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The following instructional plan is part of a GaDOE collection of Unit Frameworks, Performance Tasks, examples of Student Work, and
Teacher Commentary for the United States History course.
United States History Unit 3 – “Creation of the United States”
Elaborated Unit Focus
This unit examines the conflict and change associated with the American
Revolution, including the ideological background of the Declaration of Independence.
Through the conceptual lens of beliefs and ideals, the unit also focuses on early
American documents including the Articles of Confederation, Constitution, and the U. S.
Bill of Rights. The unit ends with the Presidencies of George Washington and John
Adams, which along with the contributions of early American leaders such as Thomas
Jefferson, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton, show how individuals, groups, and
institutions affect societal change.
Standards/Elements
SSUSH3 The student will explain the primary causes of the American Revolution.
a. Explain how the end of Anglo-French imperial competition as seen in the French
and Indian War and the 1763 Treaty of Paris laid the groundwork for the
American Revolution.
b. Explain colonial response to such British actions as the Proclamation of 1763, the
Stamp Act, and the Intolerable Acts as seen in Sons and Daughters of Liberty and
Committees of Correspondence.
c. Explain the importance of Thomas Paine‟s Common Sense to the movement for
independence.
SSUSH4 The student will identify the ideological, military, and diplomatic aspects of
the American Revolution.
a. Explain the language, organization, and intellectual sources of the Declaration of
Independence; include the writing of John Locke and Montesquieu, and the role
of Thomas Jefferson.
b. Explain the reason for and significance of the French alliance and foreign
assistance and the roles of Benjamin Franklin and the Marquis de Lafayette.
c. Analyze George Washington as a military leader; include the creation of a
professional military and the life of a common soldier, and describe the
significance of the crossing of the Delaware River and Valley Forge.
d. Explain Yorktown, the role of Lord Cornwallis, and the Treaty of Paris, 1783.
SSUSH5 The student will explain specific events and key ideas that brought about
the adoption and implementation of the United States Constitution.
a. Explain how weaknesses in the Articles of Confederation and Daniel Shays‟
Rebellion led to a call for a stronger central government.
b. Evaluate the major arguments of the anti-Federalists and Federalists during the
debate on ratification of the Constitution as put forth in The Federalist concerning
form of government, factions, checks and balances, and the power of the
executive, including the roles of Alexander Hamilton and James Madison.
Georgia Department of Education
Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools
U. S. History Framework  Unit 3
DRAFT 09/05/2007  Page 1 of 6
Copyright 2007 © All Rights Reserved
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c. Explain the key features of the Constitution, specifically the Great Compromise,
separation of powers, limited government, and the issue of slavery.
d. Analyze how the Bill of Rights serves as a protector of individual and states‟
rights.
e. Explain the importance of the Presidencies of George Washington and John
Adams; include the Whiskey Rebellion, non-intervention in Europe, and the
development of political parties (Alexander Hamilton).
Enduring Understandings/Essential Questions
The student will understand that when there is conflict between or within societies, change
is the result.
How did the French and Indian War lead to conflict between the American
colonists and leaders in Great Britain?
What ideas presented in Thomas Paine‟s Common Sense and the Declaration of
Independence affected the political and economic views of the American
colonists?
The student will understand that the actions of individuals, groups, and/or institutions
affect society through intended and unintended consequences.
How did the writings of John Locke and Montesquieu influence the revolutionary
writings of Thomas Jefferson and Thomas Paine?
How did foreign support help the cause of Americans in the Revolutionary War?
Who were the key military, political, and social leaders of the American
Revolution?
What was the impact of the key military, political, and social leaders on
Revolutionary War?
How did Presidents George Washington and John Adams set important
precedents in the economic and political development of the United States?
The student will understand that the beliefs and ideals of a society influence the social,
political, and economic decisions of that society.
How has the interpretation of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights changed in
order to protect liberty and order to American society?
What are the major ideas (rights of the individual, popular sovereignty, majority
rule and minority rights) in the Constitution and Bill of Rights?
Georgia Department of Education
Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools
U. S. History Framework  Unit 3
Revised 12/04/08 Page 2 of 6
Copyright 2007 © All Rights Reserved
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*NOTE: The balanced assessment plan included in this unit is presented as a series of suggested activities. It is not expected
that the teacher complete all assessments for a successful unit.
Balanced Assessment Plan
Description of Assessment
Standard/
Type of
Element
Assessment
3a, 3b
*Observation
*Dialogue and
Discussion
* Constructed
Response
Students will develop a timeline of events beginning with the
end of the French and Indian War and concluding with shots
fired at Lexington and Concord. The timeline will be used to
help students to analyze the cause and effect relationship
between the major events such as the Proclamation of 1763,
Stamp Act, Tea Act, Intolerable Acts, and the First Continental
Congress.
Example of a timeline:
Year
Event
Cause or Effect
1763 Proclamation Act
British limited American
movement into the West
1765 Stamp Act
British passed tax on certain
items in the American
colonies
1766 Stamp Act
Colonists reaction to the
Congress
British Stamp Act
1773 Tea Act
Placed monopoly on the
British tea trade; colonists
reacted by staging the
Boston Tea Party
1774 Intolerable Acts
British punishment to the
Americans for the Boston
Tea Party
1775 First Continental
Colonists began to organize
Congress
in their protest of British
actions
Students will read Thomas Paine‟s Common Sense and the
3 b, c
Declaration of Independence. Students, individually or in
4a
small groups, will note the arguments in favor and against the
American Revolution. Students will then write a persuasive
essay supporting or opposing the views presented by either one
of these documents. Students will explain why Common Sense
was important to the American cause. Students may also give
British arguments against American positions as well.
Students will develop a three-column chart (see example
5a, b
below) to show the strengths and weaknesses of the Articles of
Confederation. The chart will also explain how the
Constitution attempted to solve problems that existed in the
Articles of Confederation.
Georgia Department of Education
Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools
U. S. History Framework  Unit 3
Revised 12/04/08 Page 3 of 6
Copyright 2007 © All Rights Reserved
*Observation
*Dialogue and
Discussion
*Constructed
Response
*SelfAssessment
*Informal
Observation
*Selected
Responses
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Strengths Weaknesses
Land Ordinance
Northwest
Ordinance
Inability to tax
citizens
Could not
regulate trade
Unicameral
legislature
No President or
national courts
Problems
solved
X
X
X
Power to tax
was granted
X
Power to
regulate trade
X
Bicameral
Legislature
X
Executive and
Judicial
branches are
included
Students will work in groups of 2-3 to write speeches for or
5b, 5c,
against certain principles or philosophies that were debated or 5d
discussed in relation to the US Constitution. Groups should
then choose one of their members to deliver the speech to the
whole class. Principles or philosophies that can be assigned to
groups may include:
the need for a stronger central government
the fear of creating too strong a central government
the importance of maintaining strong state governments
the need for proportional representation in congress
the need for equal representation in congress
the need for specifically listing of individual rights
which cannot be taken from the people
the dangers of attempting to list individual rights which
cannot be taken from the people
the need for an electoral college for selecting the
executive
the need for safeguards against the federal government
becoming too powerful
the need for a system to prevent one branch of
government overpowering the others
the need for a „necessary and proper‟ clause
the dangers of including a „necessary and proper‟
clause
Teachers may wish to allow students to debate the points made
in each groups‟ speech if they contradict their own
philosophies. Teachers may also go so far as to assign specific
roles to each member of the group including researcher,
speechwriter, and public speaker.
Georgia Department of Education
Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools
U. S. History Framework  Unit 3
Revised 12/04/08 Page 4 of 6
Copyright 2007 © All Rights Reserved
*Constructed
Response
*Dialogue and
Discussion
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Students will create pictures for each of the 10 amendments
5d
that make up the Bill of Rights. These pictures must convey
the meaning and importance of each amendment and must
incorporate the number of the amendment into the picture. For
instance, students might draw a flagpole in the shape of a “1”
with students gathered peaceably around it to convey the 1st
amendment freedom of assembly. Once each student has
completed their pictures, they will share them with their
classmates. The teacher will then display scenarios, which
threaten individual rights and freedoms on overhead slides.
Students will then hold up the picture of the amendment that
applies.
After receiving instruction on the philosophical background to 4a
the Declaration of Independence and its 4 parts (Preamble,
Declaration of Principles, List of Grievances, Resolution),
students will write a modern version. Students will choose one
of the following scenarios for their modern-day versions of the
Declaration of Independence:
a letter to your boss to inform him that you are giving
two weeks‟ notice
a break-up letter to your girlfriend/boyfriend
a note to your parents informing them that you intend
to move out
a note to your roommate informing him that you want
him/her to move out
Students‟ letters should include the same 4 parts as the
Declaration of Independence. They should begin with a
Preamble, which is the introduction of the problem. They
should follow with a Declaration of Principles of sorts, which
explains how one is supposed to be treated as an
employee/boyfriend/girlfriend/child/roommate. Next, students
should include a section in their letters where they list all the
reasons why they have chosen to break their current
arrangement and finally, they should finish their letters with a
statement of what they want changed or what they intend to
do. Once all letters are complete, students will trade their
letters with partners and, using highlighters, designate what
they believe to be the 4 separate parts and what language was
used which mirrored the rhetoric of the original Declaration of
Independence.
Students will write a newspaper article that might appear in a 4d
Philadelphia newspaper following the victory by the American
and French forces in the Battle of Yorktown. Students must
include an interview with Lord Cornwallis, which reveals his
role in the battle and must express the importance of the battle
itself in their article.
Georgia Department of Education
Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools
U. S. History Framework  Unit 3
Revised 12/04/08 Page 5 of 6
Copyright 2007 © All Rights Reserved
*Observation
*SelfAssessment
*Constructed
Response
*Constructed
Response
*Dialogue and
Discussion
*Constructed
Response
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Students will serve on the Committee of Correspondence for
the colony of Georgia by writing a letter to another colony
explaining the impact of the Proclamation of 1763, the Stamp
Act and the Intolerable Acts on the economy and way of life of
our people here. Students should also express what local
colonists have done or are planning to do in protest of these
British actions.
3b
*Constructed
Response
FOR SAMPLE PERFORMANCE TASKS FOR THIS UNIT,
PLEASE VISIT
http://www.georgiastandards.org/socialstudiesframework.aspx
Resources for Unit
http://www.billofrightsinstitute.org/
 Events related to the Bill of Rights, actual text of the Bill of Rights, sample lesson
plans, and other free materials for teachers.
http://www.constitution.org/
 Contains links to documents that influenced the Constitution and Declaration of
Independence.
http://www.constitutioncenter.org/explore/FoundingFathers/index.shtml
 Provides the names and backgrounds of the delegates to the Constitutional
Convention.
http://www.crfc.org/
 Constitutional Rights Foundation website provides lesson plans and publications
in the field of Law-Related Education.
http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/debates/debcont.htm
 Will allow students to search the notes of James Madison. May be used to look
up information related to slavery, representation, etc. Source should help students
to determine the positions taken by their assigned person.
*This unit was created by Mary Ann Cooper, Bill Pate, Andy Preston, and Carole Strickland. Additional content created by
Kevin Shivers and Lazarus Osako. Additional input provided by Dr. Bill Cranshaw, Chris Cannon, Marlo Mong, Sarah Brown,
and Sherilyn Narker. It was reviewed and approved by the Social Studies Advisory Council 7/06/07.
Georgia Department of Education
Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools
U. S. History Framework  Unit 3
Revised 12/04/08 Page 6 of 6
Copyright 2007 © All Rights Reserved