Grade 8 Lesson at a Glance: Chapter 3, Lesson 1

Houghton Mifflin Social Studies
A More Perfect Union

Lesson at a Glance
Chapter 3, Lesson 1: Roots of Government (pp. 82-87)

The Big Idea
Framework Concept: Change After gaining independence, Americans worked to create a new central and new state governments.

Discuss with students Americans' concerns about a powerful central government. Point out how recent experiences with the British king influenced these concerns and discuss how they affected the new central government.

Review with students the elements of early state governments--strong legislatures, representatives elected by the people, requirements of representatives to live in the communities they represented. Encourage students to see how these ideas later became part of our national government.

Lesson Outline
Use the Lesson Outline to preview the content of the lesson. You may wish to print it for your students as a guide during reading.

Check for Understanding

Read aloud (or have a student read aloud) Article III of the Articles of Confederation on page 85. Have each students write a short paragraph restating the Article in their own words.
Have students create posters and political advertisements that explain aspects of the Articles of Confederation.

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