Worksheets and No Prep Teaching Resources
Worksheets and No Prep Teaching Resources
Reading Comprehension Worksheets
The United States Grows
(1865-1900)

Boomtowns

The United States Grows<BR>(1865-1900)
The United States Grows
(1865-1900)


Boomtowns
Print Boomtowns Reading Comprehension with Fifth Grade Work

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Print Boomtowns Reading Comprehension

Reading Level
     edHelper's suggested reading level:   grades 5 to 7
     Flesch-Kincaid grade level:   7.29

Vocabulary
     challenging words:    boomtown, boomtowns, homesteaders, prospectors, gunfight, provided, saloon, traditional, maintain, prosper, rustlers, travelers, mines, outdoor, stagecoach, luckily
     content words:    OK Corral, Dodge City, Fort Dodge, Santa Fe Trail, Bat Masterson, Wyatt Earp, Santa Fe Line


Boomtowns
By Sharon Fabian
  

1     Americans moved west for many reasons. Prospectors hoped to find gold or silver. Homesteaders planned to farm the free land. Ranchers and cowboys raised cattle.
 
2     Soon, a second wave of settlers came along. These business men and women came to make their fortune by setting up shop and selling the supplies and services that the pioneers needed. They sold groceries, fabric, saddles, boots, and other useful items. They operated restaurants, banks, and saloons. They settled into brand new boomtowns that sprang up next to the gold and silver mines or at shipping points along the new railroads.
 
3     Life in a boomtown was a scene right out of a western movie. Tents and outdoor accommodations housed some of the settlers at first. Soon, simple houses with homemade furniture appeared. Many settlers lined their walls with layers of newspaper for warmth. Only the wealthiest would have imported items like fine furniture and wallpaper. Small buildings lined the town's main street. These shops often had large fronts built onto them to make them seem larger and more impressive, giving them the look that you see in a traditional western street scene. The towns had dirt streets and, only later, board sidewalks beside the streets. Where we might have parking spaces today, these boomtowns had hitching posts.

Paragraphs 4 to 7:
For the complete story with questions: click here for printable



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The United States Grows
(1865-1900)

             The United States Grows
(1865-1900)



United States
             United States


    American Government  
 
    Black History and Blacks in U.S. History  
 
    Children in History  
 
    Government Careers  
 
    Hispanic Heritage  
 
    How Can I Help?  
 
 
    Immigration  
 
    National Parks and Monuments  
 
    Native Americans  
 
    Presidents of the United States  
 
    Women's History  
 


United States History
    A Nation Divided
(1840-1861)
 
 
    A New Nation
(1776-1830)
 
 
    After the Civil War
(1865-1870)
 
 
    American Revolution  
 
    Cold War
(1947-1991)
 
 
    Colonial America (1492-1776)  
 
    Lewis and Clark
(1804-1806)
 
 
    Pearl Harbor  
 
    Spanish American War (1898)  
 
    The 1890's  
 
    The 1900's  
 
    The 1910's  
 
    The 1920's  
 
    The 1930's  
 
 
    The 1940's  
 
    The 1950's  
 
    The 1960's  
 
    The 1970's  
 
    The 1980's  
 
    The 1990's  
 
    The 2000's  
 
    The Civil War
(1861-1865)
 
 
    The Great Depression
(1929-1945)
 
 
    The United States Grows
(1865-1900)
 
 
    The War of 1812  
 
    Wild, Wild West  
 
    World War I
(1914-1918)
 
 
    World War II  
 


50 States

             Fifty States Theme Unit


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