Social Studies- U.S. History
Name __________________________________ Date ____________________
Ratifying the Constitution
Before the Constitution was adopted, it had to be sent to each state for approval.
Before it could be sent to the states, it had to be rewritten so it was easier to
read. The final version of the Constitution, containing seven articles, was
produced by a delegate named Gouverneur Morris. On September 17, 1787, 39
of the 55 delegates signed the Constitution and sent it to the states for special
conventions. Nine states had to approve the Constitution before it could become
law.
Some delegates to the Constitutional Convention, including George Mason and
Patrick Henry, were afraid it would not guarantee individual states’ rights.
Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay wrote 85 letters supporting
its passage. These advocates of the Constitution believed that the checks and
balances system would allow a strong central government to preserve states’
rights.
RESEARCH PROJECT:
Find out more about each person listed below. Write a sentence telling
something about each.
John Jay ________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
James Madison ___________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
Patrick Henry ____________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
George Mason ___________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
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Social Studies- U.S. History
Name __________________________________ Date ____________________
The Bill of Rights
When the Constitution was sent to the states for ratification, some delegates
refused to approve it until it included a bill of rights listing the individual rights of
every citizen. So, the Convention promised a bill of rights would be attached to
the final version. When the first Congress met in 1789, it immediately considered
several amendments. James Madison wrote twelve of them, which were
presented to the states for final approval. Ten were approved. Those ten
amendments make up the Bill of Rights. They are also the first ten Amendments
to the Constitution.
“Congress shall make no law establishing a religion, or prohibiting the
free exercises thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the
press; or the right of the people to assemble peaceably, and to
petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
CONTEXT CLUES
Look at the words in bold above. Match each to a word or phrase in the list below
that has a similar meaning.
complaints of unfair treatment ________________________________
making less; reducing ________________________________
ideas expressed in public ________________________________
put something right ________________________________
ask; request ________________________________
ideas expressed in print ________________________________
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Social Studies- U.S. History
Name __________________________________ Date ____________________
More on the Bill of Rights
The writers of the Bill of Rights could not list every individual right, so they put in
the Ninth and Tenth Amendments to cover all those not listed. For example, one
right not specifically listed is privacy. Many people consider privacy to be covered
under the Ninth and Tenth Amendments.
The 9th Amendment:
“The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be
construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.”
*This amendment means that although certain rights are written into the
Constitution, other rights that are not written into the Constitution may be of equal
value.
The 10th Amendment:
“The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution
nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states
respectively, or to the people.”
*This amendment means that anything the Constitution does not mention can be
considered by states as part of their powers, if they wish.
CONTEXT CLUES
Look at the bold words above. Match each word to a word or phrase that has a
similar meaning.
kept _________________________________
given _________________________________
made illegal _________________________________
listing _________________________________
reduce in importance _________________________________
interpret _________________________________
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Social Studies- U.S. History
Name __________________________________ Date ____________________
Know Your Constitution
Circle the correct answer to each of the following questions.
1. How many delegates signed the Constitution?
a. 50
b. 40
c. 39
d. 55
2. What had to be done to ratify the Constitution?
a. A Bill of Rights had to be written.
b. The delegates had to sign it.
c. 85 letters were written to support it.
d. Nine states had to approve it.
3. Who actually wrote the Constitution?
a. William Jackson
b. Benjamin Franklin
c. George Mason
d. Gouverneur Morris
4. Who is considered the author of the Bill of Rights?
a. George Washington
b. James Madison
c. Thomas Jefferson
d. Roger Sherman
5. Which part of the Constitution has seven parts?
a. Bill of Rights
b. Amendments
c. Articles
d. Preamble
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Social Studies- U.S. History
Name __________________________________ Date ____________________
ANSWERS:
The Bill of Rights
complaints of unfair treatment grievances
making less; reducing abridging
ideas expressed in public speech
put something right redress
ask; request petition
ideas expressed in print press
More on the Bill of Rights
kept retained
given delegated
made illegal prohibited
listing enumeration
reduce in importance disparage
interpreted construed
Know Your Constitution
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
c
d
d
b
c
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