Category: Quick Civics Lessons for the Naturalization Test

90. What ocean is on the East Coast of the United States?

90. What ocean is on the East Coast of the United States?

  • Atlantic (Ocean)

The Atlantic Ocean is on the East Coast of the United States. The ocean was named after the giant Atlas from Greek mythology. It is the second largest ocean in the world.

The Atlantic Ocean is a major sea route for ships. It is one of the most frequently traveled oceans in the world. The Atlantic Ocean is also a source of many natural resources.

The Atlantic Ocean was formed by the separation of the North American and European continents millions of years ago. The ocean covers about one-fifth of the Earth’s surface.

In the middle of the ocean is the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, an immense underwater mountain range that extends the length of the Atlantic and is a source of volcanic activity.

The U.S. states that border the Atlantic Ocean are Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, South Carolina, and Virginia.

** As you prepare for U.S. citizenship, Learn About the United States: Quick Civics Lessons will help you study for the civics and English portions of the naturalization interview. There are 100 civics (history and government) questions on the naturalization test.

During your naturalization interview, you will be asked up to 10 questions from the list of 100 questions. You must answer correctly six (6) of the 10 questions to pass the civics test.

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89. What ocean is on the West Coast of the United States?

89. What ocean is on the West Coast of the United States?

  • Pacific (Ocean)

The Pacific Ocean is on the West Coast of the United States. It is the largest ocean on Earth and covers one-third of the Earth’s surface. The Pacific Ocean is important to the U.S. economy because of its many natural resources such as fish. Europeans first learned about the Pacific Ocean in the 16th century.

Spanish explorer Vasco Núñez de Balboa reached the ocean in 1514 when he crossed the Isthmus of Panama. Later, Ferdinand Magellan sailed across the Pacific as he traveled around the Earth in search of spices. “Pacific” means “peaceful.” Magellan named the Pacific Ocean the “peaceful sea,” because there were no storms on his trip from Spain to the spice world. The U.S. states that border the Pacific Ocean are Alaska, Washington, Oregon, California, and Hawaii.

** As you prepare for U.S. citizenship, Learn About the United States: Quick Civics Lessons will help you study for the civics and English portions of the naturalization interview. There are 100 civics (history and government) questions on the naturalization test.

During your naturalization interview, you will be asked up to 10 questions from the list of 100 questions. You must answer correctly six (6) of the 10 questions to pass the civics test.

Download PDF
88. Name one of the two longest rivers in the United States.

88. Name one of the two longest rivers in the United States.

  • Missouri (River)
  • Mississippi (River)

The Mississippi River is one of America’s longest rivers. It runs through 10 U.S. states. The Mississippi River was used by American Indians for trade, food, and water before Europeans came to America.

It is nicknamed the “Father of Waters.” Today, the Mississippi River is a major shipping route and a source of drinking water for millions of people.

The Missouri River is also one of the longest rivers in the United States. The Missouri River is actually longer than the Mississippi River. It starts in Montana and flows into the Mississippi River. In 1673, the French explorers Jolliet and Marquette were the first Europeans to find the Missouri River. It is nicknamed “Big Muddy” because of its high silt content.

** As you prepare for U.S. citizenship, Learn About the United States: Quick Civics Lessons will help you study for the civics and English portions of the naturalization interview. There are 100 civics (history and government) questions on the naturalization test.

During your naturalization interview, you will be asked up to 10 questions from the list of 100 questions. You must answer correctly six (6) of the 10 questions to pass the civics test.

Download PDF
87. Name one American Indian tribe in the United States.

87. Name one American Indian tribe in the United States.

[USCIS Officers will be supplied with a list of federally recognized American Indian tribes.]

  • Cherokee
  • Navajo
  • Sioux
  • Chippewa
  • Choctaw
  • Pueblo
  • Apache
  • Iroquois
  • Creek
  • Blackfeet
  • Seminole
  • Cheyenne
  • Arawak
  • Shawnee
  • Mohegan
  • Huron
  • Oneida
  • Lakota
  • Crow
  • Teton
  • Hopi
  • Inuit

American Indians lived in North America for thousands of years before the European settlers arrived. Today there are more than 500 federally recognized tribes in the United States.

Each tribe has its own social and political system. American Indian cultures are different from one tribe to another, with different languages, beliefs, stories, music, and foods. Earlier in their history, some tribes settled in villages and farmed the land for food. Other tribes moved frequently as they hunted and gathered food and resources.

The federal government signed treaties with American Indian tribes to move the tribes to reservations. These reservations are recognized as domestic, dependent nations.

** As you prepare for U.S. citizenship, Learn About the United States: Quick Civics Lessons will help you study for the civics and English portions of the naturalization interview. There are 100 civics (history and government) questions on the naturalization test.

During your naturalization interview, you will be asked up to 10 questions from the list of 100 questions. You must answer correctly six (6) of the 10 questions to pass the civics test.

Download PDF
86. What major event happened on September 11, 2001, in the United States?

86. What major event happened on September 11, 2001, in the United States?

  •  Terrorists attacked the United States.

On September 11, 2001, four airplanes flying out of U.S. airports were taken over by terrorists from the Al-Qaeda network of Islamic extremists.
Two of the planes crashed into the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers in New York City, destroying both buildings. One of the planes crashed into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia.
The fourth plane, originally aimed at Washington, D.C., crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. Almost 3,000 people died in these attacks, most of them civilians.
This was the worst attack on American soil in the history of the nation.

** As you prepare for U.S. citizenship, Learn About the United States: Quick Civics Lessons will help you study for the civics and English portions of the naturalization interview. There are 100 civics (history and government) questions on the naturalization test.

During your naturalization interview, you will be asked up to 10 questions from the list of 100 questions. You must answer correctly six (6) of the 10 questions to pass the civics test.

Download PDF
85. What did Martin Luther King, Jr. do?*

85. What did Martin Luther King, Jr. do?*

  • Fought for civil rights
  • Worked for equality for all Americans

Martin Luther King, Jr. was a Baptist minister and civil rights leader. He worked hard to make America a more fair, tolerant, and equal nation. He was the main leader of the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s.

Because of this movement, civil rights laws were passed to protect voting rights and end racial segregation. King believed in the ideals of the Declaration of Independence—that every citizen deserves America’s promise of equality and justice. In 1963,

King delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech, which imagines an America in which people of all races exist together equally. He was only 35 years old when he received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964 for his civil rights work. King was killed on April 4, 1968.

** As you prepare for U.S. citizenship, Learn About the United States: Quick Civics Lessons will help you study for the civics and English portions of the naturalization interview. There are 100 civics (history and government) questions on the naturalization test.

During your naturalization interview, you will be asked up to 10 questions from the list of 100 questions. You must answer correctly six (6) of the 10 questions to pass the civics test.

Download PDF
84. What movement tried to end racial discrimination?

84. What movement tried to end racial discrimination?

  • Civil rights (movement)

The modern civil rights movement in the United States began in 1954 when the Supreme Court ruled that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional.

The goal of the civil rights movement was to end racial discrimination against African Americans and to gain full and equal rights for Americans of all races. Using nonviolent strategies such as bus boycotts, sit-ins, and marches, people came together to demand social change.

As a result, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The Civil Rights Act made segregation in public facilities and racial discrimination in employment and education illegal.

The law protects African Americans, women, and others from discrimination. The Voting Rights Act banned literacy tests and other special requirements that had been used to stop African Americans from registering to vote.

** As you prepare for U.S. citizenship, Learn About the United States: Quick Civics Lessons will help you study for the civics and English portions of the naturalization interview.

There are 100 civics (history and government) questions on the naturalization test. During your naturalization interview, you will be asked up to 10 questions from the list of 100 questions. You must answer correctly six (6) of the 10 questions to pass the civics test.

Download PDF
83. During the Cold War, what was the main concern of the United States?

83. During the Cold War, what was the main concern of the United States?

  •  Communism

The main concern of the United States during the Cold War was the spread of communism. The Soviet Union (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, or USSR) was a powerful nation that operated under the principles of communism.

The United States and its allies believed that a democratic government and a capitalist economy were the best ways to preserve individual rights and freedoms.

The United States and its allies feared the expansion of communism to countries outside the Soviet Union. The Cold War began shortly after the end of World War II and lasted for more than 40 years.

It ended with the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the reunification of East and West Germany in 1990, and the breakup of the USSR in 1991.

** As you prepare for U.S. citizenship, Learn About the United States: Quick Civics Lessons will help you study for the civics and English portions of the naturalization interview.

There are 100 civics (history and government) questions on the naturalization test. During your naturalization interview, you will be asked up to 10 questions from the list of 100 questions. You must answer correctly six (6) of the 10 questions to pass the civics test.

Download PDF
82. Before he was President, Eisenhower was a general. What war was he in?

82. Before he was President, Eisenhower was a general. What war was he in?

  •  World War II

Before becoming the 34th president of the United States in 1953, Dwight D. Eisenhower served as a major general in World War II. As commander of U.S. forces and supreme commander of the Allies in Europe, he led the successful D-Day invasion of Normandy, France, on June 6, 1944.

In 1952, he retired from active service in the military. He was elected president of the United States later that year.

01As president, he established the interstate highway system and in 1953, the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (now known as Health and Human Services) was created. He oversaw the end of the Korean War. Eisenhower left the White House in 1961, after serving two terms as president.

** As you prepare for U.S. citizenship, Learn About the United States: Quick Civics Lessons will help you study for the civics and English portions of the naturalization interview.

There are 100 civics (history and government) questions on the naturalization test. During your naturalization interview, you will be asked up to 10 questions from the list of 100 questions. You must answer correctly six (6) of the 10 questions to pass the civics test.

Download PDF
81. Who did the United States fight in World War II?

81. Who did the United States fight in World War II?

  • Japan, Germany, and Italy

The Japanese bombed U.S. naval bases in a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941. The next day, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, as commander in chief of the military, obtained an official declaration of war from Congress.

Japan’s partners in the Axis, Italy and Germany, then declared war on the United States. The Allies fought against the German Nazis, the Italian Fascists, and Japan’s military empire.

This was truly a world war, with battles fought in Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Pacific Ocean.

** As you prepare for U.S. citizenship, Learn About the United States: Quick Civics Lessons will help you study for the civics and English portions of the naturalization interview.

There are 100 civics (history and government) questions on the naturalization test.

During your naturalization interview, you will be asked up to 10 questions from the list of 100 questions. You must answer correctly six (6) of the 10 questions to pass the civics test.

Download PDF