11th Grade Semester One
Unit 2: Constitutional Foundations
Stage 1: Desired OutcomesTopic / Unit Title: The Constitution
* HOW DO CHALLENGES LEAD OR FORCE PEOPLE TO CHANGE?
Common Core Skills
Ø Reading-Social Studies (RH)
1. Use relevant information and ideas from documents to support analysis
3. Use information/ideas to determine cause and effect
6. Compare and contrast various points of view
7. Create and analyze visuals (graphs/charts)
8. Identify and analyze evidence
Ø Writing (W)
3. Produce writing appropriate to task, purpose and audience.
4. Strengthen writing by planning, revising, editing and rewriting
5. Draw evidence from informational text
Ø Speaking and Listening (SL)
1. Participate in collaborative discussion
4. Clearly present appropriate information and evidence
6. Demonstrate command of formal English
Ø Language (L)
1. Demonstrate appropriate grammar usage in writing and speaking (sentence complexity)
2. Demonstrate appropriate usage of the mechanics of language (punctuation, capitalization)
4. Build vocabulary and expand word choice
NYS Content Standards
(Standards: 1, 5; Themes: TCC, GOV, CIV, ECO)
11.2a Following the French and Indian War, the British government attempted to gain greater political and economic control over the colonies. Colonists resisted these efforts, leading to increasing tensions between the colonists and the British government. Students will examine:
· British efforts to gain greater political and economic control, such as the Proclamation of 1763, the Stamp Act, the Townsend Acts, the Tea Act, the Boston Massacre, and the Coercive Acts, and colonial reactions to these efforts.
11.2b Failed attempts to mitigate the conflicts between the British government and the colonists led the colonists to declare independence, which they eventually won through the Revolutionary War, which affected individuals in different ways. Students will examine:
· the purpose of and the ideas contained in the Declaration of Independence and consider its long term impacts.
· the impacts of the Revolutionary War on workers, African Americans, women, and Native Americans.
11.2c Weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation led to a convention whose purpose was to revise the Articles of Confederation but instead resulted in the writing of a new Constitution. The ratification debate over the proposed Constitution led the Federalists to agree to add a bill of rights to the Constitution. Students will examine:
· the weaknesses and successes of government under the Articles of Confederation.
· the development of the Constitution, including the major debates and their resolutions, which included compromises over representation, taxation, and slavery.
· the structure, power, and function of the federal government as created by the Constitution, including key constitutional principles such as the division of power between federal and state government, the separation of powers at the federal level, the creation of checks and balances, the sovereignty of the people, and judicial independence.
· the key points of debate expressed in the Federalist Papers and the Antifederalist Papers, focusing on the protection of individual rights and the proper size for a republic.
· the rights and protections provided by the Bill of Rights and to whom they initially applied.
11.2d Under the new Constitution, the young nation sought to achieve national security and political stability, as the three branches of government established their relationships with each other and the states. Students will examine:
· The presidential actions and precedents established by George Washington, including those articulated in his Farewell Address.
· Hamilton’s economic plan, the debate surrounding the plan, and its impacts on the development of political parties.
· the tradition of a peaceful transfer of power established in the presidential election of 1800 and compare it to the presidential election of 2000, focusing on the roles of the Electoral College and Congress in 1800 and the Electoral College and the Supreme Court in 2000.
· The Supreme Court cases, including Marbury v. Madison, McCulloch v. Maryland, and Gibbons v. Ogden, and analyze how these decisions strengthened the powers of the federal government. / Essential Questions:
11.2a
11.2b
Ø Did the Articles of Confederation provide an effective form of government?
Ø Were the compromises of the Constitutional Convention have a positive impact on the nation?
Ø How was the compromise on the issue of slavery a turning point in American history?
11.2c
Ø How did the Bill of Rights impact the power of the people in the new government?
Ø Should the Constitution have been ratified?
Ø Does federalism have positive or negative impact on effectiveness of our government?
Ø Do checks and balances and separation of powers make government have a positive or negative effect on our government?
Ø Does our state or federal government have greater impact on our lives?
Ø Is one branch more important than the others?
Ø To what extent is the Constitution a living document?
Ø Is the electoral college fair and democratic?
11.2d
Stage 2: Assessments and Tasks
Common Core Literacy Task
Ø TEAL / Exit ticket: answer the AIM, “Did the British have the right to tax the colonies?” using 3 taxes and explain why they should or should not be able to impose that tax as evidence to support your claim.
Ø Newspaper Article: Write a newspaper article from the perspective of the COLONIST (A-L) or the BRITISH (M-Z) use three examples of the details from images and documents as evidence to support your claims in 10 sentences.
Ø Editorial: Explain the meaning of the Declaration of Independence from the perspective of a male property owner, a woman, an African American and Native American.
Ø TEAL / Exit ticket: answer the AIM, “Do checks and balances have a positive or negative effect on our government?” use 3 examples of checks and explain why it positive or negative as evidence to support your claim.
Ø TEAL Paragraph: Explain whether GW’s presidency had a positive or negative impact on the founding or America. Use 4 examples from the documents and one quotation as evidence to support your claim. / Performance Task(s) – Other Evidence
Ø Discussion: How did the British actions CAUSE the American Revolution?
Ø Timeline: Create a timeline of the events from landing on the colonial shores to the Boston Massacre. Include the important acts and events.
Ø Debate: Should the people ratify the Constitution?
Ø Map: Create or evaluate a map of the ratification dates of Constitution. Determine where and why states ratified quickly or later.
Ø Graphic Organizers for in-class work: separation of powers, checks and balances, federalism
Ø Discussion: Which rights of the Bill or Rights are the most important protections from our government?
Ø Discussion: Did GW establish precedents that will have a positive or negative impact on the future of American government?
Ø Multiple Choice (Stimulus Based)
Ø Short Answer Questions
Ø Mini-Essay
Accommodations: Scaffolds and Differentiation
Content / o Modify primary source texts (variety, complexity, length)
o Incorporate alternative materials (visual, video, audio, internet)
o Provide supplementary resources for supports
o Group with a purpose
Process / o Model skills, task and/or product
o Utilize graphic organizers / note taking template
o Provide individual or group intervention and support
o Re-enforce vocabulary / concept development
o Provide choice / variety of activities or tasks
o Group with a purpose
Product / o Assign specific, purposeful assessments to individuals or groups
o Allow students to choose from a variety of assessments
o Provide scaffolds / supports (outlines, templates, models)
o Provide extension activities to expand thinking or understanding
o Group with a purpose
How will students reflect upon and self-assess their learning?
Ø Exit Tickets
Ø Multiple Choice Exam
Ø Document-based scaffolding questions
Stage 3: Learning Plan
Instructional Activities and Materials (W.H.E.R.E.T.O.)
Aim: Did the British have the right to tax the colonists?
Ø Discuss the causes of the French Indian War
Ø Explain the causes for taxation
Ø Analyze why this upset the colonists
Ø Define: Mercantilism, Salutary neglect, Proclamation of 1763, taxation, Stamp Act
ACTIVITY: Exit ticket answering the aim. Compose a petition to the king using THREE keywords and other details and facts from the lesson about why the colonists are unhappy with the taxes.
Aim: Who was responsible for the fighting in the colonies?
Ø Describe the colonial response to the taxation
Ø Evaluate whether the British response was appropriate or not
Ø Define Parliament Boston Massacre, Boston Tea Party, “Taxation without Representation”, Tar and Feather
ACTIVITY: T-chart listing the reasons each group was responsible for the fighting. Choose the side that you feel is justified and create a biased newspaper headline reporting the key events.
Aim: Should the colonists go to war with Britain?
Ø Explain the advantages and disadvantages of going to war.
Ø Evaluate whether or not the colonists were justified in seeking independence.
Ø Define: “Taxation without Representation”, Tar and Feather, First Continental Congress, Second Continental Congress
ACTIVITY: Make a military ad campaign recruiting for the loyalists or the patriots using political cartoon symbols we examined today and the key words for this lesson.
Aim: How did the American Colonists defeat the British?
Ø Identify: Battle of Saratoga, Treaty of Paris
Ø Understand the advantages and disadvantages of the British and American colonies and evaluate who had the advantage.
Ø Analyze images idealizing revolutionary activity.
Ø Compare and Contrast the original goals of the revolution to the outcome on the Treaty of Paris.
Ø Evaluate how the American colonies were able to achieve independence.
ACTIVITY: Gallery Walk of timeline, events, people, and maps of the Revolution including frustrations soldiers experienced with revolutionary leaders. Create a postcard from a perspective of a soldier commenting on the leadership you are experiencing, the challenges you have gone through, and how you think you can win this war.
Aim: Did the Declaration of Independence meet the needs of the colonists?
Ø Summarize the parts of the Declaration of Independence.
Ø Identify examples of Enlightenment thinking in the Declaration.
Ø Evaluate whether the Declaration of Independence addresses the grievances the colonists had.
Ø Define: Preamble, Grievances, Enlightenment, natural rights, Declaration of Independence
ACTIVITY: De-code the Declaration of Independence by creating a dialogue between Thomas Jefferson and John Locke about the grievances and final message of the Declaration.
Aim: Did the Articles of Confederation provide the United States with an effective government?
Ø The Articles of Confederation placed most governmental power in the states rather than the central government.
Ø Because of the lack of certain powers, the central government under the Articles of Confederation could not solve many of the problems facing the United States during the Confederation period, but even with greater powers, the central government might not have been able to solve some of these problems.
Ø Performance Objectives: SWBAT
Ø List and explain the powers given to, and the powers denied to, the central government by the Articles of Confederation.
Ø Describe the domestic and foreign problems facing the United States during the Confederation period 1781-1787.
Ø Analyze how the absence of certain powers affected the ability of the central government to solve the problems facing the United States during the Confederation period.
Ø Evaluate whether the Articles of Confederation provided a good framework of government for the United States.
ACTIVITY: Exit Ticket of Aim
Aim: Could the Constitution have been written without compromise?
Ø A democracy can only survive if its citizens are willing to compromise.
Ø The Constitution, which strengthened the powers of the national government, was the product of many compromises.
Ø Performance Objectives: SWBAT
Ø Describe the events that led to the Constitutional Convention.
Ø Explain the major disputes that developed at the Constitutional Convention.
Ø Assess the wisdom of each major compromise in terms of the values of the time and the implications for the future
Ø Identify and explain: Great Compromise, 3/5 Compromise, and the Commerce Compromise
ACTIVITY: Graphic Organizer explaining the compromises and if students think they were effective
Aim: Should the Constitution have been ratified?
Ø Identify and explain the differences between the Federalists and Anti-Federalists
Ø Discuss the necessity of adding a Bill of Rights
ACTIVITY: dialogue between federalist and anti-federalist on the issue of whether to add the Bill of Rights
Aim: Does our state or federal government have a greater impact on our lives?
Ø Federalism is a compromise between a centralized unitary system of government and a decentralized confederate system. In 1790, this was a unique arrangement that enabled a nation to successfully govern a vast land area.
Ø Federalism creates a delicate balance of power, which exists between local (state) and national governments.
Ø Performance Objectives: SWBAT
Ø Define federalism and explain why it has proved to be a successful arrangement.
Ø Explain how the Constitution provides for delegated (enumerated), concurrent, and reserved powers.
Ø Explain the meaning of the terms “separation of powers” and “federal system of government.”
Ø Analyze how the federal and state governments can use their powers to solve current problems in the United States.
Ø Evaluate whether the state or the federal government has a greater impact on our daily lives
ACTIVITY: Federalism scenarios and explain if federalism is good or bad
Aim: Is a system of checks and balances needed to protect the freedom of the American people?
Ø The system of checks and balances and separation of powers was designed to prevent despotism and tyranny.
Ø Frequent communication and cooperation among the branches of government afford a smooth running government.
Ø Performance Objectives: SWBAT
Ø List and describe the functions of the three branches of the federal government.
Ø Explain how each branch of the federal government can check the power of the other two.
Ø Explain the advantages and disadvantages of a system of checks and balances in our democracy and analyze how this system affects decision-making.
Ø Assess the degree to which a system of checks and balances is essential to our democracy and the protection of citizens’ freedom.
ACTIVITY: Checks and balances scenarios and explain if checks and balances is good or bad.
Aim: Should the Constitution be considered a living document?