Constitutional Convention 1787
Mary Lou Mooney
Verity Middle School
Fall 2010
Illus. in: A history of the United States of America
Hartford : Huntington & Hopkins, 1823, opp. p. 241.
Students will use primary resources to study the participants, issues, and proceedings of
the Constitutional Convention of 1787.
Overview/ Materials/LOC Resources/Standards/ Procedures/Evaluation/Rubric/Handouts/Extension
Overview
Objectives
Recommended time frame
Grade level
Curriculum fit
Materials
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Students will:
 Analyze photos of the Constitutional Convention to
determine some of the participants and setting of
the convention.
 Students will analyze primary resource documents
to gather information about the issues and
proceedings of the convention.
Two 45 minute class periods.
8
American History
Resource Table
Photo Analysis Document
Rubric
Chart Paper
Ohio State Learning Standards
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HS 8.6: Explain the challenges in writing and
ratifying the United States Constitution including:
 a. issues debated during the convention resulting
in compromises, (i.e., the Great Compromise, the
Three Fifths Compromise and the compromise
over slave trade)
Teaching with Primary Sources
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Procedures
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Day One:

Divide the students up into small groups and
explain the goals of the lesson.
 Provide printed images for the students to
analyze…Contact the Library of Congress to
obtain larger copies. Use the resource table.
 Provide Photo Analysis Documents to all
students.
 To begin, with the students, make a list of
possible people who would have attended the
convention..rely on prior “timeline” knowledge
about people of the era they may already have.
Encourage them to use their text as a resource if
needed.
 Record this list on chart paper and display on the
wall.
 Students will use the photo analysis document to
record information about the photos. During this
time students will, also, try to identify people they
recognize from other photographs and place
them at the Constitutional Convention of 1787.
Day 2:
 Each group’s representative will place a
checkmark next to the individual’s they think
they recognize in the photographs.
 Afterwards, discuss some of the actual people
that attended the Constitutional Convention of
1787 and identify all those possible.
 Next, distribute, information about the
convention to read with the students.
 Next, discuss the colony each of those people
would be representing and whether their main
interests were political, economic, or social.
 During the discussion, create a chart for each
colony, identify its delegates and main reasons of
interests during the convention.
Evaluation
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Extended Response: Using the notes taken on the photo
analysis documents, write an extended response
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
explaining the purpose of the Constitutional Convention
of 1787. Identify at least three of the delegates, the
colony they represented, and their purpose for attending
the convention.
Extension
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Provide students with copies of newspaper articles about
the Constitutional Convention of 1787. Students will
read the articles and summarize the highlights of one of
the articles.
The summary will be written as a radio clip explaining
the events of the convention as highlighted in the
newspaper article.
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
Primary Resources from the Library of Congress
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Images
Description
George Washington
addressing a group of men
in a hall at the
Constitutional Convention
in 1787.
Citation
Illus. in: A history of the
United States of America /
Hartford : Huntington &
Hopkins, 1823, opp. p.
241.
URL
"http://www.loc.gov/searc
h/more_search.html"
Franklin in the National
Convention
Lossing-Barritt.
Convention at
Philadelphia, 1787
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
George Washington
presiding at the signing of
the Constitution of the
United States in
Philadelphia on Sept. 17,
1787.
Christy, Howard Chandler, Convention at
Philadelphia, 1787
1873-1952 , artist
[Front page of The Boston
Gazette, Nov. 26, 1787
containing letter to the
editor from "A Federalist"
concerning constitutional
convention]
Library of Congress Prints
and Photographs Division
Washington, D.C. 20540
USA
[Front page of The Boston
Gazette, Nov. 26, 1787
containing letter to the
editor from "A Federalist"
concerning constitutional
convention]
[Newspaper articles and
notices printed in 1787
during the Constitutional
Convention in Phila.]
Library of Congress Prints
and Photographs Division
Washington, D.C. 20540
USA
[Newspaper articles and
notices printed in 1787
during the Constitutional
Convention in Phila.]
[Newspaper articles and
notices printed in 1787
during the Constitutional
Convention in
Phila.]Meeting of
Sconstayeh, A Cherokee
emissary, with George
Washington, to protest
encroachment of whites on
Indian lands.
Library of Congress Prints
and Photographs Division
Washington, D.C. 20540
USA
"http://lcweb.loc.gov/rr/pri
nt/195_copr.html"
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
Rubric
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Extended Response : Continental Convention 1787
Teacher Name:
Student Name:
________________________________________
CATEGORY
4
Quality of Information Information clearly
relates to the main
topic. It includes
several supporting
details and/or
examples.
Organization
Information is very
organized with wellconstructed that
include introductory
and concluding
sentences.
Amount of Information All topics are
addressed and all
questions answered
with at least 2
sentences about
each.
Mechanics
No grammatical,
spelling or punctuation
errors.
3
Information clearly
relates to the main
topic. It provides 1-2
supporting details
and/or examples.
2
Information clearly
relates to the main
topic. No details
and/or examples are
given.
1
Information has little
or nothing to do with
the main topic.
Information is
organized with wellconstructed
paragraphs.
Information is
organized, but
paragraphs are not
well-constructed.
The information
appears to be
disorganized. 8)
All topics are
addressed and most
questions answered
with at least 2
sentences about
each.
Almost no
grammatical, spelling
or punctuation errors
All topics are
One or more topics
addressed, and most were not addressed.
questions answered
with 1 sentence about
each.
A few grammatical
spelling, or
punctuation errors.
Many grammatical,
spelling, or
punctuation errors.
Date Created: Oct 31, 2010 08:15 pm (UTC)
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
Handouts
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Photo Analysis Worksheet
Step 1. Observation
Study the photograph for 2 minutes. Form an overall impression of the photograph and
then examine individual items. Next, divide the photo into quadrants and study each
section to see what new details become visible.
Use the chart below to list people, objects, and activities in the photograph.
Activities
People
Objects
Step 2. Inference
Based on what you have observed above, list three things you might infer from this
photograph
1.
2.
3.
Step 3. Questions
What questions does this photograph raise in your mind?
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Where could you find answers to them?
Designed and developed by the Education Staff, National Archives and
Records Administration, Washington, DC 20408
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University