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We the People Parade


Randi Dorman


United States Constitution_Dorman


The students will analyze the Preamble to the Constitution of the United States that was signed by thirty-nine delegates at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on September 17, 1787. Also, the students will enact "We the People" Parade by demonstrating Philadelphia's celebration of the Fourth of July in 1788 in support of the ratification of the Constitution by ten states, one more than the nine required for approval of the Constitution. Students will examine the primary documents of the Preamble to the Constitution and the Federal Procession of 1788 in Philadelphia.


 

Internet access/computer printer

 

Video: Almost Painless Guide to the U. S. Constitution. Weston Woods, 1999.

http://unitedstreaming.com/

The Supreme Court Historical Society. Digitized Volumes from the Society's Collection. 1980 Yearbook. (excerpt)

lPreamble and the U.S. Constitution

http://www.archives.gov/national-archives-experience/charters/constitution.html

Order of Procession of 1788 (primary documents)

http://www.memory.loc.gov/ammem/index.html

At this website enter Search for "Order of Procession 1788".

Search will have items #1, 2, 3, 5, and 6 as primary documents of the Order of Procession.


Order of Procession of 1788 (printed version of primary document)

    This primary document is easier to read than the original copy of the "Order of Procession 1788."

This version is from the Library of Congress, American Memory, in the documents from the Continental Congress and the Constitutional Convention, 1774-1789.  A direct link appears to have problems; therefore, one must type the entire website and save to "Favorites" for future use. 

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/bdsdcc:@field(DOCID+@lit(bdsdccc1501))

 

Reproduction of the Federal Edifice http://www.ushistory.org/carpentershall/history/procession.htm

 

Drawing of the Federal Edifice or build a model

Art supplies needed such as paper towels for columns, white paint, etc.

 

Attachments #1 and #2

 

Art supplies needed for banners and artifacts of Trade and Professions.

Various craftsmen are walkers in the parade such as bricklayers, butchers, bakers, as well as professions of military, ministry, and politics. The Order of Procession of 1788 described the various people and the artifacts.


Two days


3


 

How does the phrase, "We the people" from the Preamble to the U. S. Constitution reflect consent of the governed or popular sovereignty?


 

As students enter the room, provide different colored index cards with the eight phrases as below:

 

Students will form brainstorming groups with the appropriate colored cards. Areas in the classroom should denote the color of the cards. Perhaps colored copies of the Constitution could be used to designate an area. An example of a mini-poster can be found on the website: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/books/us/constitution/ .

The mini-posters were recommended for use in Lesson One of this Constitution Unit of Study.


1. Explain to the students that they will be analyzing the Preamble to the U. S. Constitution or the introduction and the class will produce a reenactment of the Order of Procession of 1788

(Philadelphia's Fourth of July celebration for the ratification of the U. S. Constitution).

 

2. Troup County School System has access to unitedstreaming videos. Contact the school media specialist for password. Use the website, http://www.unitedstreaming.com/ , select Almost Painless Guide to the U. S. Constitution to view. The recommended portion of the video to view is The Preamble (1:29).

If teachers do not have access to unitedstreaming, they may have students read the Preamble in their textbooks or via the website, http://www.archives.gov/national-archives-experience/charters/constitution.html.

Have students discuss the purpose of the Preamble.


1. The class has been divided into groups by the distribution of the colored index cards with the eight phrases of the Preamble. Each group will research the meaning and write the phrase onto a sentence strip paper to display in the classroom. Dictionaries should be available to identify the unknown terms. Groups will prepare their interpretation of the phrase in the form of a short summary on a mini-poster to be located beside the sentence strip. The students should provide examples of the phrase such as "We the People", might give examples of voting, marching in government parades, or writing the Federalist's Papers that supported the U. S. Constitution.

Graphics or drawings may be appropriate, also. As the group completes the task, the sentence strip (Preamble phrase) with the mini-poster or large index card (interpretation of phrase) is displayed on the wall of the classroom. Group presentations should create class discussions.

 

2. For a transitional activity, the teacher will introduce the Order of Procession of 1788.

http://memory.loc.gov/cig-bin/query/r?ammem/bdsdcc:@field(DOCID+@lit(Bdsdccc1501))

The original photo of the Order of Procession of 1788, as well as a printed version, is available.  In the Materials Section of this lesson plan, suggestions are provided to link to these documents.  The documents are from the Continental Congress and the Constitution Convention 1774-1789 collection with the American Memory section of the Library of Congress. Please refer to the Materials Section of this lesson plan.

After the framers of the Constitution signed on September 17, 1787, the Constitution was printed as a broadside or broadsheet to be read throughout the thirteen states for ratification or approval by at least nine states before the document established the United States. The broadside was often used as a rapid distribution of information to be shared with all the people. Some of the people could not read due to the lack of education. The broadsides were posted in town halls, churches, and often reprinted in local newspapers. The primary document of the Constitution is on the website,

http://www.archives.gov/national-archives-experience/charters/constitution.html

 

In less than a year, ten states had ratified the Constitution. The city of Philadelphia wanted to celebrate and support the U. S. Constitution by organizing a "Grand Federal Procession" under the leadership of Francis Hopkinson, a lawyer. A broadside, Order of Procession, was printed for people to understand the order and symbolism of the Parade in honor of the Constitution. In the middle of the parade was the Grand Federal Edifice, http://www.ushistory.org/carpentershall/history/procession.htm.Charles Willson Peale, an artist, helped by suggesting costumes, banners, and mottoes for the participating groups as well as working on the construction of the Grand Federal Edifice. In the morning, the parade began with 5,000 participants. The procession included military units, artillery, officers of the court of admiralty, representatives of America's allies such as the consul from the Netherlands, justices of Philadelphia's courts, clergymen, men of the bar, members of the college of Physicians and of the Agricultural Society and of the Manufacturing Society, merchants and traders, wardens, and constables, officers of the land office and of Congress, wardens of the port, collectors of customs, ship carpenters, boat builders, students of the University. There were over forty-four different trades and professions represented by the people that included wheelwrights, butchers, goldsmiths, jewelers, potters, hatters, weavers, bricklayers, instrument makers, tobacconists, brass founders, Windsor-chair makers, and many more.

 

The Grand Federal Edifice was on a carriage drawn by ten white horses. The dome supported thirteen columns that were decorated with thirteen stars. Ten of the columns were painted white and three were left unfinished. Ask the students to explain this symbolism. Ten states had ratified the Constitution.] States' initials were on the columns. Ask the students to name the states.

[the original thirteen states]. There was a statue of a woman with a cornucopia and the words "in union the fabric stands firm". Architects and carpenters marched behind the Federal Edifice.

 

The clergy of the different Christian denominations walked together and ate together. The Jewish people had food prepared according to their religious practices while other tables offered food of various meats and vegetables for the other denominations. Throughout the beautiful July day, there were no recorded disturbances or accidents.

 

James Wilson, Pennsylvanian Constitutional Convention delegate, gave an important speech to the citizens that reminded each one of them of the importance of voting in every election. He was a strong supporter of the U. S. Constitution. (http://www.american.edu/heintze/wilson.htm)

 

3. As a class, a parade should be organized to represent as many different parts of the procession as possible. The idea may be portrayed on a bulletin board as a mural, a PowerPoint, or an actual parade through the school hallway. Students will need access to a computer or resource books for research. Due to the large numbers, one student will represent many marchers. For example, one student could carry carpenter's tools (paper-made or toy replicas) to symbolize the 450 architects and carpenters. To analyze the Order of the Procession, use attachment #1, #2, and the other primary documents on websites.

 

4. The reproduction of the Federal Edifice could be an illustration that is rolled on a cart.

To create a model, paper towel rolls painted white could be used as columns with a paper

plate as the dome. A true model-builder may be within the classroom, so be open to

suggestions. The actual Federal Edifice was built in four days by many workers, so

the construction of the model depends on time and preference.


Throughout the activities, students should understand that "We the people" involved many levels and areas of society in the past, as well as the present. Have students recall ways ways in which the phrase, "We the People" from the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution reflected the consent of the governed or popular sovereignty.

A grade level Parade might be organized for Constitution Day, September 17 or the closest school day to that date. From personal experience, artifacts continue to get better as students "piggyback" on ideas from each other. Be sure to laminate or protect and save these for future parades.


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Dorman\Constitution_HO1 LP3 Dorman
Constitution_HO2 LP3 Dorman

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