Historical Development of the Constitution

● Standard 7.4b — The Articles of Confederation

A government is the system or organization that makes laws & decisions for a country or society.

Student tip
Governments exist to keep order and protect the rights of citizens.

● Other Vocabulary — not listed under a standard

A monarchy is a form of government ruled by a king or queen.

Student tip
Many colonists began to oppose monarchy because they had no representation in the British government.

● Standard 7.4b — The Articles of Confederation

A democracy is a system of government in which power belongs to the people.

Student tip
In a democracy, the people have political power. Demos means people.

● Standard 7.4b — The Articles of Confederation

A republic is a form of government in which citizens elect representatives to make decisions and create laws.

Student tip
In a republic, people rule through elected representatives.

● Standard 7.4b — The Articles of Confederation

A confederation is a loose alliance of independent states that work together for certain, but limited purposes.

Student tip
Think of a confederation as states cooperating, but still mostly independent.

● Standard 7.4b — The Articles of Confederation

The Articles of Confederation was the first written plan of government for the United States.

Student tip
The Articles helped win independence but made governing difficult because they created a government that was too weak to solve the nation’s problems.

● Standard 7.4b — The Articles of Confederation

Shays’ Rebellion was an uprising of farmers in Massachusetts in 1786–1787.

Student tip
Shays’ Rebellion scared many leaders and showed that the government was too weak. The rebellion could not be stopped because the government had no strong army.

● Standard 7.4b — The Articles of Confederation

The Constitutional Convention was a meeting held in Philadelphia in 1787 to revise the Articles of Confederation.

Student tip
The convention did not just fix the Articles—it replaced them.

● Standard 7.4b — The Articles of Confederation

The Constitution is the written plan of government for the United States.

● Standard 7.4b — The Articles of Confederation

A federation is a system of government in which power is shared between a national government and smaller political units such as states.

Student tip
Power is shared between national and state governments.

● Standard 7.4b — The Articles of Confederation

A delegate is a person chosen to represent a state or group at a meeting or convention.

Student tip
Delegates represented the interests of their state

● Standard 7.4c — The Constitutional Convention

The New Jersey Plan was a proposal for how the new national government should be organized.

Student tip
Small states supported this plan because they wanted equal power.

● Standard 7.4c — The Constitutional Convention

The Virginia Plan was another proposal for organizing the new government.

Student tip
Large states liked this plan because they would have more power.

● Standard 7.4c — The Constitutional Convention

The Great Compromise was an agreement that settled the dispute between large and small states over representation in Congress.

Student tip
One house based on population, one house equal for all states.

● Other Vocabulary — not listed under a standard

The Three-Fifths Compromise was an agreement about how enslaved people would be counted for representation and taxation.

Student tip
This compromise affected representation in Congress.

● Standard 7.4c — The Constitutional Convention

The Slave Trade Compromise was another agreement made during the Constitutional Convention.

Student tip
This compromise allowed the slave trade to continue for 20 more years.

● Standard 7.5b — Branches, Checks and Rights

The Preamble is the introduction to the United States Constitution. It is one sentence containing 52 words.

Student tip
The Preamble explains why the Constitution was written.

● Standard 7.5b — Branches, Checks and Rights

Separation of powers is the division of government authority into different branches.

Student tip
Power is divided so no single group controls everything.

● Standard 7.5b — Branches, Checks and Rights

The executive branch is the branch of government responsible for enforcing and carrying out laws. It is outlined in Article II of the Constitution.

Student tip
Think of the executive branch as the branch that “executes” or carries out laws.

● Standard 7.5b — Branches, Checks and Rights

The president is the head of the executive branch and the leader of the federal government.

● Other Vocabulary — not listed under a standard

A veto is the power of the president to reject a law passed by Congress.

Student tip
A veto means the president says “no” to a law.

● Standard 7.5b — Branches, Checks and Rights

The legislative branch is the branch of government responsible for making laws. It is outlined in Article I of the US Constitution.

Student tip
Legislative = law-making.

● Standard 7.5b — Branches, Checks and Rights

Congress is the national legislature, or lawmaking body of the United States. It is made up of two houses and together they make bills and vote them into laws.

Student tip
Once a bill is passed by both houses of Congress, it is sent to the president for approval before it can become a law.

● Standard 7.5b — Branches, Checks and Rights

The House of Representatives is a chamber of Congress consisting of 435 voting members and 6 nonvoting members that are elected as representatives of the state in which they reside.

Student tip
Some states with the most representatives are largely populated states like California, Texas, Florida and New York.

● Standard 7.5b — Branches, Checks and Rights

The Senate is the second chamber of Congress and is more prestigious, made up of only 100 members.

● Standard 7.5b — Branches, Checks and Rights

The judicial branch is the branch of government responsible for interpreting laws.

Student tip
Judicial = courts.

● Standard 7.5b — Branches, Checks and Rights

The Supreme Court is the highest court in the United States and currently has nine members called justices appointed by a President.

Student tip
The Supreme Court has the final say on constitutional questions.

● Standard 7.5b — Branches, Checks and Rights

Checks and balances are a system that allows each branch of government to limit the powers of the other branches.

Student tip
Each branch checks the power of the others.

● Standard 7.4c — The Constitutional Convention

Federalism is a system of government in which power is divided and shared between the national government and the state governments.

● Standard 7.5b — Branches, Checks and Rights

The Electoral College is the system used to elect the president and vice president of the United States.

Student tip
Americans vote for president, but the Electoral College officially chooses the winner.

● Standard 7.4c — The Constitutional Convention

Ratification is the official approval of a document or law.

● Standard 7.5b — Branches, Checks and Rights

Federalists were people who supported the ratification of the Constitution and supported a stronger national government.

● Standard 7.4c — The Constitutional Convention

Anti-Federalists were people who opposed the ratification of the Constitution. They feared the national government would become too powerful

Student tip
This document is like America’s birth certificate

● Standard 7.4c — The Constitutional Convention

An amendment is a change or addition made to the Constitution.

● Standard 7.4c — The Constitutional Convention

The Bill of Rights is the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution added in a chunk in 1791 to guarantee individual freedoms, something that the Anti-Federalists fought strongly to secure.