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The Roots and Branches of Religious Liberty The Debate over the Bill of Rights


Sandy Cook


The Roots and Branches of Religious Liberty_Cook


 Apparent to the new country of the United States of America were the lack of effectiveness of the Articles of Confederation and the need for change.  At the 1787 Constitutional Convention, it was deemed that a new Constitution was necessary.  Although the issue of a bill of rights was brought up at this time, the debate concerning the Constitution became the focus.  The Federalist Papersappeared as a series of articles in the New York Times and came to represent the debate that was going on throughout the colonies.  Along with a debate over a constitution, there were three main time frames in which the issue of a listing (or bill) of rights was deliberated:

1.  Constitutional Convention in 1787

2.  Individual states' debates over ratification of the Constitution 1787-88

3.  First session of Congress in 1789

   The issue was not over whether citizens possessed personal liberties or not, but over whether it was necessary to list those rights as a part of the Constitution.  The addition of the Bill of Rights was approved with a 2/3 majority of both Houses of Congress in 1789 and was ultimately ratified by 3/4 of the states in 1791. 

  After analyzing arguments gleaned from excerpts from primary source documents, students will debate the pros and cons of adding a Bill of Rights to the U.S. Constitution.


Introductory document: Thomas Jefferson’s reflection on reading the Constitution
First set of documents (A-I): Documents supporting the necessity of a bill of rights
Second set of documents (J-N): Documents against the necessity of a bill of rights

 

 

 

 


1-2 90 minute block(s)


2


Why is a listing of personal rights important to citizens?


In a paragraph, assess the validity of this statement: “A listing of personal rights (like the Bill of Rights) is necessary for one to fully possess those rights”.  Discuss.


Have students read Part One of the Introduction Document and try to guess what Jefferson’s main objection to the Constitution could have been. Then have students read the rest of the excerpt (Part Two) and discuss. (See linked files for Intro Document).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Whole Class:
--Discuss importance of primary source documents.
--Teacher provides background information setting the stage for debate concerning the Bill of Rights (See "Supplemental Background Notes" in linked files)
Small Groups:
--To assess prior knowledge, ask students to list the rights found in the Bill of Rights. Distribute the Bill of Rights and discuss rights they remembered and others missed. (See website http://www.archives.gov/).
Use the two sets of documents provided in the linked files (one group supporting the necessity of a bill of rights and one arguing against it)  See linked files for document sets.
Option One: (small groups--Mix up document excerpts from both document sets before distributing them to groups. Students should categorize them into necessary and unnecessary. Create and complete a graphic organizer in which each document is listed and the main argument presented by the author is summarized. OR
Option Two: (class divided into half)
--Divide class into halves with one group reading the first set of documents and the other half reading the second set. Each half will list reasons for/against a listing of rights based on their readings.
Whole Class:
--Organize a debate in which students support or defend the following statement: “In 1789, a formal listing of personal rights was necessary for the security of those rights in the future.” Summarize both sides of the debate.
Individually or in small groups:  (See www.archives.gov for website for Bill of Rights)
--Using the Bill of Rights, students should create 2-3 categories into which the ten amendments could be classified.


Students could do ONE of the following art activities as a summary: 

OPTION A:  Students should draw a picture of a soldier. Name him: Private William Oliver Wrights. (aka Bill O. Wrights). Then students should:

1. Have students complete an analogy: How is the Bill of Rights like a soldier?

Discuss: the role of the Bill of Rights as the guardian of our personal liberties

2. On the drawing of a soldier, have students assign his tour of duty, how long, duties/responsibilities,etc.

OPTION B:  Students could draw an icon to represent the Bill of Rights as a guardian and explain.

 SUMMARY DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. What were the main arguments for and against a formal listing of rights being added to the Constitution in the form of a Bill of Rights?

2. Why was (and is) it important for a listing of rights to be added to the Constitution?

3. How might your life be different if the Bill of Rights had not been added to the Constitution?

 


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Documents with Supplemental Notes A_L_LP2 YR1 Cook

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