Lesson Plan #4

Fifth Grade
Social Studies Standards
5 U3.3.1 Describe the powers of the national government and state
governments
under the Articles of Confederation.
5 U3.3.2 Give examples of problems the country faced under the
Articles of
Confederation
5 U3.3.3 Explain why the Constitutional Convention was convened
and why the
Constitution was written.
5 U3.3.7 Describe the concern that some people had about individual
rights and why the inclusion of a Bill of Rights was needed for
ratification.
Materials and Resources Needed:
Access to a computer and the internet
Graphic organizers
Constitution paper
Poster boards and coloring materials
Big Idea
How did the United States set up its government?
What were the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution,
and how have they affected us?
1. Objective/Purpose
a. Students will be able to differentiate between the different
forms of government.
b. The students will demonstrate their knowledge of the
Constitution and Articles of Confederations through
comparing the two documents and evaluating which one is
more effective to use.
2. Anticipatory Set
a. Story/video of the Revolutionary War.
i. Have you ever
ii. Revolutionary War (https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=p8BwWBc571k)
b. What next? How did we become a nation?
c. What do you do when you have to start something new?
i. First day at a new school
ii. Moving into a new neighborhood
iii. An assignment youve never done before.
d. This is what the colonies were struggling with after the
Revolutionary War.
3. Instructional Input

a. Write the words Where, When, Why, How, and for Whom?
on the board.
b. Students write the answer to the questions on a lined sheet
of paper as they explore the websites below
c. What were the Articles of Confederation?
i. Explore the Articles of Confederation on
Brainpop.com
1. Articles of Confederation
d. What is the Constitution?
i. Explore the Constitution on Brainpop.com
1. US Constitution
e. Video presenting the Articles of Confederation and
Declaration of Independence. Declaring Independence.
(http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/americancolonies-declare-independence)
f. Following the two videos, Kahoot Quiz
i. Quiz located at the bottom.
4. Modeling
a. How would you start a new country?
i. I would model how the US and its people decided to
begin the country.
1. States rights
2. Articles of Confederation (later Constitution)
a. What rights were guaranteed and what it
didnt
3. Branches of government
a. Draw it out on a whiteboard
b. Checks and balances
5. Checking for Understanding
a. Ask for a thumbs up for down for if the Articles of
Confederation was good for the US
b. Ask for a thumbs up or down for if the Constitution was
good for the US
c. On a piece of paper have the students draw a circle,
square, and triangle. In the circle, the students will write
something that is still going around in their head; in the
triangle the students will write something that stood out in
their mind; in the square, the students will write something
that is squared away or they agree with.
6. Guided Practice
a. The students and I will create a class constitution for how
we
b. There will be four articles
i. Describe non-negotiable rules for school. These rules
will serve as guidelines for how treat one another,
how we interact with one another, and how we act

around each other. An example is to follow the

Golden Rule of treating others the way we want to be
treated.
ii. Present rules that are only meant for our classroom
such as raising your hand to answer a question or
always put resources/things you used back to where
they belong. These will be the guidelines for how our
class effectively operates together.
iii. Appoint types of rights that should be guaranteed for
to protect our individual freedoms that will used in
our classroom. These rights are ideas such as the
liberty to use the bathroom, the freedom to ask
questions, or the right to pick our seats.
iv. Provide responsibilities that you will follow and the
teacher will follow in order to preserve order in the
classroom.
c. Have the students create a constitution and list the rules
on a poster board under each section
d. Hang the Constitution on the wall of the classroom.
7. Independent Practice
a. How would you start a new country?
i. If you were the leader or an influential figure, how
would you start up the new country?
ii. Using poster and coloring materials, explain what I
modeled with my new country is what each student
will do.
iii. Students will walk around the classroom to look at
the other students creation once they are all done.
8. Closure
a. Exit cards
i. Which document was better? Give me two reasons.
ii. Write on a sheet of lined paper.
Kahoot Quiz:
i.

ii.

iii.

Who didnt sign the Declaration of Independence

1. Thomas Jefferson
2. Benjamin Franklin
3. John Hancock
4. King Henry
What were the Articles of Confederation?
5. The Treaty that ended the American Revolution
6. The first amendment of the United States
7. The Bill of Rights
8. A document that established the
government
How long did the Articles of Confederation last?

iv.

v.

vi.

vii.

iii.

iv.

v.

9. 20 years
10.
4 years
11.
6 years
12.
10 years
Who was not a Founding Father?
13.
John Adams
14.
James Madison
15.
George Washington
16.
Paul Revere
Who became the first president?
17.
Abraham Lincoln
18.
Thomas Jefferson
19.
John Adams
20.
George Washington
The Constitutional Convention was held in
21.
New York City, NY
22.
Washington DC
23.
Philadelphia, PA
24.
Atlanta, GA
The United States has a _____________ democracy?
25.
Authoritarian
26.
Representative
27.
Direct
28.
Fake
What did the Articles of Confederation big idea?
1. Strong central government
2. Weak central government
3. Monarchy
4. Communism
What the only real power the Articles of
Confederation gave the government?
1. Taxing citizens
2. Print money
3. Choose a president
4. Raise an army during time of war
What do we call the system that was made to make
sure no one branch of the government could be
complete power over others?
1. Compromise
2. Checks and Balances
3. States Rights
4. Executive Priviledge