Where and when Islam began, and what its followers believe and practice

Grade 6 Social Studies Worksheet - Challenge Me

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Use this

   Practice and spread (cards A to D). Card A, the Five Pillars, in our words: Muslims practice five pillars: the profession of faith, prayer five times a day, charity, fasting during the month of Ramadan, and the pilgrimage to Mecca, called the hajj, once in a lifetime for those who are able. Card B, the calendar and divisions, in our words: Ramadan is the 9th month of the Islamic calendar, which follows the moon. A moon-based year is about 11 days shorter than a year of 365 days. Muslims are divided into Sunni, the majority, and Shi'a, who differed early on over who should lead the community after Muhammad. Card C, spread, in our words: Muhammad's followers took Mecca in 630 CE, and by his death in 632 CE they held most of Arabia. Under the Umayyad dynasty (661 to 750 CE), the Arab empire reached from Spain to Central Asia and India. Historians say most people in those lands became Muslim gradually, over centuries. Merchants and teachers also carried Islam along trade routes to West Africa, East Africa and Southeast Asia. Card D, today: the Pew Research Center estimated that about 25.6 percent of the world's people were Muslim in 2020, and that 59 percent of Muslims lived in the Asia-Pacific region.

2. 1.

   Card C says Muhammad's death was in 632 CE and the Umayyad dynasty ended in 750 CE. About how many years is that, Ari asks?

   • About 1,380 years
   • About 90 years
   • About 120 years
   • About 12 years
3. 2.

   Card C says merchants and teachers carried Islam along trade routes. What could that lead to, Bo asks?

   • Merchants and teachers would take over the governments of those lands
   • Islam would spread in each land within a single year
   • Islam could reach distant lands without an army
   • Islam could reach just the lands the Arab empire ruled
4. 3.

   Card C says trade routes carried Islam to West Africa, East Africa and Southeast Asia. Card D says 59 percent of Muslims lived in Asia-Pacific in 2020. What do the cards suggest, Jun asks?

   • Islam is practiced in Asia-Pacific and nowhere else
   • Trade routes alone explain why 59 percent of Muslims live in Asia-Pacific
   • Most Muslims lived in West Africa and East Africa in 2020
   • Islam spread widely, and the largest share lives in Asia-Pacific
5. 4.

   Card D says about 25.6 percent of the world's people were Muslim in 2020. About how many in a group of 400 people would that be, Kira asks?

   • About 25 people
   • About 10 people
   • About 256 people
   • About 100 people
6. 5.

   Card D says about 25.6 percent of the world's people were Muslim in 2020, and 59 percent of Muslims lived in Asia-Pacific. Which claim does it support, Luz asks?

   • Islam is the largest religion in the Asia-Pacific region
   • Islam grew in Asia-Pacific because rulers ordered people to join
   • More than half of Muslims lived in the Asia-Pacific region
   • About 59 percent of the world's people lived in Asia-Pacific
7. 6.

   Card B says a moon-based year is about 11 days shorter than a 365-day year. After 10 years, about how many days earlier has Ramadan moved on the usual calendar, Milo asks?

   • About 365 days earlier
   • About 110 days earlier
   • About 11 days earlier
   • About 110 days later
8. 7.

   Card B says Sunni and Shi'a Muslims differed early over who should lead the community after Muhammad. What did the disagreement concern, Noah asks?

   • Whether Mecca should be the place of pilgrimage
   • Which month of the year should be the month of fasting
   • Whether Muhammad was a messenger of God
   • Who should lead the community after Muhammad
9. 8.

   Card C says the Umayyad empire reached from Spain to Central Asia and India by 750 CE. Which find would best test how far east it reached, Pia asks?

   • A modern history book that says the empire reached India
   • A Spanish church bell from the 1500s
   • A dated inscription or coin from the 700s CE found in the east
   • A report on Muslims living in Asia-Pacific in 2020
10. 9.

    Card A calls the hajj a pilgrimage "once in a lifetime for those who are able." What does that tell Ren?

    • The hajj is a custom that matters little to most followers
    • The hajj is expected yearly, of each Muslim
    • The hajj is expected once in a lifetime, of those who are able
    • The hajj is a pilgrimage to Medina, where Muhammad was born
11. 10.

    Card C says most people in conquered lands became Muslim gradually. Which source would be good evidence for that, Zee asks?

    • No source, since a change in belief leaves no evidence
    • The writings of a single ruler of the empire at one court
    • Local records from many places across several centuries
    • A short modern summary of the history of the empire's rulers