Federal Government Vocabulary Constitution Amendment Bill of Rights Individual Rights Federalism Popular Sovereignty Limited Government Checks and Balances Separation of Powers Republicanism Bill Delegated Powers Reserved Powers Concurrent Powers Legislative Branch Judicial Branch Executive Branch Articles of the Constitution

The United States Constitution A document that states our laws and our fundamental principles on how our government will operate.

Amendment Additions or updates made to the Constitution to keep it current with the times.

The first ten amendments to the Constitution. Bill of Rights The first ten amendments to the Constitution.

Individual Rights Every citizen’s basic freedoms that are protected by the Bill of Rights

Power that is shared between the nation & the state Federalism Power that is shared between the nation & the state

Popular Sovereignty the government gets its authorities from the people. The people choose how they want to be governed.

the government has only the powers given by the constitution Limited Government the government has only the powers given by the constitution

procedural rules allow one branch to watch and to limit another Checks and Balances procedural rules allow one branch to watch and to limit another

the government is divided into 3 branches Separation of Powers the government is divided into 3 branches

Republicanism The idea that government should rule the country as a representative of the people who vote for what they want.

Bill a proposed law under consideration by a legislature A Bill has the potential to become a law – but not until it is approved by both houses of Congress and the President himself!

Powers that are given to the Federal Government only. Delegated Powers Powers that are given to the Federal Government only.

Powers given to the state governments only. Reserved Powers Powers given to the state governments only.

Powers that are shared between the state and the federal governments. Concurrent Powers Powers that are shared between the state and the federal governments.

Legislative Branch A division of our government that is responsible for making laws

Judicial Branch A division of our government that interprets the constitution and decides if our laws are legal.

Executive Branch A division of our government that enforces the laws & performs ceremonial duties

Articles of the Constitution The Constitution of the United States is separated into parts. These parts are called Articles. Each Article has a specific purpose.