Unit One Outline (Constitutional Underpinnings of United States Government)

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

8/23 8/24 8/25 8/26 8/27
FIRST DAY OF Summer Project
CLASS! Skill Practice: Skill Practice: AP Due Diagnostic Exam
Grammar, US GoPo Test
Writing, and Taking Strategies Summer Project
Rhetoric & Technology Quiz
Orientation
8/30 Current 8/31 9/1 9/2 9/3
Event Monday Quiz: Chapter 1 Read Pages 22-30
(User Choice) Read Pages 6-10 Read Pages 11-15
Read Pages 16-22
Read Pages 2-6
9/6 No School: 9/7 9/8 9/9 No School: 9/10
Labor Day Read Pages 48-52 Rosh Hashanah
Read Pages 59-65
Read Pages 30-38 Read Pages 38-48 Quiz: Chapter 2 Read Pages 52-59

9/13 9/14 No School: 9/15 9/16 9/17

Primary Election
Current Event Day! Unit 1 Op-Ed Due Exam Review: Unit One Exam:
Monday (topic Bring your review 25 M/C Questions
related to Read Pages 70-75 Quiz: Chapter 3 materials to class & 2 FRW’s
federalism)
Read Pages 65-70 Unit Work Due!

Review Questions: (If you want to avoid answering in complete sentences, rewrite the question and then put the
answer in words or in some cases it might be easier to use a diagram)

1. List three weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation and explain how the U.S. Constitution provided solutions
to problems created by those weaknesses.
2. List three compromises entered in to by the writers in order to construct the U.S. Constitution.
1
 3. List three arguments in favor of ratification of the Constitution.
4. List three arguments used against ratification of the Constitution.
5. Explain why James Madison feared the “mischief of factions” what strategies did Madison believe would
prevent factions from ruining a country?
6. Define the pluralist theory of government.
7. Distinguish among unitary government, confederations, and federalism.
8. Explain how federalism keeps the government closer to the people.
9. Distinguish between categorical grants, block grants, and revenue sharing.
10. Provide an example of an unfunded mandate and explain why these types of mandates are considered to
be controversial.
11. Explain how each of the following policy issues has been affected by federalism: welfare reform, health
care, transportation, taxation, unemployment.
12. What effect did McCulloch v. Maryland have on the relationship between the federal government and the states?
13. Describe how the system of checks and balances works.
14. List four informal ways the original Constitution has been modified.
15. Describe two methods of formally amending the Constitution.

Vocabulary: For each vocabulary concept, write a succinct definition using your own words that is no longer than
10 words in length!

Chapter One: The Study Constitution Convention writ of habeas corpus unitary system
of American Government Shays’s Rebellion bill of attainder confederation system
Power Great Compromise ex post facto law federal system
Authority (Connecticut Compromise) bill of rights “necessary and proper”
Legitimacy republic amendments clause
democracy judicial review line-item veto dual federalism
direct democracy checks and balances Three-Fifths Compromise marble cake federalism
representative democracy popular sovereignty layer-cake federalism
elite limited government Chapter Three: referendum
pluralist federalism Federalism recall
separation of powers devolution (related to grants-in-aid
Chapter Two: The faction federalism) categorical grants
Constitution Federalists block grants conditions of aid
unalienable (rights) Antifederalists federalism mandates
Articles of Confederation Federalist Papers sovereignty unfunded mandates