Introduction to Unit 4

What was the name of the United States first national government?

• Articles of Confederation

• U.S. Constitution

• Virginia House of Burgesses

• Mayflower Compact

Categorize the characteristics (parts) of the Articles of Confederation as strengths (+ )and weaknesses (-). There are three characteristics for each category.

Groups:

(a) Strengths +

,

(b) Weaknesses -

• No national power to tax

• Could maintain an army, fight a war and sign treaties

• Lacked an executive branch (no leader or president)

• Had a Congress

• United the 13 individual states

• No court system

What replaced the Articles of Confederation as the supreme law of the United States?

• U.S. Constitution

• Mayflower Compact

• Fundamental Orders of Connecticut

• Declaration of Independence

Match the definition to the appropriate term. These are concepts that were introduced in the last video, but you may use an online dictionary to help if needed.

• Federal

• Dividing powers of government into branches with different responsibilities

• State

• Government/ political authority of a country

• National/ Central

• People (public) use their power to elect REPesentatives

• Republic

• Government that unites individual states under one government

• Separation of Powers

• Individual political divisions of people within its own territory

The Declaration of Independence was approved in​ (a)   , while the Articles of Confederation were approved in ​ (b)   .

• 1776
• 1781

All​ (a)   states had to approve, or ​ (b)   the Articles of Confederation before it became the official government of the United States.

• 13
• ratify
• 9
• oppose

Determine which powers Congress had under the Articles of Confederation by placing them in the correct category (4 in each category)

Groups:

(a) Powers of Congress

,

(b) Limits/Challenges of Congress

• Equal voting power between states

• No power to enforce laws

• Declare War

• National government had no power to tax or raise money, only request from the states

• Negotiate treaties

• 9 of 13 states needed to ratify new laws

• Handle foreign affairs (relationship with other countries)

• All 13 states needed to ratify amendments (changes) to the Articles of Confederation

Shays Rebellion escalated in ​ (a)   and was led by Daniel Shays and other ​ (b)   in ​ (c)   . It showed the overwhelming ​ (d)   of the Articles of Confederation and led to the creation of the new U.S. Constitution

• 1787
• farmers
• Massachusetts
• weaknesses
• merchants
• 1781
• strengths
• Virginia