Lesson: Lesser-Known Delegates of the Constitutional Convention
Author: Carisa Smiskey
Grade Level: Elementary
Common Core Standards:
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.5.7 Draw on information from multiple print or digital sources,
demonstrating the ability to locate an answer to a question quickly or to solve a problem
efficiently.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.2 Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and
convey ideas and information clearly.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.2b Develop the topic with facts, definitions, concrete details,
quotations, or other information and examples related to the topic.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.4 Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development
and organization are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. (Grade-specific
expectations for writing types are defined in standards 1–3 above.)
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.6 With some guidance and support from adults, use
technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing as well as to interact
and collaborate with others; demonstrate sufficient command of keyboarding skills to
type a minimum of two pages in a single sitting.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.7 Conduct short research projects that use several sources to
build knowledge through investigation of different aspects of a topic.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.9 Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support
analysis, reflection, and research.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.4.2 Paraphrase portions of a text read aloud or information
presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.
Wisconsin Academic Standards:
B.8.1 Interpret the past using a variety of sources, such as biographies, diaries, journals,
artifacts, eyewitness interviews, and other primary source materials, and evaluate the credibility
of sources used
B.8.6 Analyze important political values such as freedom, democracy, equality, and justice
embodied in documents such as the Declaration of Independence, the United States
Constitution, and the Bill of Rights
B.8.7 Identify significant events and people in the major eras of United States and world history
Essential Question: Who were the people most of us don’t know who signed the U.S.
Constitution?
Learner Outcomes – Students Will Be Able To:
Interpret and analyze primary and secondary documents.
Determine the credibility of each document.
Develop an appreciation for the men who sacrificed their time to help develop the
foundation of our country.
Identify the similarities and differences between the delegates chosen to attend the
Constitutional Convention.
Procedure:
1. Introduction: Conduct a class discussion based upon these questions –
Why did Rhode Island not send delegates to the Constitutional Convention?
Why did some people turn down the opportunity to join the Constitutional
Convention?
2. Call on students for possible reasons certain states or people would not want to
participate in the convention.
3. Reveal the lesser-known delegate assigned to each student.
4. Pass out the attached rubric for the Lesser-Known Constitutional Convention
Delegates Project. The students will be responsible for gathering information from
primary and secondary sources to create a mini-biography of their delegate. Their
biography will include information on the delegate’s family history, personal and
professional lives, and when possible, their views on slavery. Students should also state
whether or not their delegate signed the Constitution, try to determine why or why not
they did or didn’t sign, and also hypothesize why their delegate was chosen to represent
their state.
5. Discuss project expectations, plagiarism, and the oral presentations.
6. Share the following links with students to aid in research:
http://www.ancestry.com
http://archives.gov/education/lessons/constitution-day/signers.html
http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/conlaw/marryff.html
http://colonialhall.com/biousc.php
7. Students will be given several class period to conduct research and complete
their projects.
Closure: Students will present their research to the class.
Assessment: Students will receive a grade based on one hundred points for this project,
based upon the attached rubric.
Founding Father Notebook Presentation
Layout (20 pts)
_____
Is the presentation organized?
Colorful?
Not cluttered, but not bare?
Is a title page and ending page included?
Is there a balance of images and words?
Is the presentation easy to read?
Information (60 pts)
_____
Does your presentation include
A) information on the delegate’s family history
B) the delegate’s personal and professional lives
C) their views on slavery
D) whether or not the delegate signed the Constitution
E) why or why not they did or didn’t sign
F) a hypothesis on why the delegate was chosen to represent their state
G) information from at least two primary sources
Is the information accurate?
Thorough?
In your own words (except direct quotes)?
Spelling/Presentation (20 pts)
_____
Are there any misspelled words?
Grammar errors?
Are you speaking loudly and clearly?
Total Points
_____
Grade
_____