Worked example
A town opens a bridge in 1900 and its trade rises in 1902. What does the order alone establish?
Answer & why
Answer: The bridge opened before the recorded rise.
The dates establish sequence, not a unique cause.
Grade 7 · Social studies
Separate sequence from historical cause
Distinguish chronological order, a proposed mechanism and evidence needed for a causal claim.
6 authored questions + worked example
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All questions
All 6 authored questions for this skill.
Question 1
Market visits rose after a road opened, but a railway also began service that month. What should the explanation consider?
- That chronology guarantees one cause.
- That simultaneous changes can never matter.
- That the road's name proves its effect.
- The railway as another possible influence.
A hint
An earlier event may be relevant, but happening first does not by itself prove it caused what followed.
Answer & why
Answer: The railway as another possible influence.
The additional transport change could also affect visits.
Question 2
Two similar towns have records for the same years. One gains a road and one does not. Why might a researcher compare them?
- To avoid checking any other condition.
- To prove every difference has one cause.
- To examine whether visits changed differently under the stated conditions.
- To replace all records with a guess.
A hint
An earlier event may be relevant, but happening first does not by itself prove it caused what followed.
Answer & why
Answer: To examine whether visits changed differently under the stated conditions.
A comparison can inform a causal argument while remaining sensitive to other differences.
Question 3
A factory log says a machine broke on Tuesday; output fell on Wednesday. Which extra detail would most directly connect the breakdown to output?
- An unrelated festival's poster.
- The length of the logbook title.
- Which production steps depended on that machine.
- The office's curtain color.
A hint
An earlier event may be relevant, but happening first does not by itself prove it caused what followed.
Answer & why
Answer: Which production steps depended on that machine.
A dependency explains how the breakdown could affect production.
Question 4
A historian writes, 'The records suggest the road contributed, alongside other changes.' What is appropriate about this claim?
- It treats suggestion as final proof.
- It allows more than one influence and signals limited certainty.
- It claims the road was the sole cause.
- It says no records were used.
A hint
An earlier event may be relevant, but happening first does not by itself prove it caused what followed.
Answer & why
Answer: It allows more than one influence and signals limited certainty.
The wording matches a multi-cause explanation rather than overstating the evidence.
Question 5
A town opens a bridge in 1900 and its trade rises in 1902. What does the order alone establish?
- The bridge opened before the recorded rise.
- No other change occurred.
- The bridge was the only possible cause.
- Trade rose before the bridge opened.
A hint
An earlier event may be relevant, but happening first does not by itself prove it caused what followed.
Answer & why
Answer: The bridge opened before the recorded rise.
The dates establish sequence, not a unique cause.
Question 6
A claim says a new road increased market visits because travel became faster. Which evidence addresses the proposed mechanism most directly?
- The number of letters in the road's name.
- A drawing of a market with no date.
- Comparable travel-time records before and after the road.
- The mayor's favorite color.
A hint
An earlier event may be relevant, but happening first does not by itself prove it caused what followed.
Answer & why
Answer: Comparable travel-time records before and after the road.
The mechanism specifically depends on a change in travel time.