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CBSE · Class 6 · Social Science

Timeline and Sources of History

Standard difficulty · 20 questions · 40 marks

Name: Date: Score: ____ / 40

Write full answers in Sections B and C. Answers are on the last page — try every question first!

Section A — Choose the correct answer8 × 1 = 8 marks
1.
BCE stands for:
  1. Before Century End
  2. Back Counted Era
  3. Beginning of Calendar Era
  4. Before Common Era
2.
The year 1960 CE falls in which century?
  1. 20th century
  2. 22nd century
  3. 21st century
  4. 19th century
3.
The year 2495 BCE falls in which century?
  1. 25th century BCE
  2. 24th century BCE
  3. 26th century BCE
  4. 25th century CE
4.
Which of these years is the EARLIEST?
  1. 514 BCE
  2. 1087 BCE
  3. 2937 BCE
  4. 1550 BCE
5.
Which of these years came FIRST?
  1. 2549 BCE
  2. 1926 CE
  3. 1879 BCE
  4. 2224 BCE
6.
Which of these is an archaeological source?
  1. an old manuscript on palm leaves
  2. letters written long ago
  3. old coins
  4. a folk song sung for generations
7.
What is the word for a period of 100 years?
  1. timeline
  2. manuscript
  3. century
  4. historian
8.
How many years passed from 1234 CE to 1264 CE?
  1. 30 years
  2. 31 years
  3. 29 years
  4. 2,498 years
Section B — Short answer8 × 2 = 16 marks
9.
What is a timeline?
10.
Write the correct word: (a) a person who studies the past using sources (b) knowledge passed down by word of mouth
11.
Is each source archaeological, written or oral? (a) a traveller’s account of a journey (b) beads and ornaments found in a dig
12.
In which century does each year fall? (a) 1474 CE (b) 1130 CE
13.
Arrange these years in order, earliest first: 973 CE, 752 CE, 168 CE, 2835 BCE.
14.
How many years passed from 2746 BCE to 2579 BCE?
15.
How many years are there in 9 centuries and 6 decades?
16.
How many centuries are there in 2 millennia and 5 centuries, and how many years is that?
Section C — Longer answers4 × 4 = 16 marks
17.
Explain how BCE and CE years are counted, with two examples.
18.
Zoya’s family timeline: grandfather born in 1962, father born in 1989, Zoya born in 2016, Zoya starts Class 6 in 2028. (a) How old was the grandfather when the father was born? (b) How many years passed from the grandfather’s birth to Zoya’s? (c) In which century was the grandfather born?
19.
Draw a timeline and mark these years on it, earliest on the left: 2008 CE, 1338 BCE, 552 BCE, 1617 CE, 1205 CE. Then write the century of the earliest and the latest year.
20.
For each source, say whether it is archaeological, written or oral, and write one thing a historian could learn from it: (a) beads and ornaments found in a dig (b) an old book (c) the ruins of old buildings
AmbifulWorksheets
Practice that never repeats
CBSE · Class 6 · Social Science

Answer key

Timeline and Sources of History · AW-6SS-TSH-2026-V1 · For parents — fold back or tear off before handing the sheet to your child.

QAnswerWorking
1(d) Before Common Era—
2(a) 20th century1960 lies between 1901 and 2000
3(a) 25th century BCE2495 BCE lies between 2500 BCE and 2401 BCE
4(c) 2937 BCEin BCE years, the bigger the number, the earlier the year
5(a) 2549 BCEevery BCE year comes before every CE year; among BCE years the bigger number is earlier
6(c) old coins—
7(c) century—
8(a) 30 years1264 − 1234 = 30
9A line on which events are marked in the order they happened, with their dates.—
10(a) historian (b) oral tradition—
11(a) written (b) archaeological—
12(a) 15th century CE (b) 12th century CE—
132835 BCE, 168 CE, 752 CE, 973 CEBCE years first, the biggest BCE number first; then CE years from smallest to biggest
14167 yearsBCE years count down: 2746 − 2579 = 167
15960 years9 × 100 + 6 × 10 = 960
1625 centuries; 2,500 years1 millennium = 10 centuries = 1,000 years
17Years before the Common Era are counted backwards: 500 BCE came before 300 BCE. Years of the Common Era are counted forwards: 1857 CE came before 1947 CE. A timeline runs from the oldest BCE years on the left to the latest CE years on the right.—
18(a) 27 years (b) 54 years (c) the 20th century1989 − 1962; 2016 − 1962
19Order: 1338 BCE, 552 BCE, 1205 CE, 1617 CE, 2008 CE. Earliest: 14th century BCE; latest: 21st century CE.—
20(a) archaeological (b) written (c) archaeological; plus one sensible thing learned from each.—