Grade 8 Social Studies practice sheet
Manitoba Curriculum · from Gradelings · Name: ______________________
Question 1
A primary source is…
- a guess about the past
- written long afterward by a textbook author
- a modern movie
- created at the time of an event by someone who was there
Show answer
created at the time of an event by someone who was there
Hint: Letters, diaries and artifacts are primary sources.
Question 2
An advantage of a hunter-gatherer way of life is…
- permanent big cities
- writing on clay tablets
- large stores of grain
- a deep knowledge of the land and its plants and animals
Show answer
a deep knowledge of the land and its plants and animals
Hint: Hunter-gatherers know their lands very well.
Question 3
Homer is remembered for…
- epic poems such as the Iliad and the Odyssey
- building the Parthenon
- teaching geometry
- ruling Athens
Show answer
epic poems such as the Iliad and the Odyssey
Hint: The poems tell of heroes and the Trojan War.
Question 4
Who was the first Roman emperor?
- Zeus
- Augustus
- Hippocrates
Show answer
Augustus
Hint: He began the Roman Empire in 27 BCE.
Question 5
Put the feudal pyramid in order, from the most powerful to the least.
- 🏰Nobles (lords)
- 🛡️Knights
- 🌾Peasants and serfs
- 👑King
Show answer
King → Nobles (lords) → Knights → Peasants and serfs
Hint: In the feudal system the king was at the top, followed by nobles, then knights, then peasants who worked the land.
Question 6
Muslim scholars translated and preserved many writings from ancient Greece. Why did this matter later?
- Europeans later learned many of these ideas through Arabic translations.
- It destroyed the ideas.
- It banned science.
- It stopped scholars from learning.
Show answer
Europeans later learned many of these ideas through Arabic translations.
Hint: Translation kept knowledge alive and passed it on.
Question 7
What goods crossed the Sahara in caravans?
- Gold and salt, among other things
- Computers and phones
- Tea from the Americas
- Potatoes from Europe
Show answer
Gold and salt, among other things
Hint: West Africa had gold; the Sahara had salt. Each wanted what the other had.
Question 8
Why did the Reformation spread quickly in parts of Europe?
- Printing was banned.
- Nobody wanted change.
- Many rulers and townspeople supported it, and printed pamphlets carried its ideas.
- It started in the Americas.
Show answer
Many rulers and townspeople supported it, and printed pamphlets carried its ideas.
Hint: Printing let ideas travel quickly.
Question 9
Which tool helped sailors find direction at sea?
- the loom
- the compass
- the printing press
- the abacus
Show answer
the compass
Hint: A magnetized needle always points north, helping ships travel far from land.
Question 10
Bias is…
- a kind of map
- a tool for digging
- an unfair leaning toward one side
- a Roman coin
Show answer
an unfair leaning toward one side
Hint: Bias can change how a story is told.
Answer key
- 1. created at the time of an event by someone who was there (Being a Historian)
- 2. a deep knowledge of the land and its plants and animals (World Views & Early Societies)
- 3. epic poems such as the Iliad and the Odyssey (Ancient Greece)
- 4. Augustus (Ancient Rome)
- 5. King → Nobles (lords) → Knights → Peasants and serfs (Medieval Europe)
- 6. Europeans later learned many of these ideas through Arabic translations. (The Islamic World)
- 7. Gold and salt, among other things (Trade & Empires)
- 8. Many rulers and townspeople supported it, and printed pamphlets carried its ideas. (Renaissance & Reformation)
- 9. the compass (Exploration & Exchange)
- 10. an unfair leaning toward one side (Being a Historian)
Want more than 10 questions?
In Gradelings the questions change every time and adjust to your child, with hints and kind feedback. See all social studies units.