Content Area: Social Studies

 

Index: 6.2B Grade 8 CPI 1

 

Standard: 6.2 - Civics

 

Strand: B - American Values and Principles

 

Cumulative Progress Indicator: 1 -  The student will analyze how certain values including individual rights, the common good, self-government, justice, equality and free inquiry are fundamental to American public life

 

Grade: 8

 

Sample Activities:

 

·        Key Principles. Explain to the class that the Constitution is a set of rules for our country and that it has been effective for more than 200 years. The key provisions of the U.S. Constitution can be listed as follows:
·        Separation of powers
·        Bicameral legislature
·        Popular election of the president and members of Congress
·        Powers specifically granted to the federal government and those accruing to the states
·        The judicial system
·        The first 10 amendments, known as the Bill of Rights.

Explain to the class the meaning of each of the key principles. Assign readings for each of them from the library or from the popular press. Students investigate answers to questions such as the following: What does Congress do? What is the difference between the Senate and the House in Washington? How is the president elected? What are specific jobs of the national government? of the states? Explain that there is an ongoing need for the courts to apply the principles to everyday situations. The courts and the scholars often disagree among themselves. Emphasize to the students
that the interpretation of the meaning of the Constitution’s language involves trying to discover the “original intent” of the founders as well as determining the modern applications of that intent.