We the People - Lessons 8, 9/10, 11/12 + Unit 2 Quiz

Lesson 8
As a class, we started Unit 2 and we went over Lesson 8: "What Were the Articles of Confederation, and Why did Some Founders Want to Change Them?" This is one of two lessons that will give students background information about the U.S. Constitution to prepare them for our Class Constitutional Convention role play.

For lesson resources, see Google Classroom.

Lessons 9 & 10
Next was Lesson 9: "How Was the Philadelphia Convention Organized?"  + Lesson 10: "Why Was Representation a Major Issue at the Philadelphia Convention?" This is the second lesson that will give students background information about the U.S. Constitution to prepare them for our Class Constitutional Convention role play.

For lesson resources, see Google Classroom.

Lessons 11 & 12
The final lesson of Unit 2 looked at Lesson 11: "What Questions Did the Framers Consider in Designing the Three Branches of the National Government?"  + Lesson 12: "How Did the Delegates Distribute Powers between National and State Governments?" 

For lesson resources, see Google Classroom.

Unit 2 Quiz
The quiz covers Unit 2 - How Did the Framers Create the Constitution? Students will be expected to answer one question in detail. They need to make sure they know the answers to all pieces of each question. They can use their assignments, notes, and the book to help them prepare.

Quiz Date:

A Day: Friday, October 27th

B Day: Monday, October 30th

See Google Classroom for the study guide and resources from the previous lessons.

We the People - Lesson 4, 5, 6 & 7 + Unit 1 Quiz

Lesson 4
We started with the goals and key terms for Lesson 4: What were the British origins of American constitutionalism? Students took notes on the information in the Google Slides. After discussing the notes, students read further about the writ of habeas corpus.
After students gathered the information, they were asked to evaluate the importance of habeas corpus and trial by jury. In groups, students discussed the impact of these rights on modern day. After this group work, students were asked to work on some review questions that had students critically thinking about this lesson's information.

See Google Classroom for the lesson resources, including slideshow and handouts.

Lesson 5 & 6
We started with the goals and key terms for Lesson 5: What Basic Ideas about Rights and Constitutional Government Did Colonial Americans Hold? Students took notes on the information in the Google Slides. After discussing the notes, students read further about the rights of colonist and constitutional governments in the colonies.

Then students moved on to Lesson 6: Why Did American Colonists Want to Free Themselves from Great Britain? We explored some of the reasons that sparked the American Revolution. Students took notes on the information in the Google Slides. After discussing the notes, students worked in small groups to compare/contrast the "Declaration of Independence" and the "Universal Declaration of Human Rights."

See Google Classroom for the lesson resources, including slideshow and handouts.

Lesson 7
We started with the goals and key terms for Lesson 7: What Basic Ideas about Government and Rights Did the State Constitutions Include? Students took notes on the information in the Google Slides. After discussing the notes, students read further about the political and due process rights people had according to these new state constitutions.

Then students looked at the "Virginia Declaration of Rights" and the "Oregon Bill of Rights," determining the similarities and differences between the two.

See Google Classroom for the lesson resources, including slideshow and handouts.

Unit 1 Quiz
The quiz covers Unit 1 - What are the philosophical and historical foundations of the American political system? Students will be expected to answer two questions in detail. They need to make sure they know the answers to all pieces of each question. They can use their assignments, notes, and the book to help them prepare.

Quiz Date:

A Day: Friday, October 6th

B Day: Monday, October 9th

See Google Classroom for the study guide and resources from the previous lessons.

We the People Lessons 1 & 2

We have now gotten into the first of our Government curriculum by looking at Lessons 1 & 2 from the We the People text. 

We started with the goals and key terms for Lesson 1: What did the Founders think about constitutional government? Students took notes on the information in the Google Slides. 

Then we looked at the goals and terms for Lesson 2: What ideas about civic life informed the founding generation? For this students were introduced to the chapter through some notes, but then were tasked at reading a section of the chapter on their own and using this handout to do so.

Lesson resources:
Google Slides - Lessons 1 & 2
WTP Lesson 2 Handout

HW: Current Event related to Classical Republicanism or Natural Rights Philosophy - be prepared to discuss in class.

Due: 9/14 (A-day) and 9/15 (B-day)

Academic Honesty Assignment

As the last introductory assignment of the start of the year, students will be completing the Academic Honesty Assignment. The steps end with students writing a 1.5-2 page research paper about academic dishonesty and its consequences. This is an important topic to make sure that students are correctly citing their sources in all of their school work and making sure to take steps to be academically honest.

Please read through the assignment description on Google Classroom and follow steps 1-4.

• Step 1: Read about academic dishonesty and its consequences
• Step 2: Gather your facts by following the guidelines for getting reliable sources. You should find two sources on your own, but you must use the information from the provided website as your first source
• Step 3: Complete the chart as you take notes from your 3 resources. You should have 3-5 bullet points for each source
• Step 4: Based on the facts you learned about the topic, write an essay that explains the provided questions

Turn in your final draft on Google Classroom no later than Friday, September 15th.

Welcome + Personal Manifesto

Welcome to Government!

I am so excited to journey through this class together with you and your peers. Be ready for a challenging course that will explore current events and issues and how they relate to government. My hope for you is to start (or continue) on the path of becoming a contributing citizen in society. You can find the syllabus under the Class Forms section of the blog.

For the introductory activity, you will be creating your own personal manifesto! This will be a great way to get know the diverse community that makes up our class.

* Remember: A manifesto represents opinions, motivations, principles, and/or intentions.

1. Be creative and true to yourself
2. Include writing and at least one image
3. Be prepared to share your manifesto

Visit Google Classroom to see the assignment description and rubric. 

Additional examples of manifestos:
U.S. Declaration of Independence  by Thomas Jefferson and others
I Have a Dream by Martin Luther King, Jr.
An Incomplete Manifesto for Growth by Bruce Mau
Why Cheap Art Manifesto by Bread & Puppet Theater
Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen) by Baz Lurhmann

Other resources:
Canva
Piktochart
Wordle
Image Chef

FINAL Due date: 
- Wednesday, September 6th (A-day)
- Thursday, September 7th (B-day)

Be prepared to share the PHYSICAL copies of your manifestos in class.