th
8
Grade Review
1st Trimester
Jamestown
► The
settlement in Jamestown, Virginia was the
first permanent English settlement in America.
Virginia
Pilgrims and Puritans
► Pilgrims
and Puritans came to America to
avoid religious persecution.
Plymouth Rock
The English Bill of Rights
►
The English Bill of Rights were
written laws designed to limit the
power of Kings.
 The King of England now had to respect
the rights of the English people.
The English
Bill of Rights
The Great Awakening and the
Enlightenment
► The
Great Awakening
and the Enlightenment
led to ideas of political
equality among many
colonists.
John Locke
Great Britain
Raises Taxes
► British
efforts to
raise taxes including the
Stamp Act, Sugar
Act, and Tea Act sparked protests in
the colonies.
The Boston Massacre
► The
Boston
Massacre caused
colonial resentment
toward Great
Britain.
The Boston Tea Party
► Colonists
protested the British tax on tea
with the Boston Tea Party, which led to the
closing of the Boston Harbor in the
Intolerable Acts.
The First Continental Congress
► The
First Continental Congress demanded
certain rights from Great Britain, halted trade
with Britain, and alerted the colonial militia to
prepare for war.
The “Shot Heard’ round the World”
► The
American Revolution started with the
“shot heard ’round the world” at
Lexington and Concord.
The Second Continental Congress
►
The Second Continental Congress created the
Continental Army to fight the British and put George
Washington in charge of it.
Paine’s Common Sense
Paine’s Common Sense led many
colonists to support independence.
► Thomas
Independence for Colonies
► The
Declaration of
Independence
formally announced
the break with Great
Britain
 Tomas Jefferson
was the main author
Turning Point at Saratoga
► American
forces lost many early battles, but the
Battle of Saratoga was a turning point in the
American Revolution and gave the Patriots
foreign allies, like France.
Winter at Valley Forge
► The
winter at Valley Forge tested the
strength of Patriot forces.
The Battle of Yorktown
► The
American Patriots finally defeated the
British at the Battle of Yorktown.
The Treaty of
Paris
► The
British and the
Americans officially
ended the war with
the Treaty of Paris
of 1783, which set
the American
borders just west
of the Mississippi
River.
Articles of Confederation
► The
Articles of
Confederation laid the
basis for the first national
government
of the United States, but
created too
weak of a
national
government.
Shays' Rebellion
► Early
economic problems paved the way for Shays’s
Rebellion, which pointed out the weaknesses in the
Articles of Confederation and made Americans want
a stronger central government.
The Constitutional Convention
► The
Constitutional Convention met to
improve the government of the United
States, but ended up creating a brand
new government with the Constitution.
The Great Compromise
►
The issue of representation in Congress led to the Great
Compromise. It created a bicameral or two House Legislature /
Congress where representation in the House of Representatives
was based on a state’s population and where representation in
the Senate was equal among the states with states having 2
members each.
The Three-Fifths Compromise
► Regional
debate between the
North and the South over
the issue of slavery led to
the Three-Fifths
Compromise.
Federalists and Antifederalists
► Federalists
and
Antifederalists
engaged in debate
over the new
Constitution. AntiFederalists felt that
the central
government had
been given too
much power in the
Constitution.
Federalist Papers
► The
Federalist Papers played an important
role in the fight for ratification, or approval,
of the Constitution assuring Americans that
the new federal government would not
overpower the states.
The Constitution
► The
Constitution was primarily written by
James Madison, who became known as the
“Father of the Constitution.”
The Constitution
► The
Constitution set up a system of
government in which powers of government
are shared between the national and state
governments, also known as federalism.
the national capitol in Washington D.C.
the state capitol in Sacramento, CA
Checks and Balances
► Framers
of Constitution did not want branch
to become too powerful so they created a
system of checks and balances.
The Bill of Rights
Ten amendments were added to
the Constitution to provide a Bill of
Rights to protect citizens.
► The
The Federal System
► The
framers of the Constitution
devised the federal system that gave some
governing powers…
 Only to the states
 Only to the national government
 And some to be shared
by both the national and
state governments
The Legislative Branch
–
The legislative branch / Congress,
makes the nation’s laws.
The Legislative Branch
–
Congress is broken into tow parts. The
Senate and the House of Representatives.
Each state gets 2 senators. The number of
representatives a state gets is determined
by their population.
The Executive Branch
–
The executive branch, which is headed up
by the President, enforces the nation’s
laws.
The Executive Branch
–
The President is elected by a body of
delegates from each state that casts the
deciding votes for president known as the
Electoral College.
The Executive Branch
–
The cabinet is a group of advisors that
heads up the various executive
departments and helps the president
enforce the nations laws.
The Executive Branch
–
The President can veto a law passed by
Congress; however, Congress can override
a veto if 2/3 of Congress agree to pass the
law again.
The Judicial Branch
► The
judicial branch determines whether or
not laws are constitutional.
The First Amendment
► The
First Amendment guarantees basic freedoms
to individuals, including the Freedom of…
►Religion
►Speech
►Press
►Assembly
Protecting Citizens
► The
2nd, 3rd, & 4th Amendments relate to colonial
disputes with Britain and protect people from
abuses by the government.
 They grant freedoms like the right to bear arms, the
protection against quartering soldiers and unfair search
and seizures.
The Rights of the Accused
► The
5th, 6th, 7th, & 8th Amendments provide
guidelines for protecting the rights of the
accused including ideas like due process of
law, the right to trial by jury, no double
jeopardy, no self-incrimination, eminent
domain, no unreasonable bail, and no
unreasonable punishments.
Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenships
► The
United States was started with the idea
of majority rule in mind.
► American citizens have many
responsibilities or duties that are
encouraged, but not required like the right
to vote.
George Washington
► George
Washington was our first president.
During Washington’s presidency, France and
Great Britain were at war with each other.
Washington issued the Neutrality
Proclamation, not taking sides with either
country.
Washington’s Presidency
► Native
Americans in the
Northwest Territories
were a big threat to
American expansion out
west after those Indians
were given guns and
ammunition by the
British.
Washington’s Presidency
► The
US had problems with Spain during
Washington’s Presidency too.
 Pickney’s treaty with Spain ended the border
dispute and clarified Florida border.
Hamilton and National Finances
► During
George
Washington’s
presidency, Alexander
Hamilton developed a
financial plan for the
national government
that included a national
bank to strengthen the
U.S. economy.
Hamilton and National Finances
► Hamilton’s
plan also
called for a tariff, or tax
on imports.
► Hamilton envisioned a
country where the
economy depended on
businesses and
manufacturing.
Political Parties
► The
first political parties developed during
Washington’s presidency. The two main
political parties were the Federalists and the
Democratic-Republicans.
Political Parties
► Thomas
Jefferson was the head of the
Democratic-Repbulican Party. He believed in
strict construction, having an economy
based on farming, having strong state
governments, and supporting France..
Political Parties
► Alexander
Hamilton was the head of the
Federalist Party. He wanted to promote
manufacturing, having a high tariff,
maintain strong ties with Britain, and he
believed in a loose interpretation of the
Constitution.
The Whiskey Rebellion
► During
Washington’s presidency, farmers rebelled
against a tax on whiskey because they could not
afford it. The rebellion did not last long – most rebels
fled before Washington’s army arrived.
Washington Says Farewell
► In
his Farewell Address, Washington
warned the nation to avoid foreign
alliances, huge debt, and political parties.
John Adams
► John
Adams was the 2nd president of the
US. His presidency was spoiled by an
undeclared war with France that occurred
after the XYZ affair.
John Adams
► During
John Adams presidency, Federalists
passed the Alien and Sedition Acts. These
laws were written to “protect the country
from Republican critics” by limiting freedom
of speech and the press.