Delve into the responsibilities of the president by looking at President Hamilton's opinion of the presidential office in his own words. The second in a three-part series, the resource also offers an interesting compare-and-contrast...

Students, who are adult learners, participate in an Internet scavenger hunt in order to assimilate information about the biography of Alexander Hamilton and the Federalist Papers. They look at the Federalist and Anti-Federalist Papers...

Students identify the Articles of Confederation and explain why it failed. They explain the argument over the need for a bill of rights in the Constitution and James Madison's role in securing its adoption by first Congress. Finally,...

Students explain the basic positions of the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists. They chart the differences and similarities between state and federal governments. They write a persuasive essay in response to an open-ended question.

To war! To war! Every nation in the history of the world has had to deal with warfare on some level. Scholars go through a series of activities and discussions surrounding the development of the Constitution to help them better...

How much power is too much power for the federal government? Scholars use primary documents and constitutional research in groups to analyze the creation of the Second National Bank under James Madison. This is the second lesson of a...

The Articles of Confederation sounds like one big, fancy title to middle schoolers. Here, scaffolded steps help to ease novices into understanding this all-important American document. Discussion questions, lesson activities, and ideas...

Students identify Articles of Confederation and explain why it failed, explain argument over need for Bill of Rights in Constitution and James Madison's role in securing it's adoption, and compare and contrast ideas of Federalists and...

Middle schoolers investigate precedents set during George Washington's term in office. They conduct Internet research, develop a list of the responsibilities of the President, match Washington's accomplishments with the list, and play a...

Middle schoolers discuss the powers and responsibilities of the President, list some precedents established during Washington's presidency, and match presidential actions with the type of Executive power it is.

Young scholars investigate reasons why James Madison is called the "Father of the Constitution." They discuss three events during his presidency that raised constitutional questions and look at Madison's opinions of those questions. They...

Who has the power? The founding fathers asked the same question when the United States was formed. Learners explore issues that arose during Madison’s presidency that raised constitutional questions. Through discovery, discussion, and...

Students examine political cartoons to gain an understanding of the political issues that George Washington faced. In this historical perspectives lesson plan, students analyze political cartoons about the National Bank, the title...

Learners define federalism, Federalist, and Anti-Federalist, debate issue of ratification in classroom convention, and take vote on whether to add bill of rights. Three lessons on one page.

Fourth graders stud Federalism and identify examples of abuse of power.

In this social studies events worksheet, students match important events in history with people that were involved at the time. Students complete 13 matches.

In this lesson plan, young scholars will consider "Background on the Patriot Attitude Toward the Monarchy." The plan includes worksheets and other student materials that can be found under the resource tab.