The Mayflower Compact (Readworks)

According to the text, what was the name of the ship the Pilgrims were on board?

• the Mayflower Compact

• the Mayflower

• the Wampanoag

• the United States Constitution

The author explains what the Mayflower Compact did. What does the author do after that?

• explains why the Mayflower Compact is similar to the U.S. Constitution

• discusses constitutions that came before the Mayflower Compact

• explains why the colony could not survive without the Mayflower Compact

• describes the men who wrote the Mayflower Compact

Read this paragraph from the text: Before they landed, the Pilgrims found a way that they would be able to work together. The 41 men aboard the Mayflower met and signed the Mayflower Compact. The compact organized the Pilgrims into a "body politic" This political body, or government would act with one purpose. It would work to create "just and equal laws" for everyone to obey.

What can you conclude about the Pilgrims from this information?

• There were many different versions of the Mayflower Compact, so the Pilgrims combined all the versions together.

• The Pilgrims felt that having everyone follow the same just laws would help them work together.

• After they landed, the Pilgrims had a lot of trouble following the laws they agreed to.

• There were 50 men on aboard, but only 41 men worked on creating the compact.

Based on the text, what might have happened to the Pilgrims without the Mayflower Compact?

• They would have won independence from England sooner.

• Their ship would never have reached the Americas.

• They would never have set sail from England.

• They might have fought too much to be a successful colony.

What is this text mostly about?

• how the Mayflower Compact is important in United States history.

• how the Pilgrims decided where to start a colony.

• the man who came up with the idea for a constitution.

• why the Mayflower Compact was better than the U.S. Constitution.

Read these sentences from the text.

The Mayflower Compact was written by the Pilgrims and meant to be for them as well.

This principle of government being "by, of, and for the people" is one of the main ideas of democracy.

As used in the text, what does the word "principle" mean?

• argument against something

• first of a kind

• belief, an idea

• government employee

Choose the answer that best completes the sentence.

At first, the Pilgrims were arguing, but _____ they had a document they agreed on.

• before

• as a result

• never

• soon

According to the text, how did the Mayflower Compact organize the Pilgrims?

Use text evidence and complete sentences.

Explain why having a government "by, of, and for the people" might have helped the Pilgrims get along? Use evidence from the text to support your answer.