5FifthGrade
Quarter 2: Age of Exploration & the Columbian Exchange

Weeks 10–11

Causes of European Exploration

Why Europeans turned to the Atlantic — trade, technology, and rival kingdoms.

5.NBT.B.55.NBT.B.7RI.5.2RI.5.3W.5.15-LS1-1NYS 5.3
Download PDFOpen printable viewWorksheets (20 pages)With answers (25 pages)Answer key (5 pages)

Daily Plan

Monday

The Quest for Spicy Gold

Lesson cardWorksheets
Students will map the 15th-century Silk Road to identify why the Ottoman Empire’s control of trade routes forced European powers to look toward the Atlantic.
Math
Students will solve multi-digit multiplication problems to calculate the costs of equipping a 15th-century merchant vessel (5.NBT.B.5).
ELA
Students will identify main ideas and summarize the first chapter of Esperanza Rising by analyzing the protagonist’s shift from luxury to uncertainty (RI.5.2).
Science
Students will weigh a dried seed and its soil to hypothesize how plants gain mass if not from the dirt itself (5-LS1-1).
Materials & prepShow

Social Studies

Math

ELA

Science

Tuesday

Winds of Change and Caravels

Lesson cardWorksheets
Students will examine the design of the caravel and the lateen sail to explain how technology allowed Prince Henry the Navigator to push south along Africa.
Math
Students will use decimal addition to track the total weight of spice samples like cinnamon and cloves in a mock marketplace (5.NBT.B.7).
ELA
Students will analyze the cause-and-effect relationship between the fall of Constantinople and the rise of Portuguese naval investment (RI.5.3).
Science
Students will conduct an experiment by sealing a plant in a jar to observe how air and water contribute to life without external soil additions (5-LS1-1).
Materials & prepShow

Social Studies

Math

ELA

Science

Wednesday

Guiding Stars and Magnetic Needles

Lesson cardWorksheets
Students will simulate using an astrolabe and a magnetic compass to understand how Renaissance sailors navigated by the stars and the horizon.
Math
Students will practice the standard algorithm for multiplication by calculating distances between Lisbon and Cape Bojador (5.NBT.B.5).
ELA
Students will draft an introductory paragraph for an opinion essay arguing whether wealth or religion was the primary driver for Spanish monarchs (W.5.1).
Science
Students will record observations of water condensation inside a terrarium to track how water is utilized by plant life (5-LS1-1).
Materials & prepShow

Social Studies

Math

ELA

Science

Thursday

The Rivalry of Crowns

Lesson cardWorksheets
Students will analyze the rivalry between King John II of Portugal and Queen Isabella of Spain as they vied for dominance over Atlantic routes.
Math
Students will calculate the total cost of expedition supplies by adding decimal values for dried meat, hardtack, and freshwater (5.NBT.B.7).
ELA
Students will compare the perspectives of Esperanza and Miguel regarding social class and opportunity in the early chapters of Esperanza Rising (RI.5.3).
Science
Students will use data from their plant weight experiments to argue that air and water are the primary sources of a plant's growth material (5-LS1-1).
Materials & prepShow

Social Studies

Math

ELA

Science

Friday

The Launch of a New World

Lesson cardWorksheets
Students will participate in a Socratic Seminar discussing how the convergence of technology, trade needs, and royal ambition changed the Western Hemisphere (NYS 5.3).
Math
Students will complete a multi-step performance task involving both multi-digit multiplication and decimal sums to budget a full voyage to the Indies (5.NBT.B.5, 5.NBT.B.7).
ELA
Students will finalize a persuasive speech defending a specific explorer's request for funding based on push and pull factors (W.5.1).
Science
Students will present a final model showing the conversion of carbon dioxide and water into plant matter as a foundational growth process (5-LS1-1).
Materials & prepShow

Social Studies

Math

ELA

Science

ELA Supplement This Week

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Standards-tagged tasks landing in this window — reading responses, vocabulary, writing, grammar, or assessments from the Grade 5 ELA Package.

Reading response · Week 11 · 40 minutes

#2A — Esperanza Rising — Early Chapters

First half of the Q2 anchor novel; identify emerging theme and trace character.

RL.5.1RL.5.2RL.5.3

Math Supplement This Week

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Standards-tagged worksheets, quizzes, and assessments landing in this window — drawn from the Grade 5 Math Package and aligned to the CCSS being taught right now.

Worksheet · Week 10 · 30 min

#2A — Multi-Digit Multiplication (Standard Algorithm)

Builds 2×2 → 3×2 → 3×3 fluency, then applies in word problems.

5.NBT.B.5

Quiz · Week 11 · 20 min

#2.1 — Quiz: Multiplication Mastery

10 problems including 3-digit × 3-digit and three multi-step contexts.

5.NBT.B.5

Science Supplement This Week

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NGSS-aligned labs, worksheets, quizzes, and assessments landing in this window — every lab ends in a Claim-Evidence-Reasoning response students record in the science notebook.

Lab · Week 11 · 15 min daily, 2–3 weeks

#2A — What Do Plants Need? (Multi-week)

Compare four planting setups (soil+water, water only, soil only, air only) to argue plants get materials chiefly from air and water.

5-LS1-1

Social Studies Supplement This Week

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NYS-framework map work, primary sources, comparison charts, and quizzes landing in this window — with state adaptations for TX, FL, CA, and VA available in the hub.

Daily / In-classWorksheet · Week 11 · 30 min

#2A — Reasons for European Exploration

Students identify the political, economic, religious, and technological motives behind 15th-century European voyages.

NYS 5.3

Student Workbook Pages for This Week

Open student workbook →

Color-coded printable pages students grab during the week — surfaced right when they're used.