Constitutional Issues
8th Grade CBA
Directions to Students:
In a cohesive paper or presentation, you will:
- State a position on the issue that considers both individual rights and the common good.
- Provide background on the issue by describing
- who is involved in the issue
- why this issue is important.
- Provide reasons for you position that include:
- An explanation of how a constitutional principle logically supports your position on the issue.
- An explanation of how one additional piece of credible information logically supports your position on the issue.
- Make explicit references within the paper or presentation to three or more credible sources that provide relevant information AND cite sources within the paper, presentation, or bibliography.
Note: Response must include a call to action that explains how citizens can get involved.
Possible Essential Questions:
Links in parenthesis will take you to a new pathfinder designed specifically for this question.
Online Thesis Builders
Or try one of these:
- During the time of slavery in the United States, were there circumstances in which a slave could be guaranteed rights according to the Constitution of the United States? (Dred Scott Case)
- Does treating people equally mean treating them the same?
- Did a state law requiring segregation of races violate the 13th and 14th Amendments? (Plessy v Ferguson)
- How effectively did treaties with Native American tribes attempt to balance Indian rights with the white man’s need and desire for more resources? (Treaty of Walla Walla)
- What has been the historical significance of immigration to the United States?
- What are the current political perspectives surrounding immigration?
- What are the world wide perspectives on immigration to the United States?
- What democratic ideals are related to the debate on immigration today?
- What constitutional principles are involved in the debate? (Immigration)
- What does the scientific research say about global warming?
- What are the political perspectives surrounding the global warming debate?
- What are the world wide perspectives and actions on global warming?
- What democratic ideals are related to the debate on global warming?
- What constitutional principles are involved in the debate? (Global Warming)
Do you need additional information? Use these words and phrases to search Nettrekker, Proquest Magazine Index, E-Library, an online library catalog, print encyclopedias or the World Wide Web:
- Constitution
- Bill of Rights
- Amendments
- Government
- Rule vs. Law
- Rights
- Freedoms
- Democratic ideals, Democracy
- Citizen, Citizenship
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- Amendment 12: Electoral college
- Amendment 13: Slavery
- Amendment 14: Due process
- Amendment 15: Voting rights, poll tax, Voting Rights Act
- Amendment 18: Prohibition
- Amendment 19: Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, suffrage
- Amendment 20: Lame duck
- Amendment 21: Prohibition
- Amendment 22: Term limits
- Amendment 24: Voting rights, poll tax, electoral reform
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- National Archives
This site includes primary and secondary sources including images and documents. The above image comes from this site. Note: The address given is for images. Click here to go to the home page and search for additional documents including the Declaration of Independence.
- National Archives: The Charters of Freedom Scroll down to “A Voice of Dissent: George Mason” to learn about his influence on the addition of the amendments to the constitution.
- Our Documents Flash movies of primary source documents. Beautiful!
- Washington History Online: Treaty Trail Includes interactive documents and artifacts.
- National Constitution Center Constitutional Issues including modern day slavery and Viewpoints, a non-partisan forum for constitutional issues in the news.
Bill of Rights & Constitution
- Center on Congress Information about Congress is presented in a variety of ways including videos, articles and interactive simulations.
- Scholastic Online Constitutional Rights Catchy and kid-friendly overview of the history of the Bill of Rights. Especially useful are the following links: The Bill of Rights: An Overview, Explaining the Bill of Rights, and Bill of Rights Timeline
- America’s Story from America’s Library Interactive website written for kids. Tells who wrote and influenced the bill of rights, what was left out and had to be fought for later (minority and women’s rights)
- Archiving Early America Briefly tells why the amendments were proposed and a few key players in promoting the Bill of Rights.
- Freedom Forum Current event issues related to freedoms.
- National Constitution Center Help restore the Constitution in this online interactive game.
- White House Kids A transcription of the first 10 amendments of the Constitution in their original form. These amendments were ratified December 15, 1791, and form what is known as the "Bill of Rights."
- Ben's Guide to U.S. Government for Kids When the Constitution was ratified in 1789, many people were concerned that it did not protect certain freedoms. They thought that the Constitution should be changed or amended to protect these freedoms. On December 15, 1791, ten amendments were added to the Constitution. These amendments guarantee certain freedoms and rights, so they are known as the Bill of Rights.
First Amendment
Freedom of the Press
Freedom of Religion
- Prayer in school, prayer before high school football games, and religion on the campaign trail -- what happened to the separation of church and state? Take the freedom of religion quiz and find out.
Video Streaming
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Full Video
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Investigate new findings from the night that helped bring America into the Revolutionary War. Watch Thomas Jefferson articulate the ideals of a new and free nation. Witness the struggles faced by the Constitution's framers and peruse the first 10 amendments, otherwise known as the Bill of Rights.
Teacher's Guide |
Grade: 6-12  © 2005 Discovery Channel School |
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Explore the history of democracy and the creation of American government. Students learn about the foundations of democracy and the creation of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights.
Curriculum Standards |
Grade: 5-8 © 2006 Discovery Channel School |
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"Are We to Be a Nation?" Peace brings new challenges: bankruptcy, squabbles between states, and no national army, common currency, or government strong enough to resolve problems. A 1787 attempt to revise the Articles of Confederation spawns a brand-new Constitution, including a Bill of Rights, with the idea that power flows up from the people, not down to them.
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Grade: 6-12 © 1997 PBS |
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This program examines some of the practices of government in the United States during the period 1789-1792 by focusing on the extension, restriction, and reorganization of American political democracy. The program also looks at technological change and how it affected American industrialization, divisions between North and South, and relations with foreign powers.
Teacher's Guide Blackline Masters Curriculum Standards |
Grade: 6-8  © 2003 United Learning |
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Harlan and Marie lead us step by step through the document that forms the basis of our governments. Students will learn about the ideals of American Constitutional government, the theory of the "We the People," and the concepts laid out by the Preamble. We'll also discuss how the Constitution empowers the government to fulfill its responsibilities, while at the same time limiting those powers.
Blackline Masters Teacher's Guide Curriculum Standards |
Grade: 5-8 © 1999 United Learning |
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Utilizing the spectacular backdrop of the events which surrounded the "We the People 200" celebration in Philadelphia 1987, this program simply, clearly and with dramatic flair, examines and explains the historical significance of the Constitution, its structure and function, and its present day meaning and importance.
Blackline Masters Teacher's Guide Curriculum Standards |
Grade: 6-8 © 1988 Rainbow Educational Media |
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Dewey Numbers
If you want to browse the shelves in the library to locate information about the Constitution the Bill of Rights or U.S. Laws, look for these numbers:
- 323.44 Rights
- 342, 342.73 - Constitution, Bill of Rights, U.S. Law
- 973 - U.S. History
- B or 921 Biography
Non Fiction
Check your school or public library for additional titles.
324.6; Burgan, Michael. - The 19th Amendment {IL 5-8} -- Compass Point, c2006., RL 5.4, 48p
Presents a history of the women's suffrage movement and the passage of the nineteenth amendment giving women the right to vote, and discusses the 1869 passage making Wyoming the first state to permit women to vote, and more. Lexile: 920 |
324.6; Thoennes Keller, Kristin. - Carrie Chapman Catt : a voice for women {IL 5-8} -- Compass Point Books, c2006., RL 6.7, 112p
Presents a biography of Carrie Chapman Catt, leader of the woman's movement to obtain the right to vote, and provides information on her childhood, her fight against the male establishment, and her achievement in helping pass the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Lexile: 990 |
342.73; Burgan, Michael. - The Bill of Rights {IL 5-8} -- Compass Point Books, c2002., RL 7, 48p
Text and illustrations present the Bill of Rights and survey its creation, describing the impetus for it and the fight for its ratification, and providing a glossary, lists of important dates and people, and selected further resources. Lexile: 990 |
342.73; Collier, Christopher, 1930- - Creating the Constitution, 1787 {IL 5-8} -- Benchmark Books, c1999., RL 7.1, 95p
Examines the events and personalities involved in creating the Constitution of the United States in 1787, a document which has been the foundation of American democracy for over 200 years. RC: 9 6 Lexile: 1120 |
342.73; Freedman, Russell. - In defense of liberty : the story of America's Bill of Rights {IL 5-8} -- Holiday House, c2003., RL 8.3, 196p
Describes the origins, applications of, and challenges to the ten amendments to the United States Constitution that comprise the Bill of Rights. RC: 8.4 9 Lexile: 1270 |
342.7302; Burgan, Michael. - The creation of the U.S. Constitution {IL 5-8} -- Capstone Press, c2007., RL 4.5, 32p
A graphic novel chronicle of the debates, disagreements, and compromises that led to the formation of the U.S. Constitution.
RC: 3.3 3 Lexile: 620 |
342.7302; Rebman, Renee C., 1961- - The Articles of Confederation {IL 5-8} -- Compass Point Books, c2006., RL 7.1, 48p
Presents a short study of the Articles of Confederation, and describes British rule, drafting and ratification of the Articles, its power, and its weaknesses that led to a U.S. Constitution. Lexile: 970 |
342.7303; Burgan, Michael. - The Reconstruction amendments {IL 5-8} -- Compass Point Books, c2006., RL 7.5, 48p
A history of the role of the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth amendments in the Reconstruction of the Southern States after the Civil War. Lexile: 980 |
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782.1; Freedman, Russell. - The voice that challenged a nation : Marian Anderson and the struggle for equal rights {IL 5-8} -- Clarion Books, c2004., RL 8.2, 114p
Tells the life story of singer Marian Anderson, describing her famous 1939 Lincoln Memorial performance and explaining how she helped end segregation in the American arts after being refused the right to perform at Washington's Constitution Hall because of the color of her skin. RC: 7.3 7 Lexile: 1180
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973.4; Collier, Christopher, 1930- - Building a new nation : the Federalist era 1789-1801 [ WM BL ] {IL 5-8} -- Benchmark Books, c1999., RL 7.5, 95p
Examines the events and personalities involved in the political development of the United States in the period following the creation of the Constitution. RC: 10 6 Lexile: 1150 |
Fiction
FIC AVI
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Avi. Nothing but the truth. New York: Orchard Books, 1991
A 9th grader's suspension for singing "The Star-Spangled Banner" during homeroom becomes a national news story.
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FIC BAU
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Bauer, Marion Dane. Land of the buffalo bones : the diary of Mary Ann Elizabeth Rodgers, an English girl in Minnesota. 1st ed., special ed. New York : Scholastic, 2003.
Fourteen-year-old Polly Rodgers keeps a diary of her 1873 journey from England to Minnesota as part of a colony of eighty people seeking religious freedom, and of their first year struggling to make a life there, led by her father, a Baptist minister.
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Stephens, Amanda. Freedom at any price : March, 1775-April 19, 1775. New York : Grosset & Dunlap, c2003.
After hearing Patrick Henry's speech and riding with Paul Revere on his famous midnight ride, the Liberty's Kids set off for Lexington, Massachusetts, where they witness the "shot heard round the world" and the start of the American Revolution.
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1.4.1 Analyzes how a position on an issue attempts to balance individual rights and the common good.
1.1.1 Understands key ideals and principles outlined in the Declaration of Independence...and the U.S. Constitution.
1.1.2 Evaluates...how key ideals and constitutional principles set forth in fundamental documents relate to public issues.
5.4.1 Uses sources within the body of the work to support positions in a paper or presentation
5.4.2 Uses appropriate format to cite sources within and essay
5.2.2 Evaluates the logic of positions in primary and secondary sources to interpret an issue or historical event.
Design and information modeled from Trish Henry Mead School District
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