Rights & Responsibility
There are four amendments to the Constitution about who can vote. Describe one of them.
Citizens eighteen (18) and older (can vote). ▪ You don’t have to pay (a poll tax) to vote. ▪ Any citizen can vote. (Women and men can vote.) ▪ A male citizen of any race (can vote).
What is one promise you make when you become a United States citizen?
▪ give up loyalty to other countries ▪ defend the Constitution and laws of the United States ▪ obey the laws of the United States ▪ serve in the U.S. military (if needed) ▪ serve (do important work for) the nation (if needed) ▪ be loyal to the United States
What is one reason colonists came to America?
▪ freedom ▪ political liberty ▪ religious freedom ▪ economic opportunity ▪ practice their religion ▪ escape persecution
When was the Declaration of Independence adopted?
▪ July 4, 1776
What territory did the United States buy from France in 1803?
▪ the Louisiana Territory ▪ Louisiana
What is one responsibility that is only for United States citizens?*
▪ serve on a jury ▪ vote in a federal election
How old do citizens have to be to vote for President?*
▪ eighteen (18) and older
Who lived in America before the Europeans arrived?
▪ American Indians ▪ Native Americans
There were 13 original states. Name three.
▪ New Hampshire ▪ Massachusetts ▪ Rhode Island ▪ Connecticut ▪ New York ▪ New Jersey ▪ Pennsylvania ▪ Delaware ▪ Maryland ▪ Virginia ▪ North Carolina ▪ South Carolina ▪ Georgia
Name one war fought by the United States in the 1800s.
▪ War of 1812 ▪ Mexican-American War ▪ Civil War ▪ Spanish-American War
Name one right only for United States citizens.
▪ vote in a federal election ▪ run for federal office
What are two ways that Americans can participate in their democracy?
▪ vote ▪ join a political party ▪ help with a campaign ▪ join a civic group ▪ join a community group ▪ give an elected official your opinion on an issue ▪ call Senators and Representatives ▪ publicly support or oppose an issue or policy ▪ run for office ▪ write to a newspaper
What group of people was taken to America and sold as slaves?
▪ Africans ▪ people from Africa
What happened at the Constitutional Convention?
▪ The Constitution was written. ▪ The Founding Fathers wrote the Constitution.
Name the U.S. war between the North and the South.
▪ the Civil War ▪ the War between the States
▪ freedom of expression ▪ freedom of speech ▪ freedom of assembly ▪ freedom to petition the government ▪ freedom of religion ▪ the right to bear arms
What are two rights of everyone living in the United States?
▪ April 15
When is the last day you can send in federal income tax forms?*
▪ because of high taxes (taxation without representation) ▪ because the British army stayed in their houses (boarding, quartering) ▪ because they didn’t have self-government
Why did the colonists fight the British?
▪ 1787
When was the Constitution written?
▪ slavery ▪ economic reasons ▪ states’ rights
Name one problem that led to the Civil War.
▪ the United States ▪ the flag
What do we show loyalty to when we say the Pledge of Allegiance?
▪ at age eighteen (18) ▪ between eighteen (18) and twenty-six (26)
When must all men register for the Selective Service?
▪ (Thomas) Jefferson
Who wrote the Declaration of Independence?
▪ (James) Madison ▪ (Alexander) Hamilton ▪ (John) Jay ▪ Publius
The Federalist Papers supported the passage of the U.S. Constitution. Name one of the writers.
▪ freed the slaves (Emancipation Proclamation) ▪ saved (or preserved) the Union ▪ led the United States during the Civil War
What was one important thing that Abraham Lincoln did?*