Nationalism and imperialism in the Age of Empires are the focus of this Grade 7 Social Studies worksheet, helping students examine how national pride, territorial expansion, imperial rivalry, alliances, and diplomacy shaped political developments.

Students explore how nationalism influenced public support for expanding territory and influence, then examine how imperial competition affected alliances and diplomatic decisions. The resource also connects imperial rivalries to changing political boundaries and later conflicts, giving students practice tracing relationships between political ideas and historical developments.

Key historical thinking skills

• Explain how nationalism shaped support for territorial expansion and greater influence.
• Describe how imperial competition affected alliances and diplomatic decisions.
• Analyze how imperial rivalries contributed to political boundaries and later conflicts.
• Use evidence from examples to compare nationalism and imperialism.

Students demonstrate understanding in multiple ways

The worksheet includes multiple-choice questions, true-or-false statements, short-answer responses, a dialogue, matching, and a cloze passage. Students also complete a labeled diagram and reading passage before developing their thinking in an essay. These activities move beyond simple recall by asking learners to compare ideas, use evidence, explain relationships, and connect imperial competition with political change.

Teacher support for the lesson

• Teacher Guide with learning objectives
• Teaching tips for classroom instruction
• Discussion questions to support historical discussion
• Common mistakes to help identify misconceptions

Practical classroom use

Use this Grade 7 history worksheet for guided practice, independent work, lesson review, or a written check of understanding during a government and citizenship unit. The accompanying Teacher Guide supports preparation and classroom discussion, while the range of response formats gives students structured opportunities to work with nationalism, imperialism, alliances, diplomacy, political boundaries, and conflict.

With the TEKS framework named for this resource, this lesson provides focused practice in comparing nationalism and imperialism and using historical examples to explain how competing interests can influence political decisions and developments.