Constitution Review
Explain the first ten amendments to the US Constitution (AKA- Bill of Rights)
1 - 1st Amendment
Protects the people's right to practice religion, to speak freely, to assemble (meet), to
petition and of the press to publish.
2 - 2nd Amendment
Protects the right to bear arms
3 - 3rd Amendment
Guarantees that the army cannot force homeowners to give them room and board. (no
quartering)
4 - 4th Amendment
Protects the people from the government improperly taking property, papers, or people,
without a valid warrant based on probable cause (good reason).
5 - 5th Amendment
Protects people from being held for committing a crime unless they are properly indicted,
that they may not be tried twice for the same crime, and that you need not be forced to
testify against yourself. It also contains due process guarantees.
6 - 6th Amendment
Guarantees a speedy trial, an impartial jury, and that the accused can confront
witnesses against them, and that the accused must be allowed to have a lawyer in
criminal cases.
7 - 7th Amendment
Guarantees a jury trial in federal civil court cases. This type of case is normally no longer
heard in federal court.
8 - 8th Amendment
Guarantees that punishments will be fair, and not cruel, and that extraordinarily large
fines will not be set.
Constitution Review
9 - 9th Amendment
Simply a statement that other rights aside from those listed may exist, and just because
they are not listed doesn't mean they can be violated.
10 - 10th Amendment
Says that any power not granted to the federal government belongs to the states.
Be able to explain what the documents were that influenced the American system of government.
Magna Carta – 1215 document stating that everyone would follow the same laws (even the king)
Declaration of Independence – 1776 document stating that all men have unalienable rights
English Bill of Rights – 1689 document that declared the rights and liberties of the people
Explain the principles of the US Constitution – limited government
The government is not all powerful. It has limited powers given to it by the people, and they must follow
the same laws as the citizens.
Explain the principles of the US Constitution – popular sovereignty
The people are the final authority in government. The government receives its authority from the
people.
Explain the principles of the US Constitution –federalism
The sharing of power between the federal government and the state governments.
Explain the principles of the US Constitution – republicanism
The people rule through elected representatives such as U.S. citizens elect Congress and the President.
Explain the principles of the US Constitution – individual rights
Rights of the people the government must protect that are listed in the Declaration of Independence
and the Constitution/Bill of Rights.
Explain the principles of the US Constitution – separation of powers
The power of the federal government and the state governments split equally into
three branches.
Explain the principles of the US Constitution – checks and balances
Constitution Review
Each branch of the federal government has the ability to check, or control, the power of the other 2
branches in order to keep the branches equal in power.
Explain the significance of the Northwest Ordinance
The only law to come out of the Articles of Confederation that tells how to add new states by having
borders and a population of 60,000.
Know the difference between Federalist and Anti-Federalists.
Federalist - Supporters of the Constitution who also wrote pamphlets showing support including the
Federalist Papers. These supporters included Hamilton, Madison and Jay, among others.
Anti-Federalist - Statesmen who were against ratifying the Constitution because they felt it gave too
much power to the national government. They wanted more individual and states rights. Members
include Patrick Henry and George Mason.
Be able to identify key figures that were Federalists (2) and Anti-Federalists (2) and know why they were
a Federalist or an Anti-Federalist
See answer above
Know the Virginia Plan, New Jersey Plan and the Great Compromise. Be able to explain what all of these
were.
The Virginia Plan (Big State Plan) wanted representation in Congress to be based off of a states
population.
The New Jersey Plan (Small State Plan) wanted representation in Congress to be equal for each state as
it was in the Articles of Confederation.
The Great Compromise put the Virginia Plan and New Jersey Plan together. It created a two-house
legislature with representation for the House of Representatives based on state population and
representation in the Senate based on statehood.
Be able to explain the 3/5ths Compromise.
The 3/5ths Compromise stated that all slaves in the South would count as 3/5ths of a person for
representative purposes in Congress.