Atlantic Crossings Reading

This reading comprehension worksheet is designed for students in Grades 5, 6, and 7 to deepen understanding of early Atlantic exploration through a focused informational passage and open-ended questions. Students practice close reading, historical analysis, written response skills, and content-area comprehension as they examine trade routes, navigation challenges, cultural impacts, and the evolving study of geography and oceans.

Learning Goals

• Historical Understanding – Explain key ideas related to early European exploration, trade routes, and cross-Atlantic movement.
• Informational Reading Skills – Identify main ideas, supporting details, and cause-and-effect relationships in a nonfiction passage.
• Geography & Human Interaction – Describe how movement across the Atlantic Ocean shaped cultures, trade, and global connections.
• Written Response Practice – Answer questions using complete sentences and clear explanations based on textual evidence.

Instructional Benefits

• Teacher-Created Resource – Designed to align with upper-elementary and middle school social studies standards.
• Open-Ended Questions – Encourages deeper thinking rather than simple recall.
• Cross-Curricular Integration – Connects history, geography, and ocean science in one task.
• Flexible Classroom Use – Suitable for guided reading, independent work, homework, or assessment.
• Skill-Focused Design – Reinforces comprehension, explanation, and academic writing expectations.

This Atlantic Crossings reading worksheet helps students build strong foundations in historical comprehension, informational text analysis, and evidence-based writing. By exploring exploration, navigation, and cultural exchange through the Atlantic world, learners strengthen their ability to explain complex ideas in their own words. It’s a practical, no-prep resource for both classroom and homeschool use that supports thoughtful reading and clear written communication across content areas.

This worksheet is part of our Atlantic Ocean Worksheets collection.