Entitle these pages as:
CH-1
(Constitution Handbook-1)
Copy this on the top half of Portfolio p38
The Seven Principles of the Constitution
Principle
Popular Sovereignty
Republicanism
Federalism
Separation of Powers
Checks and Balances
Limited Government
Individual Rights
Definition
(Two lines per row!)
Copy these ‘Study Questions’ on Portfolio p39
* Space these questions evenly down the page, allowing about
three lines per question.
1.
What are the seven principles of the Constitution?
2.
What is classical liberalism?
3.
What is popular sovereignty?
4.
How does republicanism provide the most basic opportunity for citizens to participate
in the political process?
5.
What is federalism?
6.
Under dual sovereignty, what two governmental organizations share power?
7.
What is the relationship between reserved powers, delegated powers, and concurrent
powers?
8.
How is the principle of the separation of powers put into practice in our government?
9.
How does the principle of checks and balances operate?
10. What part of the Constitution protects individual rights?
Lesson C–1: The Seven
Principles of the Constitution
Today we will define and discuss the
seven principles of the Constitution.
Vocabulary
• The Framers – those men who first wrote the
Constitution
• sovereignty – the ability and authority to
make your own decisions and control your
own life
• check – a limitation or control of someone
else’s power
Check for Understanding
• What are we going to do today?
• Who were the Framers?
• Why does hockey call it a check when
one player skates into and blocks an
opposing player with his body?
• Why is it incorrect to say that you have
more sovereignty than your teachers?
What We Already Know
American colonists fought for independence
so they could create a government that
protected the rights of the people.
What We Already Know
To guarantee that their rights would not
be threatened, Americans intentionally
created a government that was very weak.
What We Already Know
When the Articles of
Confederation proved
inadequate to deal
with the nation’s
problems, a new and
stronger government
was created under the
U.S. Constitution.
A tell B
• What event clearly showed the weakness
of the national government during the
Articles of Confederation period?
• Be sure to re-state the question in your
response!
The Framers of the Constitution
constructed a new system of government
based on seven principles.
Together they form the foundation of
the United States Constitution.
Popular Sovereignty
• The Constitution begins with these words:
“We the people of the United States . . .
establish this Constitution for the United
States of America.”
• These words clearly spell out the source of
the government’s power.
• The American form of government comes
from a school of political thought called
classical liberalism, which emphasizes
freedom, democracy, and the importance of
the individual.
Civic Republicanism
It stresses liberty and inalienable rights
as central values, makes the people as
a whole sovereign, supports activist
government to promote the common
good, rejects inherited political power,
expects citizens to be independent in
their performance of civic duties,
and vilifies corruption.
Popular Sovereignty
By blending ideas from classic liberalism
and civic republicanism, the Constitution
formed a government that is responsible to the
people and works for their benefit.
Get your whiteboards
and markers ready!
2. The Constitution’s classical
liberalism emphasizes
A. the role of government in protecting the
rights of the people.
B. personal responsibility and freedom of
choice.
C. the separation of the government into
multiple branches.
D. the sharing of power between the states
and the central government.
E. the role of the people ruling through
their elected representatives.
By blending ideas from classic
liberalism and civic republicanism, the
Constitution formed a government that
A. can be changed very easily.
B. is responsible to the people and
works for their benefit.
C. should be the model for the
governments of other nations.
D. resembles that of ancient Greece
and Rome.
Popular Sovereignty
• The Constitution rests on the idea of popular
sovereignty – a government in which the
people rule.
• As the nation changed and grew, a broader
range of Americans shared in the power to
govern themselves.
Popular sovereignty is the idea that the
government’s authority comes from the
people and reflects the people’s will.
• This philosophy had its roots
in classical Greece and the
Roman republic.
• It was expressed again during
the Enlightenment by such
political writers as John
Locke and Jean-Jacques
Rousseau.
• The Framers were deeply
influenced by these ideas.
A tell B
• What is popular sovereignty?
• Be sure to re-state the question in your
response!
The Seven Principles of the Constitution
Principle
Popular Sovereignty
Republicanism
Federalism
Separation of Powers
Checks and Balances
Limited Government
Individual Rights
Definition
government in which the people rule…
Republicanism
• The Framers of the Constitution
wanted the people to have a
voice in government.
• Yet the Framers also doubted
that the people would always
make sound decisions.
• To solve this problem, they
looked to republicanism as a
model of government.
Republicanism
• Republicanism is the belief that the people rule
by electing their political representatives.
• For this reason, republicanism is sometimes
called representative democracy.
• According to the Framers, these elected
lawmakers play the key role in making a
republican government work.
• Civic Republicanism is the idea that citizens
stay informed about politics and participate in
the process.
A tell B
• Under republicanism, how do
the people rule?
• Be sure to re-state the question in your
response!
Get your whiteboards
and markers ready!
4. How does republicanism provide the
most basic opportunity for citizens to
participate in the political process?
A. By empowering them to elect justices to
the Supreme Court
B. By creating an electoral college to select
the President of the United States
C. By providing for a public referendum on
all new laws passed by Congress
D. By allowing them to elect Representatives
and Senators
The Seven Principles of the Constitution
Principle
Definition
Popular Sovereignty
A government in which the people rule
Republicanism
Rule by the people through their elected
representatives
Federalism
Separation of Powers
Checks and Balances
Limited Government
Individual Rights
Federalism
• The Framers wanted the states and the
nation to become partners in governing, so
they turned to federalism.
• Federalism is a system of government in
which power is divided between a central
government and the states.
• In the early years of the United States,
federalism was closely related to dual
sovereignty, the idea that the powers of the
federal government and the states were
clearly defined, and each had exclusive
power over their own spheres with little
overlap.
A tell B
• Under federalism, who shares
the powers of government?
• Be sure to re-state the question in your
response!
Federalism
• In the early years of the United
States, federalism was closely
related to dual sovereignty, the
idea that the powers of the
federal government and the states
were clearly defined, and each
had exclusive power over their
own spheres with little overlap.
A tell B
• Under dual sovereignty, what
two groups have their powers
clearly defined with little
overlap?
• Be sure to re-state the question in your
response!
Federalism
• Under federalism, the Constitution
assigns certain powers to the national
government.
• These are delegated powers.
• Powers kept by the states are reserved
powers.
• Powers shared or exercised by both
national and state governments are
known as concurrent powers.
Federalism
A tell B
• Under the Constitution, who
has responsibility for the
delegated powers of
government?
• Be sure to re-state the question in your
response!
Get your whiteboards
and markers ready!
7. Match each term with its
correct description.
1. reserved powers
2. delegated powers
3. concurrent powers
A. powers shared or
exercised by
national and state
governments
B. powers assigned
to the federal
government
C. powers kept by the
state governments
The Seven Principles of the Constitution
Principle
Definition
Popular Sovereignty
A government in which the people rule
Republicanism
Rule by the people through their elected
representatives
Federalism
Separation of Powers
Checks and Balances
Limited Government
Individual Rights
A system of government in which power is
divided between a central government and
the states
Separation of Powers
• To prevent too much power falling into the
hands of a single group, the Framers built
the idea of separation of powers into the
Constitution.
• The Constitution divides the basic roles of
government into branches.
A tell B
• How many branches is the U.S.
government divided into?
• Be sure to re-state the question in your
response!
The Seven Principles of the Constitution
Principle
Definition
Popular Sovereignty
A government in which the people rule
Republicanism
Rule by the people through their elected
representatives
Federalism
A system of government in which power is
divided between a central government and
the states
Separation of Powers
Checks and Balances
Limited Government
Individual Rights
The division of basic government roles into
branches, with no branch given all the power
Checks and Balances
• Baron de Montesquieu, a
French thinker of the
Enlightenment, first wrote
about the principle of checks
and balances.
• The Framers included a
system of checks and
balances in the Constitution
to help make sure that the
power of government is
limited and that the branches
work together fairly.
Checks and Balances
• Each branch of
government can
exercise checks, or
controls, over the
other branches.
• Though the
branches of
government are
separate, they work
together to perform
the work of
government.
A tell B
• How does the Constitution
make sure that no branch of
government becomes too
powerful?
• Be sure to re-state the question in your
response!
The Seven Principles of the Constitution
Principle
Definition
Republicanism
Rule by the people through their elected
representatives
Federalism
A system of government in which power is
divided between a central government and
the states
Separation of Powers
Checks and Balances
Limited Government
Individual Rights
The division of basic government roles into
branches, with no branch given all the power
The ability of each branch of government to
exercise controls over the other two
Limited Government
• The Framers limited the power of
government by denying specific powers
to the Congress.
• The Constitution also forbids the states to
take certain actions.
• These were the delegated and reserved
powers discussed earlier.
Limited Government
• The principle of limited government is also
closely related to the “rule of law.”
• In the American government, everyone must
obey the law, even the president.
• This principle of government prevents the
abuse of power by powerful people.
A tell B
• How does the principle of
limited government prevent
abuse of power?
• Be sure to re-state the question in your
response!
The Seven Principles of the Constitution
Principle
Republicanism
Federalism
Separation of Powers
Checks and Balances
Limited Government
Individual Rights
Definition
Rule by the people through their elected
representatives
A system of government in which power
is divided between a central government
and the states
The division of basic government roles
into branches, with no branch given all
the power
The ability of each branch of government
to exercise controls over the other two
Principle that requires all citizens, even
government leaders, to obey the laws
Individual Rights
• The first ten amendments to the
Constitution protect people from an
overly powerful government.
• These amendments are called the Bill
of Rights, and they guarantee certain
individual rights, or personal liberties
and privileges.
Individual Rights
• For example, the
government cannot
control what people
believe, think, write, or
say.
• People also have the
right to gather
peacefully and to ask
the government to
correct a problem.
• Later amendments to
the Constitution also
advanced the cause of
individual rights.
A tell B
• What are three rights Americans
are guaranteed in the Bill of
Rights?
• Be sure to re-state the question in your
response!
The Seven Principles of the Constitution
Principle
Definition
Republicanism
Rule by the people through their elected
representatives
Federalism
A system of government in which power is
divided between a central government and
the states
Separation of Powers
The division of basic government roles into
branches, with no branch given all the power
Checks and Balances
The ability of each branch of government to
exercise controls over the other two
Limited Government
Principle that requires all citizens, even
government leaders, to obey the laws
Individual Rights
Personal liberties and rights guaranteed to
U.S. citizens by the Bill of Rights
Get your whiteboards
and markers ready!
1. Which of the following are
NOT among the seven principles
of the Constitution?
A. Popular sovereignty and republicanism
B. Federalism and individual rights
C. Personal responsibility and freedom of
choice
D. Separation of powers and limited
government
E. Checks and balances
9. How does the principle of
checks and balances operate?
A. It divides the powers of government
between the states and the federal
government.
B. It makes it possible to change the
Constitution over time.
C. It balances the needs of the government
with the rights of the individual citizen.
D. It gives each branch of government ways
to limit the powers of the other two
branches.
10. What part of the Constitution
that protects individual rights?
A. The Bill of Rights
B. The principle of
popular sovereignty
C. The Preamble
D. The elastic clause