The+Constitution

We the people of the United States, In order to form a more perfect Union, Establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, Provide for the common defense, Promote the general welfare, and Secure the blessings of liberty To ourselves and our posterity, Do ordain and establish This Constitution for The United States of America.

With these fifty-two words, the Founding Fathers laid out the plans for a new government in the United States. The Constitution was not the first constitution to govern our country. The first constitution to govern our country was called the Articles of Confederation. The Articles of Confederation created a very weak central government. Under the Articles, the government had little power to make decisions for the country. They also had no way to pay debts since they were not given the power to tax, they could not regulate money, and they could not add new states and territories to the country. By 1787 the states decided that there needed to be a grand convention in Philadelphia to revise the Articles of Confederation. Instead of revising the Articles, they ended up writing a whole new constitution which is still in effect today. Our Constitution is the oldest and shortest constitution in the world today. For the next several weeks we will explore our Constitution to learn about our government and how we can be informed and effective citizens. Click of the links below to go to the section of the page we are working on. Governing Principles Article 1 Article 2 Article 3 Articles 4-7 Amendments Final Project

Governing Principles The governing principles are the basic rules that determine how our government is supposed to work. For the next couple of days we will take a look at them and see how they work.

Popular Sovereignty Separation of Powers Federalism Judicial Review Checks and Balances Limited Government Rule of Law



The Preamble
media type="youtube" key="0EfnNUt_nwY" width="420" height="315" align="left" The Preamble is the introduction to our Constitution. It sets our the goals and ideas of our government. It also clearly states the principle of popular sovereignty in it's first three word, We the People. I challenge and encourage you to memorize the 52 words of the Preamble.

[[image:US_Capitol_west_side.JPG width="400" height="203" align="left"]]Article 1 - The Legislative Branch
The delegates to the Constitutional Convention Set up a government for the United States that consisted of three branches. Article 1 describes the first of these branches the Legislative Branch. The Legislative Branch, often called Congress, is divided into two houses or parts called the House of Representatives and the Senate. This branch of government has been given all legislative powers which means they have the power to make the laws of the United States. Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D. C.

The House of Representatives
Copy and paste the following terms and questions into your OneNote on the Article 1 page. Write a definition for each term and answer each question in complete sentences using your own words. Using the tan section of your textbook, //The American Nation//, pages 931-932 will be very helpful.


 * 1) How often are the members of the House of Representatives elected?
 * 2) How old does a person have to be to be a member of the U. S. House of Representatives?
 * 3) How long does a person have to be a U. S. citizen in order to serve in the U. S. House of Representatives?
 * 4) Where must a member of the U. S. House of Representatives live?
 * 5) How is the number of Representatives a state has determined?
 * 6) What is an // enumeration // and how often is it to be taken?
 * 7) What is the least number of representatives a state can have?
 * 8) What is the total number of representatives in the U. S. House of Representatives today?
 * 9) If a U. S. Representative leaves office before his/her term is up how is the vacancy filled?
 * 10) Who chooses the officers of the U. S. House of Representatives?
 * 11) The House of Representatives has the “sole power of impeachment.” What does that mean?
 * 12) How many U. S. Representatives does the State of Maine have?
 * 13) Who are they?

The Senate
Copy and paste the following terms and questions into your OneNote on the Article 1 page. Write a definition for each term and answer each question in complete sentences using your own words. Using the tan section of your textbook, // The American Nation //, pages 931-932 will be very helpful.


 * 1) How many senators does each state have?
 * 2) Who are the senators from Maine?
 * 3) What amendment changed the way senators are elected?
 * 4) How long is the term of a senator?
 * 5) What fraction of the U. S. Senate is up for election every two years?
 * 6) How are vacancies filled in the U. S. Senate?
 * 7) How old does a person have to be to serve in the U. S. Senate?
 * 8) How long does a person have to be a U. S. citizen in order to serve in the U. S. Senate?
 * 9) Where do U. S. Senators have to live?
 * 10) Who serves as the President of the Senate?
 * 11) When can the President of the Senate vote?
 * 12) What is the job of the president pro tempore?
 * 13) Who is currently the president pro tempore of the Senate?
 * 14) What power does the U. S. Senate have that no other part of our government can do?
 * 15) When the President of the United States is tried, who presides?
 * 16) What is required for a conviction in an impeachment trial?

Copy and paste the following terms and questions into your OneNote on the Article 1 page. Write a definition for each term and answer each question in complete sentences using your own words.Using the tan section of your textbook, // The American Nation //, pages 933-937 will be very helpful.
 * Duties/Responsibilities**

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">1. How often does Congress have to meet? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;"> 2. The original opening day for the meeting of Congress was on the first Monday in December. The Twentieth Amendment changed the opening day to what?
 * <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Section 4: Elections and Meetings **

3. What is a quorum? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">4. How many members of a house of Congress must vote to expel a member? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">5. What is the written record of the meetings of the Congress called? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">6. How often is the written record of the meetings of Congress published? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">7. What are the rules for adjournment?
 * <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Section 5: Rules for Conduct of Business **

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">8. From where does the pay for U. S. Representatives and Senators come? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">9. For what can members of the Congress not be arrested while in session? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;"> 10. Can a member of Congress hold another federal office during their term?
 * <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Section 6: Privileges and Restrictions **

11. What is revenue? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">12. If a bill that contains a tax it must come from what part of Congress? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">13. What is a bill? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">14. Where does a bill that passes both the House of Representatives and the Senate go? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;"> 15. How does a bill become a law without the President’s signature? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">16. What does veto mean? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;"> 17. What happens if the President vetoes a bill? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">18. What happens to a bill if it is sent to the President and it is not returned to Congress or signed within ten days, excluding Sundays? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">19. How does the President make a pocket veto? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;"> 20.What does it take for Congress to over-ride a veto of the President?
 * <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Section 7: Law-Making Process **

21. What are duties, imposts, and excises? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">22. What part does Congress play when the country goes to war?
 * <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Section 8: Powers Delegated to Congress **

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">23. From what does a writ of habeas corpus protect us? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">24. What is a bill of attainder? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">25. What is an ex post facto law?
 * <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Section 9: Powers Denied to the Federal Government **

26. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">When can a state declare war?
 * <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Section 10: Powers Denied to the States **

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[[image:whitehouse.jpg width="400" height="263" align="right"]]Article 2 - The Executive Branch
Article 2 of the Constitution set up a branch of government that was left out of the Articles of Confederation because they were afraid that an executive branch would become too powerful and become like the king that they had fought to overthrow. The center of the Executive Branch is White House. It serves as both the office of the executive branch and the home of the President of the United States. All Presidents except George Washington have called the White House home.

Copy and paste the following terms and questions into your OneNote on the Article 2 page. Write a definition for each term and answer each question in complete sentences using your own words.Using the tan section of your textbook, // The American Nation //, pages 937-939 will be very helpful.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">1. Who is the head of the Executive Branch? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 2. How long is the term for the President of the United States? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 3. How many electors does each state have? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 4. How many electors does the State of Maine have? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 5. You will notice that in your textbook all of Section 1, paragraph 3 is crossed out in blue. This means it was changed by an amendment. What caused the change to be made? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">6. What amendment changed Section 1, paragraph 3? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">7. Congress has the power to determine the date of choosing electors. According to the law passed in 1792 what is the date on which electors are chosen? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">8. When do the electors meet to cast their votes? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">9. How long must a person be a United States citizen in order to serve as President? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 10. How old does a person have to be to serve as President of the United States? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 11. How long does a person have to be a resident within the United States in order to serve as President of the United States? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">12. What does succession mean? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 13. If the President is unable to carry out the duties of the office of President, who takes over? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 14. Can the President of the United States get a pay raise? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 15. Who usually administers the Oath of Office to the new President? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 16. What powers does the President have over the armed services? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 17. When would the President be the head of the state militia, national guard? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">18. he President has the power to grant reprieves and pardons. What are these? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">19. What has to happen for a treaty or nomination of the President to take effect? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 20. How often does the President have to give Congress a report on the state of the Union? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 21. When is the State of the Union usually given? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 22. What things could get the President or the Vice-President removed from office?

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The Cabinet
Article 2, Section 2 allowed that President to create a group of advisers called the Cabinet. The Cabinet includes the Vice President and the heads of 15 executive department. The heads of these departments are called Secretaries. In your OneNote under the Constitution section on the Article 2 page, create a table about the Cabinet. Your table will need contain information about all 15 of the Executive Departments. The information you will need for each department is: **Department Name, Date Established, Current Secretary, Brief Job Description.** Two good sites for your information are the White House and Ben's Guide to U.S. Government. You will probably need to use both sites to complete the chart. A sample table is created below.


 * **Department** || **Date Established** || **Current Secretary** || **Brief Job Description** ||

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Article 3 - The Judicial Branch
Article 3 of our Constitution sets up the Judicial Branch of our government. The Founding Fathers set up one Supreme Court and let the Congress to set up other courts as they see it necessary. The Supreme Court is the highest court in our country.

// Copy the following questions into your History OneNote. Answer each in complete sentences in your own words. Use pages 939 and 940 to help find the answers. You will need to use both the white and tan sections of text. To find some of the answers you will need to do some research. //

// Answer the following questions about the Judicial Branch of our government. Use pages 939 and 940 to find the information needed. // <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">1. What is judicial power? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">2. What is the main job of the Judicial Branch? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 3. What part of the government has the power to establish inferior courts? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">4. What is an inferior court? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">5. How many district and circuit courts, courts of appeal, have been established as of today? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 6. How many people serve on the Supreme Court? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 7. What are they called? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 8. How long do judges hold their office? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 9. How much is the Chief Justice of the United States paid per year? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 10. How much is an Associate Justice of the United States paid per year? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">11. What is original jurisdiction? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">12. What is an appellate court? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 13. What court case established the right to decide if a law is constitutional? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 14. In what cases does the Supreme Court have original jurisdiction? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 15. What is the only trial that does not have to be by jury? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 16. What is treason? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 17. In what two ways could a person be found guilty of treason? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> 18. What part of our government sets the punishment for treason?

Supreme Court Chart
On the Article 3 page of your OneNote, create a chart of the Justices of the Supreme Court. You will need to provide the following information for each Justice. Use the Supreme Court site to find the information.
 * Name
 * Position
 * Nominated by
 * Date Seated

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= = = = = **Articles 4 - 7** = = = Articles 1-3 of the Constitution established the three branches of our government. The remaining four articles provided a framework for our country to work. Article 4 set the pattern of how the states would get along and work together, Article 5 established the process of amending or changing the Constitution, Article 6 established the supremacy of the national government, and Article 7 told how the Constitution could be ratified.

// Answer each of the following questions in complete sentence and in your own words. Uses pages 940 -942 to find the information. //

1. Give an example of an official act that states must recognize from other states. 2. What is extradition? 3. When can a governor refuse to return a suspected criminal to a state when asked? 4. What amendment replaced Article 4, Section 2, Clause 3? 5. What has to happen if two state want to join together to form one state? 6. What are the two ways that an amendment to the Constitution can be proposed? 7. What does ratified mean? 8. What are the two ways an amendment to the Constitution can be ratified? 9. What are the highest laws in the United States? 10. State and federal officeholders must take an oath to do what? 11. What cannot be used as a qualification to hold state or federal office? 12. How many states were required to ratify the Constitution?

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">The Amendments
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">After the Constitutional Convention the major problem that some of the delegates and state had with the new Constitution was that it did not contain a Bill of Rights. They were afraid the government would become too powerful and ignore the rights of individuals. They did not want this to happen so in 1791 the first ten amendment were added to the Constitution. These are called the Bill of Rights. In the 224 years since 1791, the Constitution has only been changed 17 more times for a total of 27 amendments.

//<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">Below you will find a scavenger hunt of the amendments. Find the amendment that each of the following is referring to. //

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">1. This amendment allowed women the right to vote. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">2. This is the only amendment to be repealed. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">3. Which amendment repealed another one? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">4. This amendment took more than 200 years to be ratified. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">5. This amendment forbids cruel and unusual punishment. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">6. This amendment lowered the voting age to 18. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">7. The Bill of Rights was added to the Constitution in what year? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">8. This amendment gave residents of the District of Columbia the right to vote in Presidential elections. In what year? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">9. This amendment gives me the right to remain silent. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">10. This amendment allows the government to tax your income. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">11. This amendment allowed former slaves to vote. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">12. This amendment limited the number of terms a President can serve. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">13. This amendment made it illegal to charge a tax for the right of voting. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">14. This amendment gives the freedoms of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">15. This amendment made slavery illegal in the United States. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">16. This amendment requires the government to get a warrant, or written court order to search a person’s house.

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Final Project <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Congratulations! You have been chosen by the State Department to create a way to teach new immigrants to the United States about our Constitution. Your creation can be in any form that you choose. It can be a written document or handbook or some sort of visual presentation. The way that you present the information is not as important as the information you present. Whatever you create must be a clear, concise explanation of our Constitution. It must show a complete understanding of the Constitution. You will be allowed to work with one other person but there must be clear evidence that both members of the team worked equally on the project. Below you will find a list of required items that must be included. GOOD LUCK!

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">1. A brief overview of the development of our Constitution. (History of the Constitution) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">2. Guiding Principles of the Constitution <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">3. A complete explanation of all of the branches of our government including qualifications, responsibilities, length of term, current leaders, for Representatives and Senators, use those from the state of Maine as examples, and the place where they meet. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">4. Explain the legislative process. (How a bill becomes a law) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">5. Explain how the Constitution can be amended. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">6. Explain the Bill of Rights.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Popular Sovereignty
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Separation of Powers
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Federalism
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Rule of Law
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Checks and Balances
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Limited Government



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