Term
| Declaration of Independence |
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Definition
| Letter to the British king; colonists upset over unfair treatment; plan to leave Great Britain |
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| a colonist that wants to break free from Great Britain; supports the war for independence |
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| a colonist that does NOT want to break free from Great Britain; does NOT support the war of independence |
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| American Revolution (War of Independence) |
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| colonies fight for freedom from Great Britain |
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| helped the colonists to defeat the British; provided money, weapons and supplies |
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| military strategy using hit and run attacks; typically used when a side is not as powerful as the other side |
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| Articles of Confederation |
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| 1st government; not very effective; pretty weak and had many problems |
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| Constitutional Convention |
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Definition
| summer 1787 in Philadelphia; create a new plan for government |
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| the 2nd plan for government; explains principles and structure/organization for the new US government |
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| 3 parts of the Constitution |
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| preamble, articles, amendments |
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| the introduction to the constitution and state goals of the new government |
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| the 7 different sections of the constitution; explains the structure of the new government |
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| to change for the better; today there are 27 changes to the Constitution |
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| We the people, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice.... |
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| is from the preamble and lists the goals of the new government |
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| the special name for amendments #1-10; lists and protects the individual rights that citizens have |
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| protects free speech, peaceful assembly, press, religion, and petition the government |
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| Examples of the 3 Branches (formal/fancy names) |
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Definition
| legislative, executive, judicial |
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| Duty of Legislative Branch |
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Definition
| make the laws (Congress); has power to declare war; represents the states |
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| Duty of the Executive Branch |
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Definition
| enforce the laws (President); commander-in-chief; represents the whole country |
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| Duty of the Judicial Branch |
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Definition
| interpret the laws (Supreme Court); can declare laws "unconstitutional"; term is for life or until they retire |
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| 435 total members; representation is based upon the number of people (population) |
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| 100 total members; representation is equal (2 per state) |
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| government can only do what is listed in the Constitution and amendments |
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| powers given to a branch that limit or "check" another branch |
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| President disagrees with a bill passed by Congress so he/she does NOT sign it. |
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| example of a "check and balance"- the President can appoint someone to fill an opening on the Supreme Court, but that appointee must be confirmed by the Senate (another example of "checks and balance") |
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| example of "check and balance"- the Supreme Court can declare a law passed by Congress/Pres as unconstitutional (no longer a law) |
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| idea from Ancient Rome; elect representatives to speak for you and perform duties of government |
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| dividing the responsibilities of government between different groups (three branches) |
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| having multiple levels of government (federal, state, local) |
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| 1) Federal (national= Washington DC); 2) State (St. Paul); 3) Local (County= Hennepin; City= Edina) |
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| The US Constitution and federal law have final say over state or local laws |
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| US citizenship qualifications |
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Definition
| 1) Birth (on US soil or at least 1 parent is a citizen) OR 2) naturalization process |
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| the steps one must go through to become a US citizen if you were not born one; passing a test is just one step. |
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| an idea for a law that is moving through Congress |
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| Congress can vote again on a bill after a presidential veto; needs 2/3 "super majority" in each house |
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Definition
| vote, serve on jury, and run for office |
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| responsibility of citizens |
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Definition
| follow laws, pay taxes, respect rights of other citizens |
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