Objectives
To my students 1787 was eons ago and it seems that the government as we know it has always been this way. Through this unit I will lead my students from the Articles of Confederation, where the people formed 13 countries instead of one, through the debates and writings of the Federalists and Anti-Federalists during the Constitutional Convention. The lessons in the unit will answer the following essential questions 1. Do we need a government? 2. What were the Federalists' main arguments for the Constitution? 3. What were the Anti-Federalists' main arguments against the Constitution? 4. What are the main powers of the Presidency outlined in the Constitution? and 5. What is the purpose of checks and balances in the Constitution?
Along with establishing the foundation of the Presidency this unit will explore the idea of decision-making. Throughout the Constitutional Convention dozens of people had to come to one decision through debate and compromise. Different ideas were presented without an obvious "correct" choice. I would like my students to analyze the process of presenting a point of view on a topic. The unit will mostly use the writings of the Federalists and Anti-Federalists as primary sources of persuasive writing.
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