Articles of
Confederation
Constitutional
Convention
Branches of
Government
Bill of Rights
Vocabulary
10
10
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10
10
20
20
20
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20
30
30
30
30
30
War of 1812
20
War of 1812 - 20
Why was the War of 1812
important?
War of 1812 Answer - 20
• The United States showed it could stand up to Britain
and act as a major power after the War of 1812
Articles of Confederation - 10
What were the Articles of Confederation?
Articles of Confederation Answer –
10
• The new nation’s first attempt at creating a
plan for national government
Articles of Confederation - 20
Why did the states want a weak national
government at first?
Articles of Confederation Answer –
20
• America fought the war for the right to selfgovernment so they did not want to give up
power to a strong central government.
Articles of Confederation - 30
What were the three biggest problems the
Articles of confederation created for the
states?
Articles of Confederation Answer –
30
• The Articles of Confederation could not make
the states work together
• Each state had its own currency so trading was
difficult
• Congress couldn’t pay its debts from Rev. War
and couldn’t raise taxes
People - 40
Who was known for saying “Give me liberty or
give me death?” in one of his speeches? What
did he mean by this?
People Answer – 40
• Patrick Henry
• I’d rather die than be forced to live without my
natural rights
People - 50
Who wrote the Declaration of Independence
and doubled the size of the United States with
the Louisiana Purchase?
People Answer – 50
Thomas Jefferson
Constitutional Convention - 10
What were the three issues discussed at the
Constitutional Convention?
Constitutional Convention Answer
– 10
• States’ Rights
• Slavery
• Representation
Constitutional Convention - 20
What was the Great Compromise?
Constitutional Convention Answer
– 20
• The Great Compromise divided Congress into
2 parts
– The Senate where each state would have an equal
number of representatives.
– House of Representatives where the number of
representatives each state has is based on the
state’s population.
Constitutional Convention - 30
Who was James Madison and what was he
known for?
Constitutional Convention Answer
– 30
• The “Father of the Constitution”
• Known for: The Virginia Plan
– His plan called for a federal system of government
where national government was divided into 3
parts or branches. The 3 branches were Congress
(made the laws), Courts (settled legal matters) and
a 3rd branch that carried out the laws.
Causes - 40
Why did the colonists refuse to buy or sell the
tea from the East India Tea Company even
though it was cheaper than the smuggled
(illegally imported and not taxed) tea? (Give 2
reasons)
Causes Answer – 40
• Colonists still didn’t want to pay a tax they
hadn’t agreed to
• Didn’t want only 1 company to control the tea
trade
Causes - 50
What happened at the Boston Tea Party and
why? What was the punishment King George
gave the Colonists for the Boston Tea Party?
Causes Answer – 50
• Colonists refused to buy or sell the tea from
the East India Tea Company and Britain
refused to take it back so it sat in the Boston
harbor unloaded. Sons of Liberty boarded
ships illegally and threw tea into the Boston
Harbor
• King George punished the colonists with the
Coercive Acts/ Intolerable Acts
Branches of Government - 10
What are the three branches of government?
Who makes up each branch?
Branches of Government Answer –
10
• Executive
– President, Vice President, Heads of government
departments
• Legislative
– Congress: 2 parts
• Senate
• House of Representatives
• Judicial
– Supreme Court and other courts
Branches of Government - 20
Name one duty for each of the branches of
government?
Branches of Government Answer –
20
• Executive Duties:
– Proposes, approves, and enforces laws made by congress
– Makes treaties with other countries
– Leads the military
• Legislative Duties:
– Makes laws
– Raises money by collecting taxes or borrowing money
– Approves the printing of money
– Can declare war
• Judicial
– Decides whether laws follow the guidelines of the constitution
– Decides what laws mean
– Resolves conflicts between citizens and the states
Branches of Government - 30
Which branch has the power to declare laws
unconstitutional? Which branch checks this
power? Explain how you know.
Branches of Government Answer –
30
• Judicial branch has the power to declare laws
unconstitutional.
– Judicial branch decides whether laws follow the
guidelines of the constitution
• Legislative and Executive branches BOTH check this
power.
– Executive checks because they appoint the federal
judges
– Legislative checks because they confirm who the
Executive branch appoints to be judges AND they
can remove/impeach judges
Battles - 40
Which battle was the turning point of the war?
What happened and why was it the turning
point?
Battles Answer – 40
• Battle of Saratoga
• Americans won & forced 5,000 British soldiers
to surrender
• This war was a turning point b/c it convinced
the French that America could win
• France became our ally and sent money,
soldiers, and powerful navy to help the
Americans. They also taught the Americans to
march together and use their weapons
properly (our army was new at this point)
Battles - 50
What happened at the Battle of Yorktown?
Battles Answer – 50
• British went to Yorktown b/c it was located
between 2 rivers. They thought it would make
it easy to get troops and supplies to the British
• Washington’s army (Continental Army) and
French navy met them at Yorktown
• French navy blocked Yorktown harbor so the
British ships couldn’t rescue the British army.
• British were trapped, had no way to escape
• British surrendered (gave up)
Bill of Rights - 10
What is a Bill of Rights?
Bill of Rights Answer – 10
• a written document that defines the rights of
citizens that cannot be taken away (list of
individual citizen’s rights)
Bill of Rights - 20
What is an amendment?
Bill of Rights Answer – 20
• An addition/correction to the constitution
Bill of Rights - 30
Name three Amendments in the Bill of Rights.
Give their number and what they say.
Bill of Rights Answer – 30
Amendment
What it Says
1
Freedom of religion, speech, and press. People can also meet together and ask the
government to change things they don’t like.
2
The government cannot stop citizens from keeping guns because the military is necessary
to keep peace.
3
People do not have to allow soldiers to live in their homes.
4
The police cannot search people or their homes without a good reason.
5
People accused of a crime have the right to a fair trial. They cannot be tried more than
once for the same crime.
6
People accused of a crime have the right to a speedy, public trial by a jury. Accused people
also have the right to a lawyer, to be told what crime they are accused of, and to question
witnesses.
7
People who have a disagreement about something worth more than $20 have the right to
a trial by a jury.
8
Courts cannot demand bail or fines that are too high. No cruel or unusual punishment is
allowed.
9
People have other rights that are not listed in the constitution.
10
The powers not given to the national government are given to individual states or the
people.
Dec. of Ind. - 40
Part 3 of the Declaration of Independence
listed many ways King George III had abused
his power (complaints against him). What are
three ways King George III had abused his
power?
Dec. of Ind. Answer – 40
• Taken away the colonists’ rights
• Forced taxes on them
• Sent soldiers to control them
Dec. of Ind. - 50
Why was the Declaration of Independence so
important? (Give 2 reasons)
Dec. of Ind. Answer – 50
• It declared the colonies independent from
Britain (part 4)
• Marked the moment when Americans chose
to rule themselves
Vocabulary - 10
What does ratify mean?
Vocabulary Answer – 10
• Approve or accept
Vocabulary - 20
What is a federal system of government?
Vocabulary Answer – 20
• Where states shared power with the central
government, but the central government has
more power than the states
• Government is broken up into 3 branches
Vocabulary - 30
What are federalists and anti-federalists?
Vocabulary Answer – 30
• Federalists – people who supported the
Constitution
• Anti-federalists - people who opposed the
Constitution. They thought a strong central
government was dangerous and a threat to
liberty because it didn’t have a bill of rights
Vocabulary - 40
Who were the Sons of Liberty?
Vocabulary Answer – 40
• Groups across the colonies that formed and
protested against the taxes
Vocabulary - 50
What is a representative?
Vocabulary Answer – 50
• Someone who is chosen to speak and act for
others