3rd grade · Social Studies · Unit 4 of 6
Alaska Through Time
From Russian America to statehood and the pipeline
What your child practices
Alaska history in order: Russian America, the purchase of 1867, the gold rushes, territory and statehood in 1959, the 1964 earthquake, the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, the pipeline and the Permanent Fund, with timeline and arithmetic practice.
Alaska content standards learning standard: SS.3.1.23.1; SS.3.2.23.1; SS.3.1.20.1 · timelines of Alaska history, comparing life in different eras with today, and how Alaska's resources connect to its statehood
How we explain it
Children can open this short lesson before they practice.
- Alaska was part of Russian America, and the United States bought it in 1867.
- Gold rushes brought many people. Alaska became a state in 1959.
- Later came the 1964 earthquake and the oil pipeline. A timeline puts events in order.
Example: Which came first: Alaska becomes a state, or the United States buys Alaska? The purchase was in 1867. Statehood was in 1959, later. Answer: the United States buys Alaska
Alaska Through Time in Alaska
In the Alaska content standards, this is unit 4 of 6 in 3rd grade Social Studies, after Alaska's Land & Regions and before Governing Alaska.
Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.
- 3rd grade guide for Alaska parents
- Printable 3rd grade Social Studies sheet
- Alaska report cards explained
Source: Alaska Department of Education and Early Development
Sample questions
A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.
Question 1
Which of these happened first?
- Alaska becomes a US territory
- Russian traders build a settlement on Kodiak Island
- The Alaska Railroad is finished
- The United States buys Alaska from Russia
Russian traders build a settlement on Kodiak Island
Hint: Put them in order: Russian traders build a settlement on Kodiak Island (1784), The United States buys Alaska from Russia (1867), Alaska becomes a US territory (1912), The Alaska Railroad is finished (1923).
Question 2
Before the United States bought Alaska, which country claimed it?
- Spain
- Russia
- France
Russia
Hint: Russian traders came for sea otter furs.
Question 3
Put these events in order, earliest first.
- The first Iditarod race runs to Nome
- Russian traders build a settlement on Kodiak Island
- Sitka (New Archangel) becomes the capital of Russian America
- The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act becomes law
Russian traders build a settlement on Kodiak Island → Sitka (New Archangel) becomes the capital of Russian America → The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act becomes law → The first Iditarod race runs to Nome
Hint: In order: Russian traders build a settlement on Kodiak Island (1784), Sitka (New Archangel) becomes the capital of Russian America (1808), The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act becomes law (1971), The first Iditarod race runs to Nome (1973).
Question 4
In what year did this happen? The Great Alaska Earthquake shakes Southcentral Alaska
- 1971
- 1897
- 1964
- 1808
1964
Hint: The Great Alaska Earthquake shakes Southcentral Alaska: 1964.
Question 5
Which came first, the Gold Rush or statehood?
- they happened the same year
- the Gold Rush
- statehood
the Gold Rush
Hint: The Klondike Gold Rush was in the 1890s; statehood came in 1959.
Question 6
Put these events in order, earliest first.
- The Alaska Highway is built
- Alaska becomes a US territory
- The Great Alaska Earthquake shakes Southcentral Alaska
- The United States buys Alaska from Russia
The United States buys Alaska from Russia → Alaska becomes a US territory → The Alaska Highway is built → The Great Alaska Earthquake shakes Southcentral Alaska
Hint: In order: The United States buys Alaska from Russia (1867), Alaska becomes a US territory (1912), The Alaska Highway is built (1942), The Great Alaska Earthquake shakes Southcentral Alaska (1964).