Social Studies - United States Government & Citizenship
Lesson Plans

U.S. GOV Strand 1: FOUNDATIONAL PRINCIPLES

The framework of the United States Constitution and the functions of government are guided by principles essential for our way of life. An understanding of how these principles are applied in the rule of law, government, and politics is vital in order to be a responsible and effective citizen. Students need to be able to see how the ideals found in the Constitution are present in many of the issues of the day.

Possible Guiding Questions to Consider:

• How are the principles of government embedded in the Constitution?
• How did the shortcomings in the Articles of Confederation lead to the development of the Constitution?
• How is e pluribus unum related to the concept of federalism?
• Why is an independent judiciary so essential to our democracy? What are some of the fundamental purposes of judicial review?
• How is judicial review a reflection of, and a response to, changes in our history?
• What are the exceptional characteristics of the United States' form of government?

U.S. GOV Standard 1.2:

Students will describe the structure of the United States' form of government as a compound constitutional republic, including the ideas of federalism; checks and balances; separation of powers; commerce, elastic, and supremacy clauses; popular sovereignty; and limited government.

• "A Glorious Liberty Document": The U.S. Constitution and Its Principles
  How are the republican principles of limited government, separation of powers, and checks and balances reflected in the U.S. Constitution?
• A Conversation on Judicial Interpretation
  This lesson plan focuses on the essential question: How does philosophy affect the way a judge reads the Constitution and what is the effect of that? Teachers will use the Annenberg Classroom video âA Conversation on the Constitution: Judicial Interpretationâ in which Supreme Court Justices Antonin Scalia, a strict constructionist, and Stephen Breyer, an evolutionist, debate how the Constitution should be interpreted.
• A Conversation on the Nature, Origin and Importance of the Supreme Court
  This lesson explains the structure and function of the judicial branch. Students will learn how the Supreme Court originated, how cases are selected, and why it is an important institution. In the accompanying Annenberg Classroom video "A Conversation on the Constitution: The Origin, Nature and Importance of the Supreme Court," Chief Justice John G. Roberts answers students' questions about the Supreme Court and his role as chief justice of the United States.
• Balancing Three Branches at Once: Our System of Checks and Balances
  Learn about the checks and balances system of the three branches of the U.S. government.
• Celebrating Constitution Day
  Particularly applicable when teaching first semester government classes, discuss with students Constitution Day and the importance of recognizing and celebrating it. Students can virtually sign a Constitution and the page also links to various resources, including a playlist of videos on different aspects of the Constitution and Constitution Day. Students and teachers can find a transcript of the Constitution, as well as a great overview of the document through "America's Founding Documents: Constitution." In addition, teachers will find a variety of teaching resources, all of which are free.
• Checks and Balances
  The principle of checks and balances prevents one branch of government from becoming too powerful. Examples of checks and balances include vetoing of bill, ratifying treating, judicial review and others. This lesson provides video clips with examples and explanations of checks and balances.
• Congressional Oversight of the Executive Branch
  Congressional oversight is the power of the legislative branch to review, monitor and supervise the actions of the federal bureaucracy. This lesson provides an overview of this congressional power and how it is used to as a check on the executive branch. Students will apply their knowledge of congressional oversight to examples of congressional hearings.
• Congressional Power of Impeachment
  In the Constitution, the Congress is given the sole power of impeachment and removing the President and all civil officers from office. This power of Legislative Branch provides a significant check over the Executive and Judicial Branches. This lesson provides explanations of the Constitutional basis of the power, the process for removing officials and the history of impeachments and removing these officials from office. It also provides discussions on the standards of impeachments and how those are interpreted by Congress.
• Constitutional Connection: Impeachment and the Constitution
  This lesson allows students to analyze the Constitution and ask questions about how the Constitution allows for impeachment of the President.
• Early Challenges in the Constitutional Republic
  The ink was barely dry on the Constitution when the first challenges to its protections arose. These early challenges to the new constitutional republic often involved the meaning of the Constitution itself. What did its words actually mean, and who would get to decide?
• Enumerated and Implied Powers of Congress
  Article I Section 8 of the Constitution lists powers expressly delegated to Congress. This lesson has students learn about the concepts of enumerated and implied powers of Congress and explore real life examples of these powers. Students will use the Constitution Clips resources to summarize the specific enumerated powers and identify the additional powers of Congress implied by them. This lesson works well in classes with one-to-one devices or could be adapted to fit a flipped classroom.
• Harvard Case Method Project Curriculum
  Using the Case Method Project from Harvard, students read various case material and then are led through a socratic style seminar to discuss a specific issue/historical decision in American history/politics. In order to access their materials you will need to participate in professional development sessions hosted by Harvard. The sessions are free and done online a various times in the school year.
• Popular Sovereignty and the Consent of the Governed
  Popular Sovereignty and the Consent of the Governed: The Founders believed that the government?s authority needed to come from the people. Under the reign of King George III, the colonists believed that they were deprived of their opportunity to consent to be governed by Parliament through representatives, and, therefore, the British could not force their laws upon the colonies. The Founders made sure to uphold this right in the American Constitution. The people, through their representatives at state ratification conventions, had to ratify the document in order for it to become law.
• What is the Commerce Clause?
  Congress' power to regulate interstate commerce, granted in the Commerce Clause, is often invoked as justification for laws regulating a wide variety of economic activities. How much power does the Commerce Clause allow the federal government to have over the states? This lesson examines this question by looking at the principle behind this clause, the Founders intentions, and how the Supreme Court has interpreted the clause throughout American History.

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http://www.uen.org - in partnership with Utah State Board of Education (USBE) and Utah System of Higher Education (USHE).  Send questions or comments to USBE Specialist - Robert  Austin and see the Social Studies website. For general questions about Utah's Core Standards contact the Director - Jennifer  Throndsen.

These materials have been produced by and for the teachers of the State of Utah. Copies of these materials may be freely reproduced for teacher and classroom use. When distributing these materials, credit should be given to Utah State Board of Education. These materials may not be published, in whole or part, or in any other format, without the written permission of the Utah State Board of Education, 250 East 500 South, PO Box 144200, Salt Lake City, Utah 84114-4200.