Questions for a Minister and a Family
A 55-minute Grade 5 lesson on generating answerable questions about people at every level of one programme.
Questions for a Minister and a Family is a free 55-minute Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies lesson plan for Common Core standard D2.His.3.3-5 — ask questions about the people behind what changed and what stayed the same. It is timed across 5 sections, gives the exact wording to use where the wording carries the mathematics, names 3 misconceptions with the teaching move that addresses each, and ends with an exit ticket and a printable worksheet with its answer key.
- Grade:
- Grade 3 to Grade 5
- Length:
- 55 minutes
- Standard:
- D2.His.3.3-5
Grade 3 to Grade 5 · History
D2.His.3.3-5
Generate questions about individuals and groups who have shaped significant historical changes and continuities.
Objective
Students will be able to write answerable questions about people at different levels of a programme.
Students are successful when they can
- Writes a question a record could answer.
- Names the record.
- Asks about people at more than one level.
What you need
- The debate extract, the broadcast and the letters page
- Name and role cards
- The printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan
The lesson
Warm-up — one programme, many people
5 min- List everybody the housing programme involved, from minister to waiting family.
- Ask which of them left a record.
Teach — answerable, and at which level
18 min- Take 'was the minister sincere?' Ask which record answers it. None directly.
- Take 'what did he know when he made the promise?' Papers, minutes and the paper itself.
- Say the first test: could a surviving record answer this?
- Now the levels: minister, member, council officer, waiting family.
- Each level leaves a different kind of record, and some leave almost none.
- Ask what we can know about the family in the letters page, and what we cannot.
- Say the third move: ask about the levels that leave least, or the account is all from above.
“Which record could answer this, and about whom?”
Guided practice — four levels
17 min- Groups write one question at each of four levels.
- They name a record for each and cross out any with none.
- Groups swap and try to answer one another's from the sources.
Independent practice
12 min- Students complete the 'Questions for a Minister and a Family' page.
- Check questions are answerable and about the change.
Close
3 min- Keep the best unanswerable question and say what record would be needed.
What goes wrong, and why
Each of these is a reasoning error rather than carelessness. The fix addresses the reasoning.
Asks about motives and feelings.
Why: That is how we know living people.
Fix: Ask which record holds it. Records hold decisions, dates and figures.
Asks only about the powerful.
Why: They left the most records.
Fix: That is exactly why the other levels need deliberate questions.
Treats a scarce record as no record.
Why: Three letters is not much.
Fix: Three letters with addresses is evidence. Ask what it can and cannot support.
If they are not there yet
- Two levels and two starter stems.
- Match a question to the record that answers it.
If they finish early
- Write a question about the level that left least record.
- Say what would need to survive for your best question.
- Turn an unanswerable question into an answerable one.
Exit ticket
Write one answerable question about a family waiting for a home, and name the record.
What to look for: A question about their wait, their district or their place on a list, tied to the letters or the council report. A question about feelings means the answerable test needs another run.
Printable practice for D2.His.3.3-5
Free to print and copy, answer key included. Each sheet can generate a fresh set of problems for a retake.
- Questions for a Minister and a FamilyCircle the best question.
Questions about Questions for a Minister and a Family
How long does the Questions for a Minister and a Family lesson take?
55 minutes, split across 5 timed sections: warm-up 5 min, teach 18 min, guided practice 17 min, independent practice 12 min, close 3 min. The minutes are stated per section and add up to the stated length, so the plan can be cut or extended at a section boundary rather than abandoned halfway.
Which standard does Questions for a Minister and a Family teach?
D2.His.3.3-5 — D2.His.3.3-5, History for Grade 3 to Grade 5: “Generate questions about individuals and groups who have shaped significant historical changes and continuities.” In plain terms, ask questions about the people behind what changed and what stayed the same.
What do I need to teach this lesson?
The debate extract, the broadcast and the letters page, name and role cards and the printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan. Everything listed is either ordinary classroom equipment or a free printable from this site — there is nothing to buy and nothing to prepare beyond photocopying.
What mistakes should I expect in this lesson?
Three, each a reasoning error rather than carelessness: asks about motives and feelings; asks only about the powerful and treats a scarce record as no record. The plan gives the thinking behind each one and the teaching move that addresses the thinking rather than the symptom.
How do I know whether the lesson worked?
The exit ticket asks: “Write one answerable question about a family waiting for a home, and name the record.” A question about their wait, their district or their place on a list, tied to the letters or the council report. A question about feelings means the answerable test needs another run. That tells you whether the class needs a reteach or a thirty-second conversation before you plan tomorrow.
Is there a worksheet to go with Questions for a Minister and a Family?
Yes — 1 printable D2.His.3.3-5 worksheet, linked at the end of the plan and free like the rest of the site. Each one comes with an answer key and 25 versions, so the practice after the lesson can be a different paper on every desk.
Is Questions for a Minister and a Family free to use?
Yes. The plan, its printables and their answer keys are free to read, print and photocopy for your own class, with no account and no email capture. It was last reviewed on 7 September 2026. Please do not resell it or republish it as your own.
Last reviewed 2026-09-07. Aligned to D2.His.3.3-5 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.