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Freedom Week and Westward Expansion Review 2025-2026

Total questions: 36

Worksheet time: 20mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

Which event happened first?

a)

Declaration of Independence

b)

United States Constitution

c)

Bill of Rights

2.

What event happened at the end?

a)

Declaration of Independence

b)

United States Constitution

c)

Bill of Rights

3.

The First Amendment protects your right to freedom of speech, including your right to speak out against the government. True or false

a)

True

b)

False

4.

What rights were created to protect the Bill of Rights?

a)

all rights known to humanity

b)

inalienable rights

c)

protection against aliens

d)

your right to participate in government

5.

Why did the framers of the Constitution include the Separation of Powers in the Constitution?

a)

so that each member of our government would understand their responsibilities to the people

b)

to prevent conflicts between the federal government and state governments

c)

to protect the rights of citizens in the United States

d)

to prevent any area of government from becoming too powerful

6.

"We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,--That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness."

In which document is the above excerpt found?

a)

Bill of Rights

b)

Constitution

c)

Declaration of Independence

d)

Articles of Confederation

7.

The idea that the power of government comes from the people is called?

a)

Limited government

b)

Popular sovereignty

c)

Liberty

d)

Republicanism

8.

How can an amendment be defined?

a)

a law

b)

a change to the Constitution

c)

a change to the Declaration of Independence

d)

an inalienable right

9.

What was created to encourage settlers to move West?

a)

Interstate Commerce Act

b)

Dawes Act

c)

Manifest Destiny

d)

Homestead Act

10.

What was the goal of assimilation?

a)

to force settlers to get along with Native Americans

b)

to permanently destroy Native American customs

c)

to force Native Americans to become more like Eastern European Americans

d)

to encourage Native Americans to move to reservations

11.

What was the purpose of the Dawes Act?

a)

to encourage settlers to move West

b)

to promote the assimilation of Native Americans

c)

to encourage small farmers in the West to use the railroad to transport their products to market

d)

to promote the complete annihilation of Native Americans

12.

Why would the United States government promote the destruction of the buffalo?

a)

The buffalo were a danger to the Transcontinental Railroad

b)

The buffalo roamed freely, creating problems for settlers trying to farm

c)

Buffalo hides and skulls were valuable exports for the U.S. economy

d)

The buffalo were the basis of Native American survival; destroying them would make Native Americans dependent on the U.S. government

13.

Why would settlers be attracted to move to Texas?

a)

Texas has large expanses of open land for raising cattle

b)

Texas has coastal areas that made it easy to ship products to the East

c)

Texas had fewer Native Americans, making settlement easier

d)

Texas has a variety of natural resources

14.

Which motto represents the idea that our country emerged from 13 individual states to form a single united nation?

a)

E Pluribus Unum

b)

In God We Trust

c)

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness

d)

Carpe Diem

15.

Which factor had the greatest effect on the increase in population and the development of cities and states in the West?

a)

Natural resources

b)

The transcontinental railroad

c)

New technologies

d)

The cattle boom

16.

Why did western settlers not use traditional building materials like brick and wood to construct their houses?

a)

lack of these resources in the West

b)

traditional materials could not withstand the extreme temperatures of the West

c)

traditional houses were too visible to Native Americans, increasing the possibility of attack

d)

the special wagons needed to transport these materials were too expensive for settlers

17.

What factors attracted people to move to the West? Select all that apply.

a)

discovery of gold

b)

free land

c)

Manifest Destiny

d)

the ability to participate in government

18.

Which of these ways allow you to participate in government? Select all that apply.

a)

vote

b)

volunteer in a candidate's political campaign

c)

write to your representatives

d)

recall and referendum

19.

On what was de Tocqueville's observation of populism based?

a)

All people can participate in government

b)

All men are created equal

c)

All people enjoy personal freedoms (liberties)

d)

All people are unique and can express their opinions

20.

What name did de Tocqueville give to the idea that everyone in society was equal; that there are no social classes or social hierarchy?

a)

Egalitarianism

b)

Populism

c)

Liberty

d)

Laissez-Faire

21.

What does the idea of Laissez-faire refer to?

a)

the government should stay out of private business

b)

the government should allow more participation from its citizens

c)

the government should govern with justice

d)

the government should hold elections instead of appointing rulers

22.

The idea that it was God's will for America to expand from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean was called what?

a)

Assimilation

b)

Manifest Destiny

c)

Egalitarianism

d)

Laissez-faire

23.

Which part of the United States was most affected by the Homestead Act?

a)

East Coast

b)

West Coast

c)

Great Plains

d)

Appalachian Mountains

24.

What was the effect of the Dawes Act?

a)

moved Native Americans to reservations

b)

gave tribal lands to individuals, encouraging Native Americans to "own" property

c)

prevented white settlers from moving onto reservation lands

d)

forced Native Americans to give up all aspects of their culture

25.

What type of land was assigned to Native Americans as reservations?

a)

swampy land in the South

b)

mountainous land in the far West

c)

fertile soil so they could develop as farmers

d)

undesirable land

26.

Why is the Battle of Wounded Knee so significant?

a)

It showed that Native Americans outnumbered U.S. government soldiers.

b)

It was the last armed conflict between the U.S. Army and Native Americans.

c)

More than 300 Native Americans died, including women and children.

d)

It ended the Native American culture of the time.

27.

What were the formerly enslaved people called who moved west of the Mississippi River to seek opportunities and escape discrimination in the South?

a)

Cowboys

b)

Fugitives

c)

Settlers

d)

Exodusters

28.

The telegraph, the steel plow, and prairie windmills are innovations that...

a)

helped gold seekers find precious metals in the Yukon

b)

enabled agriculture in the Great Plains

c)

allowed more people to move west

d)

helped move cattle to railroads for export to the East

29.

The Battle of Little Big Horn...

(select all that apply)

a)

was Custer's last stand

b)

the Native Americans outnumbered the U.S. Army

c)

led to the massacre of 300 Native Americans, many of whom were women and children

d)

was led by Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse

30.

What do these photographs demonstrate?

a)

the Americanization/assimilation of Native Americans

b)

rights of Native Americans to become U.S. citizens

c)

nativism

d)

effect of the Dawes Act

31.

What are the requirements to become a naturalized citizen in the U.S.? Select all that apply.

a)

must be 18 years old

b)

be able to read, speak, and write basic English

c)

have lived in the U.S. for 5 years

d)

have taken a U.S. history class to better understand the principles of democracy

32.

What was the Morrill Act?

a)

federal land grants to states to build colleges and universities

b)

federal land grants to states to build civic buildings such as courthouses and legislative chambers

c)

moved Native Americans to reservations

d)

federal land grants that gave settlers 160 acres of land for free

33.

In popular sovereignty, how are the people the power of the government?

a)

Through voting and electing representatives

b)

Through paying taxes

c)

By serving in the military

d)

By obeying the laws

34.

The Tenth Amendment to the Constitution is unique because?

a)

powers are shared among the states

b)

it prohibits cruel and unusual punishments

c)

powers are shared between the federal government and the state governments, thus limiting federal powers

d)

It grants the right to a speedy and public trial

35.

How was cattle transported from places like Texas and other western states to the East Coast?

a)

driven by cowboys along trails and then put on trains

b)

put on trains and then driven by cowboys to the market

c)

put on trains in Texas and other states from the ranch to the East Coast

d)

driven by cowboys all the way to the markets on the East Coast

36.

What was one of the main reasons why people settled in the West?

a)

land grants such as the Homestead Act and the Morrill Act

b)

the land was more fertile and easier for farming

c)

people wanted the opportunity to learn from Native Americans

d)

new inventions such as sod houses, steel plows, and prairie fans