Download Week 11 Lesson Plan Part 1

UNIT II
FOUNDATIONS OF AMERICAN GOVERNMENT
Lesson 4
How was the US government organized under the Constitution? What is federalism?
SS.7.C.3.3 Illustrate the structure and function (three branches of government established in
Articles I, II, and III with corresponding powers) of government in the United States as
established in the Constitution.
Source
Adapted from lessons by the Bill of Rights Institute at www.billofrightsinstitute.org
Overview
In this lesson, students will learn about the organization of the government under the United
States Constitution.
Objectives
 Students will discuss the seven articles of the Constitution.
 Students will learn a mnemonic device/acronym to help them remember the seven articles
of the Constitution.
 Students will design graphics to illustrate the seven articles of the Constitution.
Time
 One 50 minute class period
Passport Vocabulary
 Mnemonic
o Assisting or intended to assist memory.
 Acronym
o A word formed from the initial letter or letters of each of the successive parts or
major parts of a compound term (i.e., FBI for Federal Bureau of Investigations).
Strategies
 Mnemonic devices
 Visual learning
Materials
 8 ½ by 11 white paper
 Drawing and coloring supplies
1

Copies of the Constitution, 1 per student
(http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/constitution_transcript.html)
Activities
1. Begin class by reviewing the six goals of the Preamble with the students. Ask a student to
remind the class of the last line of the Preamble, “do ordain and establish this Constitution for the
United States of America.” Tell the class that today they will be examining the Constitution to
learn about the way it set up our government.
2. Make sure that each student has a copy of the U.S. Constitution.
3. In a large group discussion, go through each article of the Constitution, one by one, and
discuss its main idea:
o Article I established the legislative branch
o Article II established the executive branch
o Article III established the judicial branch
o Article IV describes the relationship among the states (known as federalism)
o Article V describes the process by which the Constitution can be amended
o Article VI explains that neither federal or state laws may conflict with any part of the
Constitution (the Supremacy Clause)
o Article VII describes the process for ratification of the Constitution
4. Tell students that you have an acronym to help them remember the purpose of each article:
Lazy (Legislative branch)
Elephants (Executive branch)
Jump (Judicial branch)
Slowly (States/federalism)
And (Amendment process)
Sleep (Supremacy clause)
Regularly (Ratification)
5. Distribute a sheet of 8 ½ by 11 white paper to each student. Instruct them to fold it three times
(hotdog, hamburger, and hamburger) so that they end up with eight boxes. In the first box, they
should write “The Seven Articles of the Constitution by: student name.” They should then label
each box “Article I,” “Article II,” and so on. In each box, they are to design a graphic that will
(at a glance) remind them of the purpose of each article (e.g., the presidential seal for Article II
or the scales of justice for Article III).
6. While students are working on their illustrations, play “Three Ring Circus” by Schoolhouse
Rock (http://www.schoolhouserock.tv/ThreeRing.html).
Extension Suggestion
Instruct students to come up with their own mnemonic device for remembering the seven articles
of the Constitution.
2
TEACHER CONTENT KNOWLEDGE RESOURCE
UNIT II
FOUNDATIONS OF AMERICAN GOVERNMENT
Lesson 4
How was the US government organized under the Constitution? What is federalism?
SS.7.C.3.3 Demonstrate an understanding of the principles, functions, and organization of
government.
Passport Vocabulary
 Mnemonic
o Assisting or intended to assist memory.
 Acronym
o A word formed from the initial letter or letters of each of the successive parts or
major parts of a compound term (i.e., FBI for Federal Bureau of Investigations).
This document addresses the following issues:
1. The organization of government under the U.S. Constitution
2. Federalism explored
3. State power as reflected in the U.S. Constitution (graphic)
1. The organization of government under the U.S. Constitution
The U.S. Constitution is organized as a series of seven articles. Each of the seven articles
deals with a power of government. The first three articles deal with the three branches of
government in the order that the founders intended would reflect the amount of power that each
branch would have under the new system. The legislative power, being the most powerful, is
listed first, while the executive power, which enjoys checks on the legislative power, is listed
second. The judiciary power is listed third (the power of the courts to overturn laws was not
established until Marbury v. Madison in 1803).
The fourth and fifth articles address state powers and the role of the national government
in protecting states. Article VI outlines how conflicts between the national and state
governments will be addressed. Specifically, if a national and state law conflict with one
another, then the national law is considered “supreme”. There is no arbitration, where a court
decides which law should be in place. Rather, the national law takes precedence over state law
in all circumstances where there is conflict between them.
3
The final article outlines the ratification process. Ratification requires the agreement of
nine state legislatures or state conventions. The national Congress had no say in the ratification
process.
2. Federalism explored
The U.S. Constitution was written in response to concerns about the weaknesses of the
Articles of Confederation. The weaknesses took two basic forms. One core weakness was that
the national government had very little power. There was a national Congress that did not have
the power to tax or to raise its own army or navy. The second weakness was that, because there
was no national government, the states could act, in many ways, as if they were independent
states. This meant that states engaged in independent relationships with other countries, and also
found themselves in conflict with one another at times. Together, the Articles of Confederation
did not encourage or otherwise advance national unity or a sense of nationhood among the states.
Ratifying the new constitution required the approval of nine state legislatures or nine
state conventions, whichever the state decided. This was the same system that was required for
passing a national law under the Articles of Confederation.
The U.S. Constitution in many ways reflects the problems experienced under the Articles
of Confederation, as the founders sought to solve these problems. The founders also wanted to
insure that the new document was ratified; otherwise their efforts would have been wasted. As it
was up to the states alone to ratify the new document (the national Congress under the Articles of
Confederation did not have a say in ratifying the new Constitution), then it was critically
important that the states support the new document.
The U.S. Constitution reflects concerns about the states under the Articles of
Confederation as well as an understanding that it was up to the states to ratify the new document.
One of the ways that the founders accomplished these two apparently contradictory goals (limit
state power because of the consequences under the Articles of Confederation while at the same
time seeking state support for the new document) was to create a system of federalism, where the
new government created opportunities for states to enjoy unique powers and to share others with
the newly formed national government. For example, only the national government has the
power to raise and support armies, while it is up to the states to decide whether or not citizens
must be registered in order to vote on Election Day. Both the state and national governments
have the power to tax; some states tax incomes (New York) while others do not (Florida). The
power to tax is a shared power.
3. State power as reflected in the U.S. Constitution (graphic)
The following table outlines how the U.S. Constitution is organized in a way that reflects shifts
from the state-centered government under the Articles of Confederation to a shared power
arrangement between the national and the state governments.
Article in the
U.S.
State Powers Given
State Powers Taken Away
4
Constitution
I-Congress
Section 2: States represented in the
national House of Representatives
Section 7: Bills for raising national taxes originate
in the House of Representatives
Section 3: States represented in the
national legislature in the Senate
II-Executive
III-Judicial
IV-States
Section 8: Powers held by the states under the
Articles of Confederation are now held by the
national Congress (i.e. raise and support armies,
Section 4: States set the rules for
coin money, establish rule of naturalization);
electing members of Congress, within
powers denied the national Congress under the
the context of existing national law
Articles of Confederation are now given to the
national Congress (lay and collect taxes, raise and
Section 5: Each house sets its own rules support armies and navies)
and may punish its own members
Section 9: Importation of slaves to end by 1808
Section 10: Rights specifically denied to states
Section 1: States choose members of
the Electoral College, who choose the
president
Section 2: Senate confirmation of
nominations
Section 1: Congress creates the courts
Section 1: Full faith and credit given to Section 2: States may not harbor fugitives
each state
Section 2: Citizens of each state
entitled to the privileges and
immunities of citizens of other states
Section 3: State legislatures must
approve of new states being formed by
merger or division
Section 4: States guaranteed a
republican (representative) form of
government
National government will protect state
governments from invasion
VAmendment
(Note: Article
V has no
National government will protect state
governments against domestic violence
States must approve of amendments to
the U.S. Constitution
Congress must approve of amendments to the U.S.
Constitution
5
sections)
VISupremacy of
the National
Government
(Note: Article
VI has no
sections)
VIIStates ratify the new Constitution
Ratification
(Note: Article
VII has no
sections)
All laws and treaties made at the national level are
the “supreme law of the land”
The national law is supreme over any conflicting
state law
REFERENCES
Beer, Samuel H. To Make a Nation: The Rediscovery of American Federalism. Cambridge, MA:
The Belknap Press of Harvard University, 1993.
Hall, Kermit. “An Introductory Bibliography to American Constitutional History” in This
Constitution: A Bicentennial Chronicle, 1985. Available at:
http://www.apsanet.org/content_8300.cfm.
Wood, Gordon. “The Origins of the Constitution” in This Constitution: A Bicentennial
Chronicle, 1985. Available at: http://www.apsanet.org/content_8300.cfm.
6