Socials 8
Ms. Dow
Name:_____________________________
Vikings: The Voyage to America
A&E series “Digging for the Truth”
Today we are going to Cross the ocean on the trail of the ancient Scandinavian explorers who set
foot on the New World some 500 years before Columbus. This video will trace the lives of two
very important Viking explorers, Erik the Red and Lief the Lucky. “Digging for the Truth” will entail
sailing a Viking ship in Denmark, exploring ruins in Iceland, walking on the icebergs of Greenland
and setting foot on the shores of the New World.
#1 - Sailing in Denmark - Vikings were
able to make different types of ships.
Short voyage ships flexed with the waves
and essentially surfed. These ships would
not have made the long voyage to the New
World. The Vikings also had ships
designed for longer voyages.
1. The ships designed for longer voyages
were called
a. Cargo Ships
b. Pirate ships
c. Ocean cruisers
d. Ocean liners
2. Life on a Viking ship would have been
a. relaxing
b. physically demanding
c. comfortable
d. all of the above
3. One characteristic of Viking longboats
that set them apart from other boats at this
time was that they
a. could fit 30 000 people in one ship
b. were constructed of birch
c. could withstand hurricanes
d. could sail into the wind
4. Why were Vikings forced to undergo the
dangerous journey between Scandinavia
and Iceland?
a. it was overcrowded
b. for sheer adventure
c. they were being attacked
d. to test their boats
5. What did the Vikings use to navigate
their ships
a. waves
b. stars
c. clouds
d. all of the above
#2 - Ruins in Iceland
6. After Erik the Red was outlawed from
Scandinavia, he set up a new home in
a. Iceland
b. Finland
c. Denmark
d. Greenland
7. Viking helmets
a. had horns
b. did not have horns
8. A Viking longhouse
a. slept 20 – 30 people
b. was a sleeping and working space
c. had a wooden frame and sod
exterior
d. all of the above
9. The Icelandic Sagas
a. were written as they took place
b. were transcriptions of oral accounts
about 200 years after they
happened
c. trace the settlement of Greenland
in the 13th and 14th centuries
d. are fictional tales
10. Information found in the Icelandic
Sagas have been confirmed by
a. archaeology
b. botany
c. video evidence
d. Erik the Red
11. After Erik the Red is again declared an
outlaw, he flees to
a. Denmark
b. Finland
c. Greenland
d. Newfoundland
#3 - Icebergs in Greenland
Following the trail of Erik the Red as he
founded a new colony in Greenland.
This would have been a treacherous
journey considering the harsh climate
the Viking ships would have had to
endure.
#4 - New World
With 35 Men and no maps or charts,
Leif follows in the footsteps of his father
and sets out to discover new land to
the West. If this is true, Vikings settled
North America 500 years before
Columbus.
12. A staple of Viking diet in Greenland
was
a. ice
b. fox
c. fish
d. all of the above
18. The Viking settlement of L’anse aux
Meadows is in present day
a. New Brunswick
b. Nova Scotia
c. Newfoundland
d. P.E.I.
13. Why did colonists in Greenland
disappear?
a. climate changes
b. difficulties importing goods
c. no resources to trade with
d. all of the above
19. This settlement is over 1000 years
old according to archaeological
evidence of
a. Wooden artifacts
b. Ship repair materials
c. Charcoal
d. All of the above
14. Erik the Red ends up settling in
a. Eriksfjord
b. Leifsfjort
c. Erikville
d. Leifville
15. Why is this the perfect location for
settlement?
a. fertile soil
b. central location
c. best harbour
d. all of the above
16. Erik’s settlement of Greenland
coincides with the
a. introduction of vegetarianism
b. introduction of monarchy
c. introduction of navigation
d. introduction of Christianity
17. Erik the Red’s son is called
a. Leif the Lovely
b. Leif the Lucky
c. Leif the Lonely
d. Leif the Lazy
20. This settlement is the first in North
America to provide evidence of
a. Wood work
b. Iron work
c. Ship building
d. Sword building
21. What evidence did they find at this
settlement that proves that the Vikings
explored farther south than
Newfoundland?
a. Peanuts
b. Olives
c. Tobacco
d. Butternut
22. Why did the Vikings abandon this
settlement after 2-3 years?
a. There was nothing there they
couldn’t get at home
b. They couldn’t fight off the
original inhabitants
c. They were homesick
d. All of the above