Blended Civic Literacy Module Two Introduction

The Constitution

Have you ever considered how lucky we are to have certain rights, just because we are citizens of this country? Well, let’s think about it. If we didn’t have certain rights protected by the Constitution, like owning property, we would not be able to buy a home or a piece of land. Owning property is one of the rights that we are guaranteed as citizens of America.

In the previous module, we learned how the colonists broke free from Great Britain to form a new country. This experience would influence the writing of the Constitution. In this module, we will learn about the writing of the Constitution and how the Constitution protects the rights of Americans and sets out a framework for government. We will also learn how weaknesses in the Constitution moved the Founding Fathers to create the Bill of Rights. Lastly, we will examine the constitution of NC and the U.S. to evaluate how they have been interpreted and applied over time to shape the experiences of millions of Americans’ lives, including the lives of people today like you and me.

Standards and Objectives

Objectives

Lesson 1

By the end of this lesson you will be able to:

Explain how the ideas of freedom, equality and justice impacted the writing of the Constitution
Evaluate basic rights established in the Constitution

Lesson 2

By the end of this lesson you will be able to:

Compare and contrast the differences in beliefs between the Federalists and Anti-Federalists
Explain why the Bill of Rights was added to the Constitution
Summarize what due process is
Examine the rights protected in the Bill of Rights

Lesson 3

By the end of this lesson you will be able to:

Identify specific examples of how the NC Constitution has been interpreted and applied over time
Identify specific examples of how the US Constitution been has interpreted and applied over time

Standards

Lesson 1

CL.B.1.3 Explain how the values and beliefs regarding freedom, equality, and justice have helped transform the American system of government.

Lesson 2

CL.C&G.4.5 Summarize the importance of both the right to due process of law and the individual rights established in the Bill of Rights in the American legal system

Lesson 3

CL.C&G.4.3 Exemplify how the constitutions of the United States and North Carolina have been interpreted and applied since ratification.

Blended Civic Literacy Module Two Introduction

Standards and Objectives

Objectives

Lesson 1

Lesson 2

Lesson 3

Standards

Lesson 1

Lesson 2

Lesson 3

Reference List

Resources

Image Citations

Video Citations