the u.s. constitution january 27, 2014. what is a constitution? a ___________ is a document that...
TRANSCRIPT
The U.S. Constitution
January 27, 2014
What is a constitution?• A ___________ is a document that embodies the
fundamental principles of a government of a nation.
• It outlines its ______, institutions, and customs.• A constitution can often be labeled as
“________” or “living” because it can be _________ by an act of congress (_____________).
• Most countries in the world have a _________ constitution, often based on the U.S., British, or French constitutions.
Writing the U.S. Constitution • The U.S. Constitution was written at the
________________________ in Philadelphia in 1787.
• It was written to fix the weaknesses that were present in the ___________________________
• All states except Rhode Island sent ___________ to the convention to help decide the content of the constitution
• However, many arguments ensued, and some delegates were so angry that they ______ before the document was finished
Disagreements at the Convention • The fundamental questions that needed to be decided
were how much ________ the __________ government should have and how the ________ would be a part of the federal government
• It turned into a battle between _______ states and _______ states– Large states wanted representation based on population; small
states wanted equal representation from all states• Eventually, a _____________ was reached where the
legislature would be ___________ (two houses) with the House of Representatives decided based on population and the Senate being equal among the states
• This is called the ________________________
The Question of Slavery
• With population size being a deciding factor in the House of Representatives, the question of whether __________ counted or not was raised
• It was decided that ______________ of the slave population should count towards the total population of a state (this is called The Three-Fifths Compromise)
• Other delegates wanted to _________ slavery altogether.
• Another compromise was reached that stated that the _______________ of slaves would be abolished, but not before ________. Slavery itself was still legal.
Putting the Constitution into Effect
• When the document was signed in September 1787, it was sent to the states for _____________
• ______ states were required to ratify• Some states seriously ___________ with the
decision– Rhode Island and North Carolina actually rejected the
Constitution and refused to ratify• The ninth state, New Hampshire, finally ratified in
June 1788• It went into effect in _______________
Structure of the Constitution• There is a ___________, 7 _________, and 27
_______________• The first ______ amendments are collectively known
as the _____________• The Preamble states the __________ of the document• Each article lays out the ___________ of each branch
of government, as well as requirements for each job and the oath of office that they must take
• Each amendment __________ the document in some way
The Preamble
• Outlines the purpose of the document• “We the people of the United States, in order to
form a more perfect ________, establish _________, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common _________, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of _________ to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”
The Articles• Article One: outlines the functions of the _______________ branch
(Congress)• Article Two: outlines the functions of the ____________ branch
(President and Vice President)• Article Three: outlines the functions of the ___________ Branch
(Supreme Court)• Article Four: discusses the _________ and how they should work
together and not discriminate against citizens of other states• Article Five: provides instructions on how to _________ the
Constitution• Article Six: provides the ________ of office for members of the
government• Article Seven: declares the Constitution will go into effect when
__________ by nine states
The Bill of Rights
• The first _____ amendments• These were added within _____ years of the
ratification of the Constitution• They guarantee certain ____________ and
_________ to the citizens of the U.S.• (See attachment)
Other Amendments• In addition to the Bill of Rights, there are ____ more
amendments to the U.S. Constitution• Some were brought on by __________________
decisions, others by changing _________ in the country, and others describe voting and election procedures, tax collection, and inauguration procedures for Presidents, Vice Presidents, and members of Congress
• No matter how an amendment is brought about, it takes __________________ of the states to ratify before the amendment can go into effect
• (See attachment)
Questions• 1. What is a constitution?• 2. What does a constitution outline?• 3. Where and when was the U.S. Constitution written?• 4. Why was the Constitution written?• 5. What fundamental questions needed to be addressed by
the Constitution?• 6. How did the delegates end up compromising on these
questions?• 7. What is the Three-Fifths Compromise?• 8. When did the Constitution go into effect?• 9. How many articles does the Constitution have?• 10. How many amendments does the Constitution have?
More Questions
• 11. What are the first 10 amendments called?• 12. What is the purpose of the preamble?• 13. List each article and what it does.• 14. What does the Bill of Rights guarantee?• 15. How did some of the other amendments
come about?• 16. How many states must ratify before a new
amendment can go into effect?