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Chapter Planner and Suggested Pacing Guide

UNDERSTANDING BY DESIGN®

Enduring Understanding

  • The U.S. Constitution created a federal system of government with a division of powers into three separate branches that check and balance the powers of the other branches.

Essential Questions

  • How does the U.S. Constitution structure government and divide power between the national and state governments?
  • Why and how has the U.S. Constitution been amended and interpreted throughout our history?
  • How do state constitutions and local charters structure government and protect individual rights?

Students will know:

  • the basic structure of the Constitution.
  • what a constitutional amendment is.
  • the principles of the Constitution are limited government, federalism, separation of power into three branches of government, checks and balances, and individual rights.
  • the national government is composed of legislative, executive, and judicial branches.
  • the enumerated powers of Congress.
  • how the executive branch is structured.
  • the meaning of judicial review.
  • how the work of the government has changed over time.
  • how the Founders designed the government to share power among the branches by putting in place checks and balances.
  • the process for amending the Constitution.
  • the Bill of Rights is composed of the first ten amendments.
  • that amendments 11 to 17 involve structural changes to the Constitution, extensions of government power, and extensions of individual rights.
  • that Brown v. Board of Education said that “separate educational facilities were inherently unequal” and therefore unconstitutional.
  • that state constitutions, like the federal one, provide for separation of powers among legislative, executive, and judicial branches.
  • that national supremacy is a power that says if a federal court decides that an amendment to a state’s constitution is in conflict with the U.S. Constitution, that amendment must be removed from that state’s constitution.
  • that charters are documents that state governments issue to a community, giving it legal status and the ability to establish a local government.

Students will be able to:

  • describe the Articles of the Constitution.
  • explain the fundamental principles of the U.S. Constitution.
  • apply their understanding of the Constitution to government actions.
  • explain the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government.
  • identify the enumerated powers of Congress.
  • analyze the ways the three branches share and check power.
  • describe what rights are guaranteed in the Bill of Rights.
  • explain the process of proposing and ratifying amendments to the Constitution.
  • identify ways other than the amendment process that the meaning of the Constitution can change over time.
  • explain what a unicameral legislature is.
  • describe the structure of state and local governments.
  • analyze how the structure of state governments compare to the federal government.

Predictable Misunderstandings

Students may think:

  • That the executive branch of government has more power than the legislative or judicial branch. Students may assume that because the executive branch, and the president in particular, seem to be “in charge,” executives have power to override decisions made by other branches of government. Encourage students to learn about the system of checks and balances and how it is applied at each level of government.
  • That the roles of the three branches of government have remained the same over time. Students may be surprised to learn that roles within the government have changed to respond to the changing needs of the nation through more than two centuries since the constitution was written.
  • That a state constitution may conflict with the U.S. Constitution. While states have a great deal of freedom to create their own laws, no state law or any part of a state constitution may contradict the U.S. Constitution.

 

Assessment Evidence

Performance Tasks:

  • Hands-On Chapter Project

Other Evidence:

  • Guided Reading Activities
  • Vocabulary Activity
  • Lesson Quizzes
  • Chapter Tests, Forms A and B

SUGGESTED PACING

½ Day — Introducing the Chapter
½ Day — Lesson 1
 1 Day — Lesson 2
 1 Day — Lesson 3
½ Day — Lesson 4
½ Day — Chapter Wrap-Up and Assessment

4 Days — Total

DIFFERENTIATED INSTRUCTION

The activities presented are suitable for all levels. Modifications for student ability levels are available for many of the activities. The types of modifications available are indicated by the icons below.

DI for AL Approaching Level

DI for BL Beyond Level

DI for ELL English Language Learner

All students benefit from activities that utilize different learning styles. Activities are designated with the labels below to help you differentiate teaching by the types of learners.

Intrapersonal
Logical/Mathematical
Visual/Spatial
Verbal/Linguistic
Interpersonal
Auditory/Musical
Kinesthetic
Naturalist

Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills

Expand All

  • Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills

    Below are the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills covered in this chapter.

    (1) History. The student understands how constitutional government, as developed in America and expressed in the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, and the U.S. Constitution, has been influenced by ideas, people, and historical documents. The student is expected to:

    (B) identify major intellectual, philosophical, political, and religious traditions that informed the American founding, including Judeo-Christian (especially biblical law), English common law and constitutionalism, Enlightenment, and republicanism, as they address issues of liberty, rights, and responsibilities of individuals

    (D) identify the contributions of the political philosophies of the Founding Fathers, including John Adams, Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, John Jay, George Mason, Roger Sherman, and James Wilson, on the development of the U.S. government

    (E) examine debates and compromises that impacted the creation of the founding documents

    (F) identify significant individuals in the field of government and politics, including George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Marshall, Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Ronald Reagan

     

    (2) History. The student understands the roles played by individuals, political parties, interest groups, and the media in the U.S. political system, past and present. The student is expected to:

    (A) give examples of the processes used by individuals, political parties, interest groups, or the media to affect public policy

     

    (7) Government. The student understands the American beliefs and principles reflected in the U.S. Constitution and why these are significant. The student is expected to:

    (A) explain the importance of a written constitution

    (B) evaluate how the federal government serves the purposes set forth in the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution

    (C) analyze how the Federalist Papers such as Number 10, Number 39, and Number 51 explain the principles of the American constitutional system of government

    (D) evaluate constitutional provisions for limiting the role of government, including republicanism, checks and balances, federalism, separation of powers, popular sovereignty, and individual rights

    (E) describe the constitutionally prescribed procedures by which the U.S. Constitution can be changed and analyze the role of the amendment process in a constitutional government

    (F) identify how the American beliefs and principles reflected in the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution contribute to both a national identity and federal identity and are embodied in the United States today

    (G) examine the reasons the Founding Fathers protected religious freedom in America and guaranteed its free exercise by saying that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,” and compare and contrast this to the phrase, “separation of church and state.”

     

    (8) Government. The student understands the structure and functions of the government created by the U.S. Constitution. The student is expected to:

    (A) analyze the structure and functions of the legislative branch of government, including the bicameral structure of Congress, the role of committees, and the procedure for enacting laws

    (B) analyze the structure and functions of the executive branch of government, including the constitutional powers of the president, the growth of presidential power, and the role of the Cabinet and executive departments

    (C) analyze the structure and functions of the judicial branch of government, including the federal court system, types of jurisdiction, and judicial review

    (E) explain how certain provisions of the U.S. Constitution provide for checks and balances among the three branches of government

    (H) compare the structures, functions, and processes of national, state, and local governments in the U.S. federal system

     

    (9) Government. The student understands the concept of federalism. The student is expected to:

    (C) analyze historical and contemporary conflicts over the respective roles of national and state governments

    (D) understand the limits on the national and state governments in the U.S. federal system of government

     

    (10) Government. The student understands the processes for filling public offices in the U.S. system of government. The student is expected to:

    (A) compare different methods of filling public offices, including elected and appointed offices at the local, state, and national levels

    (C) analyze the impact of the passage of the 17th Amendment

     

    (13) Citizenship. The student understands rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. The student is expected to:

    (A) understand the roles of limited government and the rule of law in the protection of individual rights

    (B) identify and define the unalienable rights

    (C) identify the freedoms and rights guaranteed by each amendment in the Bill of Rights

    (D) analyze U.S. Supreme Court interpretations of rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution in selected cases, including Engel v. Vitale, Schenck v. United States, Texas v. Johnson, Miranda v. Arizona, Gideon v. Wainwright, Mapp v. Ohio, and Roe v. Wade

    (E) explain the importance of due process rights to the protection of individual rights and in limiting the powers of government

    (F) recall the conditions that produced the 14th Amendment and describe subsequent efforts to selectively extend some of the Bill of Rights to the states, including the Blaine Amendment and U.S. Supreme Court rulings, and analyze the impact on the scope of fundamental rights and federalism

     

    (15) Citizenship. The student understands the importance of voluntary individual participation in the U.S. constitutional republic. The student is expected to:

    (A) analyze the effectiveness of various methods of participation in the political process at local, state, and national levels  

     

    (16) Citizenship. The student understands the importance of the expression of different points of view in a constitutional republic. The student is expected to:

    (B) analyze the importance of the First Amendment rights of petition, assembly, speech, and press and the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms

     

    (20) Social studies skills. The student applies critical-thinking skills to organize and use information acquired from a variety of valid sources, including electronic technology. The student is expected to:

    (A) analyze information by sequencing, categorizing, identifying cause-and-effect relationships, comparing, contrasting, finding the main idea, summarizing, making generalizations and predictions, and drawing inferences and conclusions

    (D) analyze and evaluate the validity of information, arguments, and counterarguments from primary and secondary sources for bias, propaganda, point of view, and frame of reference

    (E) evaluate government data using charts, tables, graphs, and maps

    (F) use appropriate mathematical skills to interpret social studies information such as maps and graphs

     

    (21) Social studies skills. The student communicates in written, oral, and visual forms. The student is expected to:

    (A) use social studies terminology correctly

    (B) use standard grammar, spelling, sentence structure, and punctuation

    (C) transfer information from one medium to another, including written to visual and statistical to written or visual, using computer software as appropriate

    (D) create written, oral, and visual presentations of social studies information