California Content Standards
8.3 Students understand the foundation of the American political system and the ways in which citizens participate in it.
- Analyze the principles and concepts codified in state constitutions between 1777 and 1781 that created the context out of which American political institutions and ideas developed.
- Explain how the ordinances of 1785 and 1787 privatized national resources and transferred federally owned lands into private holdings, townships, and states.
- Enumerate the advantages of a common market among the states as foreseen in and protected by the Constitution's clauses on interstate commerce, common coinage, and full-faith and credit.
- Understand how the conflicts between Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton resulted in the emergence of two political parties (e.g., view of foreign policy, Alien and Sedition Acts, economic policy, National Bank, funding and assumption of the revolutionary debt).
- Know the significance of domestic resistance movements and ways in which the central government responded to such movements (e.g., Shays' Rebellion, the Whiskey Rebellion).
- Describe the basic law-making process and how the Constitution provides numerous opportunities for citizens to participate in the political process and to monitor and influence government (e.g., function of elections, political parties, interest groups).
- Understand the functions and responsibilities of a free press.
Common Core State Standards
Reading
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.1 Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.2 Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of the source distinct from prior knowledge of opinions.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including vocabulary specific to domains related to history/social studies.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.6 Identify aspects of a text that reveal an author's point of view or purpose (e.g., loaded language, inclusion or avoidance of particular facts).
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.7 Integrate visual information (e.g., in charts, graphs, photographs, videos, or maps) with other information in print and digital texts.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.9 Analyze the relationship between a primary and secondary source on the same topic.
Writing
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.6-8.1e Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the argument presented.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.6-8.2a Introduce a topic clearly, previewing what is to follow; organize ideas, concepts, and information into broader categories as appropriate to achieving purpose; include formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., charts, tables), and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.6-8.7 Conduct short research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question), drawing on several sources and generating additional related, focused questions that allow for multiple avenues of exploration.
Essential Historical Questions
- Who's ideals and philosophies were adopted when the Constitution and American political system were created?
- Who were the key players in the creation of the political parties we have today and why did those individuals have so much influence?
- How did the protest of the new ideals of politics influence political change?
- How much freedom is allocated to the free press to produce a story?
Big Ideas
Interstate Commerce Common Coinage Thomas Jefferson Alexander Hamilton |
Federalists Anti-Federalists Alien and Sedition Acts Foreign Policy |
Shays' Rebellion The Whiskey Rebellion Law-making Process Free Press |
Goals & Objectives
- Students will learn how and why the American political system was originated and how it influenced the American government.
- Students will identify and analyze the two political systems and their role in the American political system
- Students will collectively analyze primary sources to make their own conclusions of why and for what purpose the Constitution was created.
Assessments
Journal Entries, In-Class Political Debate, Quiz, Presentation