Lesson Plan
Heritage Foundation

How to Read the Constitution

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Even lawyers can find the US Constitution to be very wordy! Help learners create a foundation for understanding the Constitution with several analysis essays. Multiple activities complement the reading and allow for active and meaningful...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson 2: The Constitution: Our Guiding Document

For Teachers 3rd - 6th Standards
Explore the structure and content of the US Constitution in the second lesson plan of this five-part social studies series. A collection of activities, games, and videos complement a class reading of a document summarizing the US...
Unit Plan
C3 Teachers

Democracy in Danger: Should the Right to Vote Be Protected in the Constitution?

For Teachers 12th
High school seniors investigate what national, state and local rules say about voting. After examining the Constitution's articles, clauses, and amendments, researchers look at videos, listen to podcasts, and read articles to gather...
Organizer
Student Handouts

The Formation of the U.S. Constitution #3

For Students 8th - 12th
Finish up your study of the United States Constitution with the third resource in a three-part series. Class members respond to three questions that focus on the relationship between the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution and...
Interactive
DocsTeach

The Voting Record of the Constitution

For Teachers 5th - 8th
A piece of the past helps shape the future. Learn what historical documents reveal about the past using an engaging activity.  Academics participate in a role-playing scenario, view the voting record of the Constitutional...
Website
Ashbrook Center at Ashland University

The Constitutional Convention

For Students 6th - 12th Standards
Imagine sitting down with representatives of your school to write a new student handbook. What arguments would ensue? How would compromises be made to finish the project? Scholars research the Constitutional Convention using a directory...
Interactive
2
2
Judicial Learning Center

The Constitution and Rights

For Students 6th - 12th
What's the right way to teach young historians about the Bill of Rights? Many an instructor has asked this question when pondering lesson plans over the US Constitution. The Constitution and Rights is a nifty resource that provides a...
Organizer
Student Handouts

The Formation of the U.S. Constitution #2

For Students 8th - 12th
Continue your study of the United States Constitution with the second activity in a three-part series. Learners respond to three questions using complete sentences. In order to successfully answer the questions, pupils must have...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Achieve The Core

Linda R. Monk, Words We Live By: Your Annotated Guide to the Constitution - Grade 8

For Teachers 8th - 10th Standards
“We the people . . .” Thus begins the Preamble to the Constitution. Using a close reading approach, class members examine an excerpt from Linda Monk’s article that traces how the interpretation of these words has evolved. Some of your...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Preamble to the Constitution: How Do You Make a More Perfect Union?

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students analyze the Preamble of the Constitution and identify the historical context that led to its wording. They, in groups, interpret phrases from the Preamble, examine relevant court cases and create illustrations for their portion...
Lesson Plan
1
1
PBS

Constitution Day

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Travel back to 1787 as young scholars investigate the creation of the US Constitution. After first working in small groups to create sets of classroom rules, students go on to read a summary of the Constitution and watch a short video...
Lesson Plan
National Endowment for the Humanities

Ratifying the Constitution

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Ratifying the Constitution was no simple task. Using primary sources, such as classic writings from the Federalists and Anti-Federalists, young scholars examine the arguments for and against the Constitution. They then decide: Would they...
Lesson Plan
Judicial Branch of California

The Constitution: What It Says and What It Means

For Teachers 5th Standards
Learners get the chance to act as representatives to the Constitution Convention, and must decide whether or not to recommend your state ratify the new framework. After examining the Constitution line-by-line, they consider their...
Lesson Plan
National Endowment for the Humanities

The Preamble to the Constitution: A Close Reading Lesson

For Students 6th - 8th Standards
"We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union..." These familiar lines begin the Preamble to the Constitution, but do learners know what they mean? A close reading exercise takes a look at the language of the...
Interactive
2
2
Judicial Learning Center

The Constitution

For Students 6th - 12th
Supreme Court justices debate the meaning of the US Constitution, but we expect teachers to explain it to scholars with far less training and experience. A daunting task for sure, but it's not insurmountable with resources that simplify...
Lesson Plan
National Endowment for the Humanities

A Day for the Constitution

For Teachers 6th - 12th
The "Constitution Day and Citizenship Day" law requires schools receiving any federal funding to provide educational programming on the history of the American Constitution. The lesson plans, materials, videos, questions, and activities...
Lesson Plan
Heritage Foundation

The Constitution, Federalism, and the States

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
The divide between federal and state government is responsible for much of tension that continues to this day, partly because of the US Constitution. The activities in the 14th lesson in a series of 20 are designed to help learners...
Lesson Plan
1
1
Center for Civic Education

Constitution Day Rap

For Teachers 1st - 2nd
Engage your class while learning about the US Constitution with this fun primary grade social studies instructional activity. After viewing a picture of the US Constitution, young learners piece together a US flag...
Interactive
Ashbrook Center at Ashland University

Ratification of the Constitution

For Students 6th - 12th Standards
How difficult was it to get everyone to agree on the contents of the Constitution? Historians analyze the task of the Founding Fathers in creating the United States Constitution. They research a directory of video clips, primary sources,...
Lesson Plan
2
2
Hyperion Publishing

Words We Live By: Your Annotated Guide to the Constitution

For Teachers 7th - 9th Standards
The language of the Constitution can feel quite ominous to young learners, but there are a variety of strategies you can utilize to help your class grasp the important concepts and ideals in our nation's founding document. This lesson...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Constitutional Convention: Four Founding Fathers You May Never Have Met

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students study the biographies of Ellsworth, Hamilton, Paterson, and Randolph. They study roles of these men during the Constitutional Convention.
Lesson Plan
Center for History Education

The Founding Fathers and the Constitutional Struggle Over Centralized Power

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Believe it or not, the Constitution was America's second attempt at a democratic government. Academics travel back to the past to explore the shortcomings of the Articles of Confederation that would eventually lead to the Constitutional...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Philadelphia and the Constitutional Convention "Heat Up"

For Teachers 8th - 11th
Learners explore the Constitutional Convention of 1787. In this U.S. Constitution lesson, students role play the parts of delegates in a simulation of the convention.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What is the Federal System Created by the Constitution?

For Teachers 7th - 8th Standards
Explore the unique structure of the federal system of government in the United States. Class members will learn about how most nations were organized before the establishment of the Constitution, how power is currently divided...

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