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Lesson

Actions of the First Congress

Duration
95 min
Grade
9–12
Published
Nov 15, 2020
Historic gathering of founding fathers during the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Students should have a solid foundation of the regional differences in the former colonies, now states, as well as an understanding of the ratification of the Constitution. This Lesson is best used after students have read The Constitutional Convention and The Ratification Debate on the Constitution Narratives in Chapter 3. The James Madison and the Bill of Rights Narrative in Chapter 4 can be used as background for the Lesson or can be assigned as homework after the Lesson to reinforce main ideas.

Objectives:

  • Students will be able to explain how the First Congress in 1789 implemented the Constitution through laws that organized the new government.
  • Students will be able to summarize and explain the need for the actions taken by the First Congress.
  • Students will be able to paraphrase and evaluate the constitutional amendments that James Madison proposed in his speech to Congress on June 8, 1789.

Materials

Objectives:

Lesson Components

ActivityRefining the Bill of Rights: Madison’s Proposals

A graphic organizer to help students analyze the proposed Bill of Rights and connect them to the themes of other Founding Documents.

Lesson plan

95 minClick a phase to open it

More Information

Class sets of pocket Constitutions are available from the Bill of Rights Institute, but any printed copy of the founding documents (the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution) can be used in this activity.

Standards

Advanced Placement

  • Topic 3.8 · The Constitutional Convention and Debates Over Ratification, 20 Shaping a New Republic
  • Theme · Politics and Power
  • Learning Objective · Unit 3I
  • Learning Objective · Unit 3L
  • Historical Development · 3.2.II.E
  • Historical Development · 3.2.III.A
  • Reasoning Skill · Sourcing and Situation
  • Reasoning Skill · Source Claims and Evidence
  • Reasoning Skill · Argumentation

Check whether this resource aligns with your state’s standards →

Related materials

Document excerpt from the Declaration and Resolves of the First Continental Congress, October 14, 1774.
ActivityExcerpted Primary Source: Declaration and Resolves of the First Continental Congress, October 14, 1774

An excerpted version of the text of this source with questions that guide students in understanding the effect of Parliaments actions on the Colonists.

Curriculum overview for "The First Branch: Congress & The Constitution" by the Bill of Rights Institute.
VideoThe First Branch: Congress and the Constitution

Congress, the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the U.S. Constitution. What does the Constitution not do? How did the Founders intend the legislative branch of government to operate? Through primary source analysis students will examine the purpose of a legislature, the design of the U.S Congress, its powers, its history and the reality of how Congress works today in relation to the American Constitution.

Historic black and white photo of a U.S. Senate session, with senators seated and a speaker at the podium.
EssayCongress: Beginnings and Today

Used this essay to begin the study of Congress & the Constitution.