Decide which cause mattered most, and say why
Grade 7 Social Studies Worksheet - Building Confidence
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The Great Fire of London, 1666 (cards A to C; summaries in our words). Card A, the diary of Samuel Pepys, a navy official who watched the fire, written in September 1666: he wrote that a strong wind drove the flames, that the houses were old timber ones built close together, and that officials at first did little to stop it. Card B, a museum summary: the fire began on the night of September 2, 1666, at a baker's shop in Pudding Lane, and burned for four days. It destroyed about 13,200 houses and 87 parish churches. Card C, the Rebuilding Act of 1667: new houses in London had to be built of brick or stone, and the main streets were to be widened.
Pepys watched the fire. What is the value of card A, and its limit, Ari asks?
- He was a navy official, so his diary cannot tell us about a fire
- He wrote years afterward, so he could judge which cause mattered most
- He saw it as it happened, so he knew each cause of the fire
- He saw it as it happened, but he wrote from one person's view
Which cause started the fire, and which helped it spread, Bo asks?
- Pepys started it, and the officials helped it spread
- The baker's shop started it; wind and close timber houses spread it
- The Rebuilding Act started it, and the timber houses helped it spread
- The wind started it, and the baker's shop helped it spread
A student says, "Card B shows the baker's shop was the only cause of the damage." How strong is that claim, Esme asks?
- Weak: a museum summary cannot say where the fire began
- Weak: card B names the start, and card A names causes of its spread
- Strong: card B says the baker caused the fire on purpose
- Strong: the fire began at the baker's shop, so nothing else mattered
Which cause could London change before the next fire, Jun asks?
- The size of the baker's shop in Pudding Lane
- The date of the first spark in Pudding Lane
- The direction and strength of the wind on the night
- How houses were built and how wide the streets were
What does card C show that lawmakers learned from the fire, Kira asks?
- That timber houses close together made a fire easier to spread
- That the wind was the sole cause and could not be helped
- That brick and stone were cheaper than timber
- That bakers had set the fire on purpose and should be punished
How do cards A and C fit together, Luz asks?
- Pepys names timber houses close together, and the law changes both
- The law shows that Pepys was right about each cause of the fire
- They do not fit, because a diary and a law are not the same kind of source
- Pepys blames the wind, and the law blames the baker
A student says, "Card A proves the officials started the fire." How strong is that claim, Noah asks?
- Strong: Pepys was a navy official, so he knew who began it
- Weak: card A is one man's diary, so it says nothing about officials
- Strong: card A says the officials did little, so they must have begun it themselves
- Weak: card A says officials did little to stop it, not that they started it
About 13,200 houses burned in four days. About how many houses burned each day on average, Pia asks?
- About 330 houses
- About 3,300 houses
- About 52,800 houses
- About 4,400 houses
About 13,200 houses burned in four days. At the same pace, about how many would burn in six days, Ren asks?
- About 26,400 houses
- About 19,800 houses
- About 15,200 houses
- About 1,980 houses
What changed in London's rules after the fire, Tala asks?
- New houses had to be built of brick or stone, and main streets were widened
- Nothing changed, because London had followed brick and stone rules before
- Timber was banned in any building and bakers were sent out of London
- New houses had to be built of timber, and main streets were narrowed