The Constitutional Convention: Composition of Congress

History is the chronicle of choices made by actors/agents/protagonists in specific contexts. This simulation places students at the Constitutional Convention and asks them to construct a legislative branch for a proposed new government. Should there be one branch or two? Should each state get an equal voice in the legislative branch? By discussing and debating the various options, they will gain a deeper understanding of the choices the framers faced and why they opted for particular structures, ones we live with today.

http://consource.org/static/lesson-plans/make-a-nation-convention/Composition_of_Congress-1class.pdf
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Resource provided by ConSource: The Constitutional Sources Project

Grades

11, 12, 9, 10

Subjects

Legislative Branch/Congress

Resource Types

Primary Sources, Interactives, Modules (Teaching Unit), Lesson Plans

Teaching Strategies

Small Group Deliberation, Debate, Simulation/Role-play, Analysis, Primary Source, Whole Class, Whole Class Discussion, Whole Class Deliberation, Small Group, Small Group Discussion

Civic Days

Law Day, Constitution Day, Fourth of July

Duration

50 minutes

Constitution Articles

Article I, Constitution Day, Constitutional Convention, Meaning of Constitution

Tags

government, Founders, Framers, New Jersey Plan, Virginia Plan