written last year — Secondary 4. The Declaration of Independence, signed in 1776 — Primary
3.1. A Continental soldier's diary written at Valley Forge — Primary 2. A fifth-grade textbook chapter on the Revolution — Secondary 3. A letter George Washington wrote to Congress during the war — Primary 4. A modern atlas map showing where the battles were fought — Secondary

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