The Constitutional Convention

Last week, the 7th graders learned about America's first constitution, the Articles of Confederation. Students learned about the weaknesses of that form of government and made predictions about the challenges that would be created as a result.  Then, they learned about the Constitutional Convention, where delegates from each state met to fix the problems created by the Articles of Confederation.  Today, they participated in a simulation about the convention.  Each student represented one of the states and shared with their classmates how their state would react to some of the controversial issues at the convention, such as representation in congress and slavery.  Later in the week, they will learn about the Preamble to the Constitution and the system of checks and balances.

Questions for your 7th grader:

• Who did you represent in the Constitutional Convention?  What did they believe about slavery and representation in congress?

• Why did the Articles of Confederation fail?