Lessons 8 & 9
Lessons 11 & 12
Lesson 13
Lesson 14
Terms to Know
100
(1781-1789) The first constitution of the United States, created to form a perpetual union and a firm league of friendship among the thirteen original states. It was adopted by the Second Continental Congress on November 15, 1777, and sent to the states for ratification.
What are the Articles of Confederation
100
A form of government in which power is divided and shared between a central government and state and local governments.
What is a federal system
100
In the context of American government, the electoral system in which the number of representatives for a state is based on the number of people living in the state. _________________ ________________ is used to determine the number of each state's representatives in the U.S. House of Representatives.
What is proportional representation
100
A form of political organization in which the sovereign states combine for certain specified purposes, such as mutual defense. Member states can leave a ________________ at any time. The United States was a ________________ from 1776 to 1789.  
What is a Confederation
100
(1) (noun) A person chosen to act for or represent others. (2) (verb) To entrust someone to represent your interests.
What is a delegate
200
Reasoned discussion as opposed to emotional display.
What is civil discourse
200
The right of the Senate to ratify or reject a treaty made by the president is an example of:
What are checks and balances
200
The first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution. ________ ___ ___________ lists many basic rights that the federal government may not interfere with and must protect. Nearly all these rights are now also protected from violation by state governments.
What are the Bill of Rights
200
(1) A small group within a larger group. (2) In its political sense, according to James Madison in Federalist 10, a faction is a "number of citizens, whether amounting to a majority or a minority of the whole, who are united...by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adverse to the rights of other citizens or to the permanent and aggregate interests of the community."  
What is a faction
200
A law that criminalizes an act that was not a crime when committed, that increases the penalty for a crime after it was committed, or that changes the rules of evidence to make conviction easier. ___ ________ _______ ______ are forbidden by Article I of the Constitution.
What is an ex post facto law
300
Some Founders believed that majority rule could be a threat to:
What are individual rights
300
One major issue left unresolved by the Philadelphia Convention in 1787 was:
What is the definition of citizenship
300
Opponents to ratification of the U.S. Constitution who believed that it gave excessive power to the federal government and failed to protect the rights and liberties of the people.
What is an Anti–Federalists
300
Advocates for a strong central government who urged ratification of the U.S. Constitution. They flourished as a political party in the 1790s under the leadership of Alexander Hamilton. The party disappeared from national politics in 1816.  
What is a Federalists
300
Article VI, Section 2 of the Constitution, which states that the U.S. Constitution, laws passed by Congress, and treaties of the United States "shall be the supreme Law of the Land" and binding on the states.
What is the supremacy clause
400
A major weakness of the national government under the Articles of Confederation was its inability to regulate:
What is interstate trade
400
According to the supremacy clause of the U.S. Constitution, "supreme law of the land" refers to:
What are the Constitution, laws enacted by Congress, and treaties
400
The most persuasive objection to the Constitution by George Mason and other Anti-Federalists was that it did not contain a:
What is a bill of rights
400
The Federalists defended the proposed Constitution because it would rely on separationof powers and:
What are checks and balances
400
An act of the legislature that inflicts punishment on an individual or group without a judicial trial.
What is a bill of attainder
500
The delegates to the Philadelphia Convention were authorized to amend:
What are the Articles of Confederation
500
The Framers wanted to assure a wise consideration in the choice of president so they adopted the _________ _________ method of choosing the president.
What is the Electoral College
500
Anti-Federalists objected to the proposed Constitution because they believed that it placed too much power in the:
What is the national government
500
The Founders believed that ___________ __ __________ were needed in order to prevent the misuse of power by government.
What are separation of powers
500
A plan accepted at the Philadelphia Convention in 1787 that called for a Congress of two houses: in the upper house, or Senate, representation of the states would be equal, with each state having two senators; in the lower house, or House of Representatives, representation would be apportioned according to the population of each state, so that states with more people would have more representatives. Also called the Connecticut Compromise.
What is the Great Compromise
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