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 8 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.
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: A Continental soldier's diary written at Valley Forge, A documentary film about the Constitution made in 2010, Abigail Adams's letter to John Adams, 1776, A historian's book about women in the Revolution
PrimarySecondary
2.Sort each one: Primary or Secondary?
Sort: James Madison's notes taken during the Constitutional Convention, The Constitution as it was signed in 1787, A museum sign explaining what happened at Yorktown, A biography of George Washington written in 2005
PrimarySecondary
3.Sort each one: Primary or Secondary?
Sort: Paul Revere's 1770 engraving of the Boston Massacre, A magazine article in which a historian explains the Stamp Act, A fifth-grade textbook chapter on the Revolution, A 1775 newspaper report on Lexington and Concord
PrimarySecondary
LessonPrint · D2.His.9.3-5 · Set 8 · free to copy for classroom use
Answer key — Primary or Secondary? The Founding Era
Set 8. Prints on its own sheet.
1.1. A Continental soldier's diary written at Valley Forge — Primary 2. A documentary film about the Constitution made in 2010 — Secondary 3. A historian's book about women in the Revolution — Secondary 4. Abigail Adams's letter to John Adams, 1776 — Primary
2.1. A biography of George Washington written in 2005 — Secondary 2. A museum sign explaining what happened at Yorktown — Secondary 3. James Madison's notes taken during the Constitutional Convention — Primary 4. The Constitution as it was signed in 1787 — Primary
3.1. A 1775 newspaper report on Lexington and Concord — Primary 2. A fifth-grade textbook chapter on the Revolution — Secondary 3. A magazine article in which a historian explains the Stamp Act — Secondary 4. Paul Revere's 1770 engraving of the Boston Massacre — Primary
Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to D2.His.9.3-5 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.