Creating and
Ratifying the
Constitution
7th Grade Civics
Ms. Pretlow
Operating
Procedures
Delegates met in
Philadelphia to revise the
Articles but soon realized
the Articles needed to be
discarded.
Delegates sought to create a new
plan for government, thus the
meeting came to be known as the
Constitutional Convention.
Two Opposing
Plans
James Madison was the first
to arrive at the Convention
and propose a plan for
government.
Called for a strong national government that could make and
enforce laws and collect taxes.
The Virginia Plan
Established a federal system of government
Federal system: when power is divided between a central
authority and its subparts
Called for 3 branches of
government:
1. Legislative branch - makes
laws
2. Executive branch - enforces
laws
3. Judicial branch - interprets
laws
Legislature under the
Virginia Plan
Bicameral
Representation based on state population
Lower house: elected by popular vote (majority rule)
Upper house: state legislatures nominate, then lower
house confirms nominations
Larger states favored the Virginia Plan, feared by
smaller states.
Why??
The New Jersey
Plan
Proposed by William
Paterson
Called for 3 branches of
government - judicial,
executive, and legislative
Legislature under the
New Jersey Plan
Unicameral - one house with each state getting one vote
Representatives elected by state legislature
Protected the interests of smaller states
Why did larger states oppose this plan of government?
What would a compromise between the two plans look
like?
Legislature under the
Great Compromise
Proposed by Roger Sherman
Bicameral legislature
Upper house: all states get equal representation (2
Senators), chosen by state legislatures
Lower house: representation based on state population,
chosen by popular vote within state
The Great Compromise
passed by a one-vote
margin.
This event saved the
Constitutional
Convention, which likely
would have not resulted
in a Union.