Who built the Transcontinental Railroad and why was it important? Your class can learn about the laying down of these tracks by reading a short passage. Pupils then respond to five questions related to the text.

Concepts

modes of transportation, trains, the transcontinental railroad, reading comprehension

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Additional Tags

english language arts

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Instructional Ideas

• Assign this passage for homework or as a warm-up
• Use this during a unit on railroads in the United States

Classroom Considerations

• The passage asserts that trains are no longer major modes of transportation; however, this is not entirely accurate
• This is part of a series of cross-curricular resources

Pros

• Cross-curricular resource requires learners to use reading skills with a text covering social studies concepts
• An answer key is included

Cons

• None

Common Core

RI.3.1 RI.4.1