The United States Constitution
A WebQuest for 5th-9th Grade Social Studies
Designed by
Mary Reger
Introduction
You are about to embark on a journey to understand and learn more about yourself and your
country.
You know that the United States is a free country and that we did win the Revolutionary War.
But what happened after the war was over? How has our country continued for more than 200
years? How was our government set up and by whom?
Through this journey you will find out what the United States Constitution is and who wrote it.
You will learn what a delegate is and will identify yourself with one that went to the
Constitutional Convention. You will write a biographical sketch about the delegate you choose.
Lastly you will help to write a constitution for your class with your classmates.
Your class will become the delegates and you will work together as the 55 delegates did over
220 years ago in the summer 1787 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Roles
You will be organizing yourselves into groups by the states you represent. You will represent
one delegate. You will choose the delegate you will represent.
In each group there will be four positions. After you have read and written a biographical sketch
about your delegate you will decide which role you would best fit as that delegate:
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A reader
A speaker for the group
A writer for the group
One or two note taker(s) for the group
Note: If your group only has three people in it the writer will also be the note taker.
The Task
Your first task will be to find out what the Constitutional Convention was and its purpose,
where and when it was, who attended it and what states they represented.
The second task is to learn who the delegates were and who went to the Constitutional
Convention. You will become one of these delegates and represent that delegate in your group.
Once you have chosen and been assigned a delegate your third task will research that delegate
and write a biographical sketch about him. This biographical sketch will be written in the first
person as if you were that delegate.
After everyone has written their biographical sketch you will be assigned groups of 3-5
depending on how the groups fit into the states they represent. In these groups you will complete
the fourth task. Each group will be given a part of the Constitution to read and analyze. Your
whole group will then explain what their part of the Constitution is saying.
The fifth task will be for the class to come together as if they were at the Constitutional
Convention. They will come as the delegate they wrote about and will write a class constitution
together based on the same principals the United States Constitution is written on.
Your sixth and final task will be to write an essay about the Constitution and your experience
writing a classroom constitution and the importance of both.
The Process
Task #1
Your first task will be to find out what the Constitutional Convention was and it's purpose,
where and when it was, who attended it and what states they represented.
You will be assigned a partner to work with.
You will go to the following websites and complete the Constitutional Convention Graphic
Organizer:
http://www.teachingamericanhistory.org/convention/intro.html
http://www.jmu.edu/madison/gpos225-madison2/adopt.htm
http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/constitution_founding_fathers.html
Constitutional Convention Graphic Organizer
Task #2
The second task is to learn who the delegates were and who went to the Constitutional
Convention. You will become one of these delegates and represent that delegate in your group.
Using the following website read the brief biography of each delegate.
http://www.usconstitution.net/constframe.html
You do not have to read from top to bottom. You can read from bottom to top also. But read
about each delegate.
As you read about the delegates. Write down the ones you think are like you or ones you can
relate to in some way. Be sure to pay close attention to Alexander Hamilton, Benjamin Franklin,
James Madison, George Washington, and Gouverneur Morris. These were all prominent men in
the making of the Constitution and we will want them represented. If you think you are like one
of these men write them on your list, but only if you really think you are like them. Be ready to
state why you chose the delegate you are assigned. Think about the delegate's background,
characteristics, and experiences. Are they intelligent, do they like to speak, do they write well,
are they kind, do they love their family, are they honest, do they have a good sense of humor, do
they argue well, are they more of an average man, are they a hard worker, are they diligent etc.
Who are you like?
Be sure to write down at least three or four delegates. Together as a class the teacher will assign
students to be delegates. Since there was only one of each person at the Constitutional
convention there can only be one of each delegate represented in our class. If you choose several
then you will get someone you'd like to represent.
Task #3
As a class, your teacher will go through each delegate and ask who had that delegate first on
their list. (As delegates are assigned you will cross ones off your list if not assigned to you.
Your third choice then may become your first choice if choice one and two are crossed off before
you are assigned a delegate.) The people who had that delegate first on their list will decide who
is most like that delegate. If only one person has that delegate as first they will represent that
delegate. If no one has that person on his or her list as first choice that delegate will not be
assigned.
Once you have chosen and been assigned a delegate your third task will be to research that
delegate and write a biographical sketch about him.
The biographical sketch will be written in the first person as if you were that delegate. Add in
your own thoughts and opinions about this delegate.
Be sure to include these points in your biographical sketch:
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Name
Birth
Birth place
Education
Profession
Political experience
Residence at time of Constitutional Convention
Write your information on the “Delegate Info Sheet” and then write the biography of the
delegate on lined paper.
Delegate Info Sheet
Task #4
After everyone has written their biographical sketch you will be assigned groups or 3-5
depending on how the groups fit into the states they represent. In these groups you will complete
the fourth task. Each group will be given a part of the Constitution to read and analyze. The
recorder will complete the “Constitution Says” Graphic Organizer. Your whole group will then
explain what their part of the Constitution is saying.
Use the Constitution Says Graphic Organizer to summarize your part of the Constitution.
http://www.usconstitution.net/constquick.html
http://www.jimloy.com/history/const.htm
Constitution Says Graphic Organizer
Task #5
The fifth will be for the class to come together as if they were at the Constitutional Convention.
They will come as the delegate they wrote about and will write a class constitution together
based on the same principals the United States Constitution is written on. The class will decide
what the parts of the class constitution will be. The purpose of this constitution is to have order
and fairness in the classroom where everyone can learn in a safe and happy environment. Your
teacher will guide the process to fit your classroom.
Task #6
Your final task will be to write an essay about the United States Constitution and your
experience writing a classroom constitution and the importance of both. Follow “The United
States and Classroom Constitution Rubric and Instruction Sheet”.
“The United States and Classroom Constitution Rubric and Instruction Sheet”
Evaluation
Your final evaluation will be your essay about the Constitution and your experience in writing
the classroom constitution. Follow the “United States and Classroom Constitution Rubric and
Instruction Sheet” your teacher provides. You will also be graded on the team work you showed
throughout the process using the “United States Constitution and Classroom Participation
Rubric”
United States Constitution and Classroom Participation Rubric