1. Copy this on the top half of NB p. 49.
The Seven Principles of the Constitution
Principle
Definition
Popular Sovereignty
(Two lines per row!)
Republicanism
Federalism
Separation of Powers
Checks and Balances
Limited Government
Individual Rights

2. Copy these question stems on the bottom half of NB p
Copy these question stems on the bottom half of NB p. 49, skipping one line after each one.
Seven Questions
The government is given its power
People’s views are represented in government
Power is shared
Power is divided
Power is evenly distributed by
Abuse of power is prevented by
Personal freedoms are protected by

3. Copy these on NB p. 48
What are the seven principles of the Constitution?
What is classical liberalism?
What is popular sovereignty?
What is federalism?
Under dual sovereignty, what two governmental organizations share power?
What is the relationship between reserved powers, delegated powers, and concurrent powers?
How is the principle of the separation of powers put into practice in our government?
How does the principle of checks and balances operate?
What part of the Constitution protects individual rights?
Space these evenly down the page, allowing about three lines per question.

4. Lesson C–1: The Seven Principles of the Constitution
Today we will define and discuss the seven principles of the Constitution.

5. Vocabulary The Framers – those men who first wrote the Constitution
sovereignty – the ability and authority to make your own decisions and control your own life
check – a limitation or control of someone else’s power

6. Check for Understanding
What are we going to do today?
Who were the Framers?
Why does hockey call it a check when one player skates into and blocks an opposing player with his body?
Why is it incorrect to say that you have more sovereignty than your teachers?

7. What We Already Know
American colonists fought for independence so they could create a government that protected the rights of the people.

8. What We Already Know
To guarantee that their rights would not be threatened, Americans intentionally created a government that was very weak.

9. What We Already Know
When the Articles of Confederation proved inadequate to deal with the nation’s problems, a new and stronger government was created under the U.S. Constitution.

10. A tell B
What event clearly showed the weakness of the national government during the Articles of Confederation period?
Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

11. Together they form the foundation of the United States Constitution.
The Framers of the Constitution constructed a new system of government based on seven principles.
Together they form the foundation of the United States Constitution.

12. Popular Sovereignty
The Constitution begins with these words: “We the people of the United States establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”
These words clearly spell out the source of the government’s power.
The American form of government comes from a school of political thought called classical liberalism, which emphasizes freedom, democracy, and the importance of the individual.

13. Popular Sovereignty
By blending ideas from classic liberalism and civic republicanism, the Constitution formed a government that is responsible to the people and works for their benefit.

14. Get your whiteboards and markers ready!

15. 2. The Constitution’s classical liberalism emphasizes
the role of government in protecting the rights of the people.
personal responsibility and freedom of choice.
the separation of the government into multiple branches.
the sharing of power between the states and the central government.
the role of the people ruling through their elected representatives.

16. By blending ideas from classic liberalism and civic republicanism, the Constitution formed a government that
can be changed very easily.
is responsible to the people and works for their benefit.
should be the model for the governments of other nations.
resembles that of ancient Greece and Rome.

17. Popular Sovereignty
The Constitution rests on the idea of popular sovereignty – a government in which the people rule.
As the nation changed and grew, a broader range of Americans shared in the power to govern themselves.

18. Popular sovereignty is the idea that the government’s authority comes from the people and reflects the people’s will.
This philosophy had its roots in classical Greece and the Roman republic.
It was expressed again during the Enlightenment by such political writers as John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau.
The Framers were deeply influenced by these ideas.

19. B tell A What is popular sovereignty?
Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

20. The Seven Principles of the Constitution
Definition
Popular Sovereignty
A government in which the people rule
Republicanism
Federalism
Separation of Powers
Checks and Balances
Limited Government
Individual Rights

21. Republicanism
The Framers of the Constitution wanted the people to have a voice in government.
Yet the Framers also doubted that the people would always make sound decisions.
To solve this problem, they looked to republicanism as a model of government.

22. Republicanism
Republicanism is the belief that the people rule by electing their political representatives.
For this reason, republicanism is sometimes called representative democracy.
According to the Framers, these elected lawmakers play the key role in making a republican government work.
Civic Republicanism is the idea that citizens stay informed about politics and participate in the process.

23. A tell B Under republicanism, how do the people rule?
Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

24. Get your whiteboards and markers ready!

25. 4. How does republicanism provide the most basic opportunity for citizens to participate in the political process?
By empowering them to elect justices to the Supreme Court
By creating an electoral college to select the President of the United States
By providing for a public referendum on all new laws passed by Congress
By allowing them to elect Representatives and Senators

26. The Seven Principles of the Constitution
Definition
Popular Sovereignty
A government in which the people rule
Republicanism
Rule by the people through their elected representatives
Federalism
Separation of Powers
Checks and Balances
Limited Government
Individual Rights

27. Federalism
The Framers wanted the states and the nation to become partners in governing, so they turned to federalism.
Federalism is a system of government in which power is divided between a central government and the states.
In the early years of the United States, federalism was closely related to dual sovereignty, the idea that the powers of the federal government and the states were clearly defined, and each had exclusive power over their own spheres with little overlap.

28. B tell A Under federalism, who shares the powers of government?
Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

29. Federalism
In the early years of the United States, federalism was closely related to dual sovereignty, the idea that the powers of the federal government and the states were clearly defined, and each had exclusive power over their own spheres with little overlap.

30. A tell B
Under dual sovereignty, what two groups have their powers clearly defined with little overlap?
Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

31. Federalism
Under federalism, the Constitution assigns certain powers to the national government.
These are delegated powers.
Powers kept by the states are reserved powers.
Powers shared or exercised by national and state governments are known as concurrent powers.

32. Federalism

33. B tell A
Under the Constitution, who has responsibility for the delegated powers of government?
Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

34. Get your whiteboards and markers ready!

35. 7. Match each term with its correct description.
powers shared or exercised by national and state governments
powers assigned to the federal government
powers kept by the state governments
reserved powers
delegated powers
concurrent powers

36. The Seven Principles of the Constitution
Definition
Popular Sovereignty
A government in which the people rule
Republicanism
Rule by the people through their elected representatives
Federalism
A system of government in which power is divided between a central government and the states
Separation of Powers
Checks and Balances
Limited Government
Individual Rights

37. Separation of Powers
To prevent too much power falling into the hands of a single group, the Framers built the idea of separation of powers into the Constitution.
The Constitution divides the basic roles of government into branches.

38. A tell B How many branches is the U.S. government divided into?
Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

39. The Seven Principles of the Constitution
Definition
Popular Sovereignty
A government in which the people rule
Republicanism
Rule by the people through their elected representatives
Federalism
A system of government in which power is divided between a central government and the states
Separation of Powers
The division of basic government roles into branches, with no branch given all the power
Checks and Balances
Limited Government
Individual Rights

40. Checks and Balances
Baron de Montesquieu, a French thinker of the Enlightenment, first wrote about the principle of checks and balances.
The Framers included a system of checks and balances in the Constitution to help make sure that the power of government is limited and that the branches work together fairly.

41. Checks and Balances
Each branch of government can exercise checks, or controls, over the other branches.
Though the branches of government are separate, they work together to perform the work of government.

42. B tell A
How does the Constitution make sure that no branch of government becomes too powerful?
Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

43. The Seven Principles of the Constitution
Definition
Republicanism
Rule by the people through their elected representatives
Federalism
A system of government in which power is divided between a central government and the states
Separation of Powers
The division of basic government roles into branches, with no branch given all the power
Checks and Balances
The ability of each branch of government to exercise controls over the other two
Limited Government
Individual Rights

44. Limited Government
The Framers limited the power of govern–ment by denying specific powers to the Congress.
The Constitution also forbids the states to take certain actions.
These were the delegated and reserved powers discussed earlier.

45. Limited Government
The principle of limited government is also closely related to the “rule of law.”
In the American government, everyone must obey the law, even the president.
This principle of government prevents the abuse of power by powerful people.

46. A tell B
How does the principle of limited government prevent abuse of power?
Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

47. The Seven Principles of the Constitution
Definition
Republicanism
Rule by the people through their elected representatives
Federalism
A system of government in which power is divided between a central government and the states
Separation of Powers
The division of basic government roles into branches, with no branch given all the power
Checks and Balances
The ability of each branch of government to exercise controls over the other two
Limited Government
Principle that requires all citizens, even government leaders, to obey the laws
Individual Rights

48. Individual Rights
The first ten amendments to the Constitution protect people from an overly powerful government.
These amendments are called the Bill of Rights, and they guarantee certain individual rights, or personal liberties and privileges.

49. Individual Rights
For example, the government cannot control what people believe, think, write, or say.
People also have the right to gather peacefully and to ask the government to correct a problem.
Later amendments to the Constitution also advanced the cause of individual rights.

50. B tell A
What are three rights Americans are guaranteed in the Bill of Rights?
Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

51. The Seven Principles of the Constitution
Definition
Republicanism
Rule by the people through their elected representatives
Federalism
A system of government in which power is divided between a central government and the states
Separation of Powers
The division of basic government roles into branches, with no branch given all the power
Checks and Balances
The ability of each branch of government to exercise controls over the other two
Limited Government
Principle that requires all citizens, even government leaders, to obey the laws
Individual Rights
Personal liberties and rights guaranteed to U.S. citizens by the Bill of Rights

52. Get your whiteboards and markers ready!

53. 1. Which of the following are NOT among the seven principles of the Constitution?
Popular sovereignty and republicanism
Federalism and individual rights
Personal responsibility and freedom of choice
Separation of powers and limited government
Checks and balances

54. 9. How does the principle of checks and balances operate?
It divides the powers of government between the states and the federal government.
It makes it possible to change the Constitution over time.
It balances the needs of the government with the rights of the individual citizen.
It gives each branch of government ways to limit the powers of the other two branches.

55. 10. What part of the Constitution that protects individual rights?
The Bill of Rights
The principle of popular sovereignty
The Preamble
The elastic clause