UNIT 2

REVOLUTION & CONSTITUTION

GSE STANDARDS FOR UNIT 2: Revolution & Constitution

SSUSH3: Analyze the causes of the American Revolution. a. Explain how the French and Indian War and the 1763 Treaty of Paris laid the groundwork for the American Revolution. b. Explain colonial response to the Proclamation of 1763, the Stamp Act, and the Intolerable Acts as seen in the Sons and Daughters of Liberty and the Committees of Correspondence. c. Explain the importance of Thomas Paine’s Common Sense to the movement for independence.

SSUSH4: Analyze the ideological, military, social, and diplomatic aspects of the American Revolution.

a. Investigate the intellectual sources, organization, and argument of the Declaration of Independence including the role of Thomas Jefferson and the Committee of Five. b. Explain the reason for and significance of the French alliance and other foreign assistance including the diplomacy of Benjamin Franklin and John Adams. c. Analyze George Washington as a military leader, including but not limited to the influence of Baron von Steuben, the Marquis de LaFayette, and the significance of Valley Forge in the creation of a professional military. d. Investigate the role of geography at the Battles of Trenton, Saratoga, and Yorktown. e. Examine the roles of women, American Indians, and enslaved and free Blacks in supporting the war effort. f. Explain the significance of the Treaty of Paris, 1783

SSUSH5 Investigate specific events and key ideas that brought about the adoption and implementation of the United States Constitution.

a. Examine the strengths of the Articles of Confederation, including but not limited to the Land Ordinance of 1785, Northwest Ordinance of 1787 and their influence on westward migration, slavery, public education, and the addition of new states. b. Evaluate how weaknesses in the Articles of Confederation and Daniel Shays’ Rebellion led to a call for a stronger central government. c. Explain the key features of the Constitution, including the Great Compromise, limited government, and the Three-Fifths Compromise. d. Evaluate the major arguments of the Anti-Federalists and Federalists during the debate on ratification of the Constitution, The Federalist Papers, and the roles of Alexander Hamilton and James Madison. e. Explain how objections to the ratification of the Constitution were addressed in the Bill of Rights