5th grade · Social Studies · Unit 6 of 7
Colonies to Constitution
Put 1492 to 1793 in order
What your child practices
Ordering events from Columbus to the Bill of Rights, including slavery and resistance, to see causes and effects over time.
Maine Learning Results learning standard: History 1 · putting the events from the founding of the colonies to the Constitution in order
How we explain it
Children can open this short lesson before they practice.
- Find each event's year, then put the smallest year first.
- Anchor dates: Columbus 1492, St. Augustine 1565, Jamestown 1607, Declaration 1776, Constitution 1787.
- Causes come before effects: the Stamp Act came before the war.
Example: Which happened first: the Stamp Act or the Battles of Lexington and Concord? The Stamp Act was in 1765. Lexington and Concord were in 1775. Answer: the Stamp Act
Colonies to Constitution in Maine
In the Maine Learning Results, this is unit 6 of 7 in 5th grade Social Studies, after Building a Government and before Earning & Saving.
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.
- 5th grade guide for Maine parents
- Printable 5th grade Social Studies sheet
- Maine report cards explained
Source: Maine Department of Education
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 last?
- The Treaty of Paris
- Enslaved Africans are brought to Virginia
- The British surrender at Yorktown
- George Washington becomes President
George Washington becomes President
Hint: Put them in order: Enslaved Africans are brought to Virginia (1619), The British surrender at Yorktown (1781), The Treaty of Paris (1783), George Washington becomes President (1789).
Question 2
Which of these happened last?
- Enslaved Africans are brought to Virginia
- The Treaty of Paris
- George Washington becomes President
- The Stono Rebellion
George Washington becomes President
Hint: Put them in order: Enslaved Africans are brought to Virginia (1619), The Stono Rebellion (1739), The Treaty of Paris (1783), George Washington becomes President (1789).
Question 3
Which of these happened first?
- The Stono Rebellion
- The Pilgrims land at Plymouth
- The Pueblo Revolt
- The Boston Tea Party
The Pilgrims land at Plymouth
Hint: Put them in order: The Pilgrims land at Plymouth (1620), The Pueblo Revolt (1680), The Stono Rebellion (1739), The Boston Tea Party (1773).
Question 4
Put these events in order, earliest first.
- The Boston Tea Party
- The Declaration of Independence
- Pennsylvania's gradual abolition law
- William Penn founds Pennsylvania
William Penn founds Pennsylvania → The Boston Tea Party → The Declaration of Independence → Pennsylvania's gradual abolition law
Hint: In order: William Penn founds Pennsylvania (1681), The Boston Tea Party (1773), The Declaration of Independence (1776), Pennsylvania's gradual abolition law (1780).
Question 5
Put these events in order, earliest first.
- The Bill of Rights is ratified
- Columbus reaches the Caribbean
- The cotton gin is invented
- The Treaty of Paris
Columbus reaches the Caribbean → The Treaty of Paris → The Bill of Rights is ratified → The cotton gin is invented
Hint: In order: Columbus reaches the Caribbean (1492), The Treaty of Paris (1783), The Bill of Rights is ratified (1791), The cotton gin is invented (1793).
Question 6
Put these events in order, earliest first.
- Spain founds St. Augustine
- The cotton gin is invented
- The Declaration of Independence
- The Treaty of Paris
Spain founds St. Augustine → The Declaration of Independence → The Treaty of Paris → The cotton gin is invented
Hint: In order: Spain founds St. Augustine (1565), The Declaration of Independence (1776), The Treaty of Paris (1783), The cotton gin is invented (1793).