American Revolution War Timeline Worksheet
Practice sequencing and analyzing the American Revolution from 1775 to 1783, connecting battles, alliances, and treaties as cause-and-effect chains.
18 questions · Timeline · Multiple choice · Fill in the blank · Short answer · Analysis
This worksheet guides sixth-grade students through the major turning points of the American Revolution, from the first shots fired at Lexington and Concord in April 1775 to the Treaty of Paris in September 1783. Rather than treating these events as a disconnected list of dates, the four sections ask students to place events on a timeline, select the best analytical answer, complete factual statements from memory, and write reasoned responses about cause and effect. The progression mirrors the demands of a Grade 6 analysis task and gives teachers a clear picture of what students understand about strategy, alliance, and consequence in the Revolutionary War. Use it as a formative check after initial instruction or as a review tool before a unit exam.
American Revolution War Timeline Worksheet — Grade 6
Work through each section in order, placing events on the timeline, then explaining what those events caused and why they mattered.
Remember
- A turning point is an event that shifts the momentum of a war decisively toward one side or the other.
- The American Revolution lasted from 1775 to 1783 and ended with the signing of the Treaty of Paris.
- Foreign alliances, supply lines, and troop morale were as decisive as victories on the battlefield.
Part A — Place each event on the American Revolution timeline
Write the number of each event next to the correct year on the timeline below.
The American Revolution, 1775-1783
- 1.
Battles of Lexington and Concord begin armed conflict between colonists and British troops
- 2.
Continental Congress adopts the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia
- 3.
British General Burgoyne surrenders his entire army to American forces at Saratoga, New York
- 4.
France signs a formal military alliance with the United States, entering the war against Britain
- 5.
British General Cornwallis surrenders his army to Washington at Yorktown, Virginia
Part B — Choose the best answer for each question
Read each question and circle the letter of the answer that best fits the evidence.
- 6.
What was the most significant consequence of the American victory at Saratoga in October 1777?
- A.It convinced France to enter the war as a formal American ally.
- B.It led directly to the British evacuation of Boston.
- C.It gave American forces permanent control of New York City.
- D.It forced Parliament to repeal the Intolerable Acts immediately.
- 7.
Washington captured a Hessian garrison at Trenton on December 26, 1776. What was the primary consequence of this victory?
- A.It renewed American morale and helped the Continental Army survive into 1777.
- B.It secured permanent American control of the port of New York.
- C.It persuaded Spain to declare war on Britain alongside France.
- D.It opened the negotiations that eventually produced the Treaty of Paris.
- 8.
Which of the following best describes the significance of the Siege of Yorktown in October 1781?
- A.It was the last major land battle, after which Britain agreed to negotiate peace.
- B.It gave American forces control of all major Atlantic port cities.
- C.It forced Parliament to vote immediately to grant American independence.
- D.It ended the French alliance because no further military support was needed.
- 9.
The Treaty of Paris, signed September 3, 1783, established which river as the western boundary of the United States?
- A.The Mississippi River
- B.The Appalachian Mountains
- C.The Ohio River
- D.The Missouri River
- 10.
At the Battle of Bunker Hill on June 17, 1775, British forces eventually seized the hill. What did this engagement demonstrate?
- A.Colonial forces could inflict heavy losses on British troops, suggesting a long war lay ahead.
- B.The Continental Army possessed artillery superior to anything Britain could field.
- C.British naval power would make colonial resistance along the coastline impossible.
- D.Colonial militia lacked the discipline needed to hold any defensive position under fire.
Part C — Complete each statement with the correct term
Write the missing word or phrase on the blank line to complete each statement.
- 11.
The Battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, ____, marked the first armed clashes of the Revolution.
- 12.
Washington's army crossed the Delaware River on December 26, 1776, to surprise the ____ garrison at Trenton.
- 13.
France agreed to a formal military ____ with the United States on February 6, 1778, entering the war.
- 14.
The Second Continental Congress appointed George ____ as commander of the Continental Army in June 1775.
- 15.
The Continental Army endured its most difficult winter encampment at Valley ____ from 1777 to 1778.
Part D — Answer each question in two to three complete sentences
Write two to three sentences that explain your reasoning, using specific evidence from the Revolutionary War.
- 16.
Explain how the American victory at Saratoga in October 1777 changed the course of the Revolutionary War.
- 17.
Compare Britain's and America's strategic goals. How did this difference affect each side's ability to keep fighting?
- 18.
The Treaty of Paris granted the United States territory to the Mississippi River. Explain why Britain agreed to these terms in 1783.
Answer key
Part A — Place each event on the American Revolution timeline
- 1.1775 - the Battles of Lexington and Concord mark the first armed clashes of the Revolutionary War.
- 2.1776 - the Declaration of Independence is adopted, formally declaring the colonies free from British rule.
- 3.1777 - Burgoyne's surrender at Saratoga is a turning point that persuades France to ally with the United States.
- 4.1778 - France formally enters the war as an American ally, providing troops, loans, and naval power.
- 5.1781 - Cornwallis surrenders at Yorktown, effectively ending major British military operations in North America.
Part B — Choose the best answer for each question
- 6.It convinced France to enter the war as a formal American ally.
- 7.It renewed American morale and helped the Continental Army survive into 1777.
- 8.It was the last major land battle, after which Britain agreed to negotiate peace.
- 9.The Mississippi River
- 10.Colonial forces could inflict heavy losses on British troops, suggesting a long war lay ahead.
Part C — Complete each statement with the correct term
- 11.1775
- 12.Hessian
- 13.alliance
- 14.Washington
- 15.Forge
Part D — Answer each question in two to three complete sentences
- 16.Example: Before Saratoga, France watched the war from the sidelines because the Americans seemed unlikely to prevail. After Burgoyne surrendered on October 17, 1777, France recognized that the Continental Army could defeat a British force in the field and signed a military alliance in February 1778. This brought French troops, loans, and naval forces into the conflict, transforming a colonial rebellion into a wider international war that stretched British resources across multiple theaters.
- 17.Example: Britain's goal was to restore control over the thirteen colonies, which required defeating the Continental Army and occupying the territory. The United States only needed to survive long enough that Britain found the war too costly to continue. Because Washington could retreat inland and regroup without holding specific cities, the British could not force a decisive surrender simply by capturing major ports like New York or Philadelphia, giving the Americans a structural advantage in sustaining the war.
- 18.Example: By 1783, Britain faced military and political pressures that made continuing the war unattractive. After Yorktown in 1781, no new major British offensive was possible in North America, and France, Spain, and the Netherlands were also at war with Britain, stretching its resources and treasury. Many in Parliament argued the financial and military cost was no longer justified, and granting generous western boundaries to the new nation also helped Britain limit French and Spanish influence in the region.
What this sheet teaches
- Place five pivotal events of the American Revolution in correct chronological order on a timeline.
- Analyze how specific battles changed the balance of power between British and American forces.
- Explain how key alliances and turning points shaped the final outcome of the Revolutionary War.
Notes for the adult
- Students often list battle dates without linking them as causes and effects — prompt them to ask 'what changed because of this?'
- Correct the misconception that the Revolution ended at Yorktown in 1781 — the Treaty of Paris in 1783 formally concluded the war.
- A student is ready to move on when they can explain why Saratoga mattered beyond the battlefield without being prompted.
What is on the page
There are four parts to American Revolution War Timeline Worksheet, 18 exercises between them. Timeline, multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blank and short-answer work, in that order, so a student who has understood the material has to show it in more than one form before the page is finished.
Part A Place each event on the American Revolution timeline prints a timeline labeled "The American Revolution, 1775-1783", five ticks running from 1775 to 1783 — 8 years across the page — and five events to place on it. Part B Choose the best answer for each question asks five multiple-choice questions with four printed options each. Part C Complete each statement with the correct term gives five sentences with a blank each and no word bank, so the wording has to come from the student. Part D Answer each question in two to three complete sentences is three short-answer questions with nine ruled lines between them, which is the part of the sheet that takes the longest.
Nine ruled lines are printed for written answers on American Revolution War Timeline Worksheet, which decides how long it takes more than the question count does. The answer key prints on its own page at the end, so the sheet can be handed out without it.
What it asks of the student
American Revolution War Timeline Worksheet puts about 599 words of reading in front of the student — the fact box, the directions, every question, and every printed option. That is the number worth checking against a class before it goes out, because a sheet that is pitched right on the history and wrong on the reading fails for the same child either way. The longest single prompt on it runs to 22 words.
Writing runs the other way on American Revolution War Timeline Worksheet: nine ruled lines for three of the 18 exercises, and the full answer key comes to 375 words. Everything else is answered in a blank, in a box, or on the map itself, which is why the sheet takes a lesson rather than a homework slot.
Where this one sits
American Revolution War Timeline Worksheet is one of ten US History: Wars & Battles sheets on this site and one of 16 written for grade 6. It is the only one on war timelines, so nothing else here repeats it.
The closest things to it are World War II Key Battles Worksheet (grade 5) and World War II: Key Battles and Turning Points (grade 8). If American Revolution War Timeline Worksheet lands well, those are the ones to reach for next; if it lands badly, the analysis sheets a grade either side are usually the adjustment rather than a different topic altogether.
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